tyre choice for Betws y Coed trials...
Barteos
Posts: 657
Hi everyone.
I'm going to Betws y Coed this weekend (first time in Wales) and I don't have a clue what kind of tyres I should put on.
At the moment I ride 5/5.5" FS bike with Schwalbe Racing Ralph 2.40 rear and Nobby Nic 2.40 front, with Stans Flow rims (tubeless).
They are more than perfect for non-technical non-rocky southern coast (New Forest, Isle of Wight etc) but I wonder if I should go for something beefier like Fat Albert or Big Betty for Wales...
What should I expect? Mud, slick or sharp rocks...?
I'm going to Betws y Coed this weekend (first time in Wales) and I don't have a clue what kind of tyres I should put on.
At the moment I ride 5/5.5" FS bike with Schwalbe Racing Ralph 2.40 rear and Nobby Nic 2.40 front, with Stans Flow rims (tubeless).
They are more than perfect for non-technical non-rocky southern coast (New Forest, Isle of Wight etc) but I wonder if I should go for something beefier like Fat Albert or Big Betty for Wales...
What should I expect? Mud, slick or sharp rocks...?
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Maybe just another Nobby NIC for the back.
The Marin trail is man made so your not going to see any mud. The biggest problem are the sharp rocks which become quite slippy when wet.
I reckon the NICs should be fine.
A lot of people dont like the fireroad climbs on the Marin. If your looking for more in the way of singletrack then have have a look at Penmachno, its only 4 - 5 miles from Betwys.
Loop 1 is about 19Km and Loops 1 + 2 about 30Km.
Loads of singletrack but watch out for the rocks hiding in the undergrowth.
Loop 1 Video here http://www.vholdr.com/node/40192
Loop 2 Video here http://www.vholdr.com/video/penmachno-loop2
Make sure you pack a tyre boot, an old toothpaste tube will do.0 -
Hi Barteos just changed from the tyres your on to panaracer fire XC pro's but they did a fair job across Dartmoor wet or dry and took a good hammering on the fast granite laiden trails.
Nice vids Dirtydog11 takes me back to my motorcycle rally days in Betws y Coed in the 80's
and nice ride is that a split link i spy on your chain
My Ride with the Schwalbe's on.
http://img43.imageshack.us/img43/7533/mycubexms2.jpg0 -
The tyres you have should be fine for the Marin and Penmachno. There is very little, if any, claggy mud on these trails.
Stu0 -
High rollers here as well. They're great for pretty much anything in Snowdonia.
(hmm, to clarify, high rollers on my old bike, which I've ridden all over the place - current bike has Nevegals, which are ok, but not quite as grippy as the high rollers)0 -
quagmire man wrote:Nice vids Dirtydog11 takes me back to my motorcycle rally days in Betws y Coed in the 80's
and nice ride is that a split link i spy on your chain
My Ride with the Schwalbe's on.
http://img43.imageshack.us/img43/7533/mycubexms2.jpg
Cheers mate,
Yeah its a sram powerlink, It makes the chain easier to get on and off. I always carry one around with me as well, just in case the chain snaps.
Unfortunately I can't claim credit for the Vids they aren't mine, they where just something I came across on tinternet. They look good filmed with that wide angle lens though and give a good feel as to what Penmachno's about.
Its one of the few trail centers at which I've rode that I feel a full suspension would be a major advantage. Its so rocky you hardly ever get a chance to sit down on a hardtail (even on the climbs).0 -
Penmachno and Marin aren;t really trail "centres", they're just trails. There's no facilities or cafes nearby.
(in case people read this and head off expecting a Glentress or Coed y Brenin kind of place. Yes, I realise there's a trend in the last few weeks for people to not care about posting wholly innacurate information and moaning when they're corrected, but meh to you)0 -
yeehaamcgee wrote:Penmachno and Marin aren;t really trail "centres", they're just trails. There's no facilities or cafes nearby.
