![]() The Wild Race’R, unlike some of Michelin’s other ‘mission specific’ enduro tyres, nods its head towards everyday riders as much as it does hardcore enduro racers looking for a great rear tire for the year's fairer months, making this a serious tire we can’t wait to really get wild on when the trails get dusty again.The Skip Barber Formula Car Race Series made its first visit to the winding and fast NOLA Motorsports Park near the famous New Orleans French Quarter. Braking, cornering and a noticeable reduction of drag on prolonged fire-road climbs (we ran a Maxxis Shorty 3C in the front for reference) was evident from the get-go and a welcomed feature, but the speed going down and the ability to control it was by far the Wild Race’R’s defining attribute and something I'm keen to revisit when the conditions become more consistent. Upon landing on some nicely drained and sandy hardpack trails, intermingled with loose and rocky man-made sections, the speed and control of these tires really shone, going both up and down. It did break away on a number of occasions, but these conditions were far from those that this tire was envisioned to master. Surprisingly, on all but the slickest of roots and off-camber sections the Wild Race’R remained composed, calm and unnervingly consistent given the conditions. While greasy trails might not be the Wild Race’R’s area of expertise, the designers at Michelin never intended this tire to be a one trick pony. Typically, recent rainfall had delivered a thin coating of greasy mud over previously dusty trails, but not to be swayed and eager to see how this new tire held up, we hit the trails to see how the Wild Race’R fared. Getting a feel for a condition specific tire away from the conditions it was designed for can be pretty hard, so we left an unusually wet and slippery Finale and headed back to the UK, which had, until we returned, been enjoying a refreshingly dry autumn. Michelin's Gum-X Series tires use a harder compound than their softer Magi-X Series siblings, delivering a concise balance between grip where its needed and drag where it isn't, while also helping to improve longevity. Going way further than simply offering their tires in different compounds and relying on a softer front tire to provide the grip and a marginally harder rear tire to reduce the drag, Michelin's R&D team wanted to understand the unique relationship between both tires within the given parameters of all-mountain riding and enduro competition - riding up, carrying speed on flat sections and maximising grip, while descending predominantly natural trails - which helps to explain Wild Race’R’s unique tread pattern To do this, Michelin worked hand-in-hand with its pro riders for over a year to develop the Wild Race’R and with it, a greater understanding of the unique performance requirements of both front and rear tires in a variety of conditions. ![]() Designed in collaboration with enduro top guns, Nico Vouilloz and Jerome Clementz, the Wild Race’R’s pedigree on paper is hard to fault and represents a radical departure from its predecessor, boasting a completely new tread pattern and carcass.ĭesigned to deliver consistent performance on predominantly dry and challenging terrain, the team at Michelin wanted to create a true thoroughbred rear tire that would provide maximum performance with a variety of completely different tires up front. Michelin’s renewed focus on mountain biking continues into 2016 with the arrival of their latest 'enduro specific' tire, the Wild Race’R. With a foldable bead and built around a tubeless ready, reinforced carcass, the Wild Rock'R is ready for both the aggressive terrain encountered on the Enduro World Series and the trails back home.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |