Treads

Just installed some Michelin Mountain A/T 26 x 2.2 tires on the XC bike.  They’re essentially the same tread pattern as the XCR A/T 26 x 2.0 tires that were on there before, but are wider.  According to specs, these are supposedly 640g each, up from the 560g each for the XCR A/T‘s.  Both models are folding, have the grey silica dual-compound treads, and 127 tpi casings.    The XCR A/T‘s are great tires, but they are narrow.  They are labeled as “2.0”, but set up more like “1.8”.  Likewise, these Mountain A/T‘s are narrow for their labeled 2.2 size, measuring out at 50mm on Mavic XC 717 disc rims (should have measured the actual size of the XCR A/T‘s before I took them off).  It’s an excellent tread pattern – it would be great to have them in “2.4”…

I’m hoping for a little more traction and a little more stability with these without gaining a pile of rolling resistance.  The narrow XCR A/T‘s tend to get a little jumpy in the babyheads, and sink into the walnut-sized crumbly rock we’ve been seeing at the Waimano mystery zone.  I’m sure the transition will be seamless and I won’t really notice a big difference since they’re essentially the same tire.  The Mountain A/T‘s will probably get a neighborhood test ride or two before going on to Whistler, which will be the acid test.  The XCR A/T‘s will probably go back on when I get back.

Just a note, they are called out as “Mountain A/T” on the Michelin webpage and in most other literature, but the tires themselves are labeled “Mountain A. T.” on the casing.  Likewise, the XCR A/T says “XCR A. T.” on the casing.  Go figure.