(in case people read this and head off expecting a Glentress or Coed y Brenin kind of place. Yes, I realise there's a trend in the last few weeks for people to not care about posting wholly innacurate information and moaning when they're corrected, but meh to you)
Point taken . Are you doing that Snowdon enduro?
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I ran Panaracer Fires, 2.1 Kevlar, at around 30+ psi which were fine on H/tail or full sus.
Ran a club in Llanrwst for years, so well used at Betws. Went thro 2 pairs at least.
Bought some huge/chunky WTBs, but found they dragged on the LOOOOONG fire road climbs, but were only just ok on the DH sections.
Light alternatives: Spec Fast Track Kev, not the LK Low Knob ones. Big volume and light.
When my leg's "sorted" I'll try Conti Mtn Kings at Betws, Tubeless on Mavic Crosslands.
They've not let me down - literally - since fitting. Hardly any leaks, if any. Result!0 -
Many thanks for the recommendations and extra info about the trails:)
I think I'll stick with Schwalbe as I've used their tyres for quite a while and the higher end models (EVO) seem to have very low rolling resistance for the grip. I guess as Dirtydog suggested I'll go for a pair of Nobby Nics and maybe take Mr Fat Albert FR 2.40 with me just in case...
I wish Schwalbe made Racing Ralph (my fav) 2.40 in Snakeskin or tubeless version...0 -
Hi Dirtydog11 i'll have to look into the sram powerlink at the mo i carry a spare piece of chain but was wondering what split links where used on the shimano kit and you've answered that for me in pictures which is great as being an engineer i like to see it in use as opposed to being on the shelf in the bike shop Cheers Keith. 0
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Well, I'm back. At the end I went to Coed y Brenin instead and I'm glad having taken some bigger rubber with me (Fat Albert/ Nobby Nic). On black grade rocky wet sections It felt like no tyre is too big or too knobly...0
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Dirtydog11 wrote:Maybe just another Nobby NIC for the back.
Make sure you pack a tyre boot, an old toothpaste tube will do.
+1 lost my tubeless ACX to a rock on Penmachno this weekend, luckily not too bad so just an innertube worked, now got tubeless repairs and a tyre boot sorted for the next trip, def going back soon
Had a 2.25 NN on the front and was pretty faultless, perfect for wet rocky welsh trails, for the rear might want somat with stronger sidewalls though, esepcially at £40 a throw :evil:0 -
What's a tyre boot?0
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yeehaamcgee wrote:What's a tyre boot?
Gheto fix - Something to shove inside a torn tyre to stop the inner tube poking out if you tear it on a rock so you can still ride home, most people carry old clean toothpaste tube with the ends cut off and cut in half [/quote] 0 -
Oh, I see. Makes sense.0
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[/quote]eddyesi wrote:yeehaamcgee wrote:What's a tyre boot?
Gheto fix - Something to shove inside a torn tyre to stop the inner tube poking out if you tear it on a rock so you can still ride home, most people carry old clean toothpaste tube with the ends cut off and cut in half
That and gaffer tape !!
It'll get you around the rest of the trail and home.0 -
eddyesi wrote:Dirtydog11 wrote:Maybe just another Nobby NIC for the back.
Make sure you pack a tyre boot, an old toothpaste tube will do.
+1 lost my tubeless ACX to a rock on Penmachno this weekend, luckily not too bad so just an innertube worked, now got tubeless repairs and a tyre boot sorted for the next trip, def going back soon
Had a 2.25 NN on the front and was pretty faultless, perfect for wet rocky welsh trails, for the rear might want somat with stronger sidewalls though, esepcially at £40 a throw :evil:
Same thing happened to my mate a couple of weeks ago 2/3 of the way around Penmachno, thats why I mentioned the tyre boot. We used his Ipod case to patch the hole.
He ran wide on a turn and a dagger shaped rock went straight through the sidewall destroying a brand new Highroller. I don't think it would have mattered what tyres he'd had on the result would have been the same. There are some pretty sharp rocks hiding in the overgrowth at Penmachno.0
