pbass

Not sure what the terrain is like where you'll ride, but that is precisely why I switched from ByWays to the Ventures - I was sliding out too much. It's very dry/loose-over-hard here where I ride, and steep. The Ventures offer quite improved grip IMO, climbing and cornering.
I'm about 70/30 dirt/road. They feel fine on the road--I don't really notice any penalty with the added tread. Still playing with the PSI. I'm running in the mid-high 20's right now.

RidingMatthew

thanks @pbass I like them or the Elwoods. Although after trying to change my tube (flatted yesterday) yesterday i am not sure I want to mess with changing tires back and forth. I am worried about the unpaved
I think that i might want a bit more bite on the downhills and stuff.

chas58

Hmmm, Read between the lines and do what Eric did. Mill City will build you a nice set of wheels for a competitive price. They can be exactly what you need to meet your needs (rather than trying to figure out if the rims "on sale" will actually work for ya). Plus, you are supporting "one of us" (a guy who rides like us and makes his living with bikes). Email him, face book him, or call him up. Brett will take care of ya.

They will be less expensive than a lot of the off the shelf wheels, and you can have something "built in the USA" rather than somewhere in Asia. ;-)

He is on facebook or email: millcitycycle at gmail.com

whostolemybike

Seems like you made a choice, but thought I would chime in anyway. I have been running a Venture in the rear and Sendero in the front for my riding in SoCal, really like the setup. The Venture definitely has much more supportive and pronounced side knobs than the Byway.

Personally, running a less aggressive tire in the rear is more fun for me. I think a Venture in front and a Byway in back for lower rolling resistance and a little more excitement would be a ton of fun as well.

pbass

Damn, that rig looks hot. How does that feel on the road? I've run different sizes front to rear on my mountain bike (bigger in front) but never different degrees of tread. I bet it locks on to our rocky gnar here real well. Your idea of the Venture in front/ByWay in back is something I could easily try now, but for me, I was sliding out at the top of pitchy loose climbs, feeling like it was the rear coming loose, so I dunno. Maybe it;s because my technique sucks
Where is that, BTW?

trailangel

PBass...... watch yourself. Pic just above the JPL parking lot last week. These guys are out even though the weather is mild.. they are out trying to warm up. This one had 10-11 rattles on it.

pbass

Yep, saw one this week--Cherry Canyon. Also a really beautiful juvenile bobcat down by JPL.

whostolemybike

Thanks! It's a super fun bike for all the trails we have in the San Gabriels, especially with a dropper for descents I typically ride on a mtb.

Since most of the rolling resistance is in the rear I try to save energy there and keep the cornering confidence for the front. Technique helps a lot for the steep stuff, but at the end of the day out of the saddle climbing is def worse without a knobby in the rear. For grinding up fire roads there's no big loss though. If you're riding a fair amount of road, the Sendero might be a little much, and the Venture front and a Byway on back would probably be the way to go (for wear properties as much as road noise and rolling resistance).

whostolemybike

Hello friend! Your front brake rotor is installed backward. Highly recommend fixing that asap!

pbass

Wow, thanks for pointing that out! I'm a noob about that stuff. That's how the bike came from the shop! I will take care of that.

whostolemybike

Missed your last question. It's at the Top of Mt Lowe RR, right where the tunnel is.

DavidfGR

Just did a 80KM ride, 99% on pavement with new Venture tires. Before i had the Byways. When you want to accelerate You can feel the small knobs digging into pavement, but once you get up to speed i found them OK, not to much drag. Not sure about this, but first impression is that the Byway was more compliant, plush than Venture. Just had couple of rides also on dry gravel, dirt and they were fine. On the other hand i never had problems going on same terrain with the Byway.

Also have a 700cc wheelset with Vitoria Strada Bianca 36x700 TLR for road and light gravel, so i wanted to have a tire more for offroad for my 650b whellset.

Koyote

Just came across this post. I rode unPAved last year (90m), and will do it again this year (120m). This past year I was on Terrene Elwood 42mm - the "Tough" version. Absolutely no complaints. Though the WTB Venture looks nice, too, and might be on my bike by October.

gus6464

What's the difference between the Rove ST and the Sutra ST frames? They look identical.

pbass

Without comparing the specs I do know that the Sutra can fit 29x2.1 which the Rove ST can't.

JonathanGennick 

Any love for the Senderos? I rebuilt my singlespeed last evening, and threw on a pair.

The Venture is probably more right for how I normally ride the bike, but - silly me - I had neglected to order a set. So the Senderos are it until my Ventures arrive.

Am heading out today and might try our local singletrack. Might as well, right? Because knobs.

dgodave

Are you sure?

Mine are installed like that too, with the spider 'arms' pointing toward the direction of braking force, which maybe makes sense.

edit: yeah, looks like youre right.

JonathanGennick 

The Senderos were shockingly good on Munising's singletrack. I might leave them on the bike for a while. Got in a great ride today. Singlespeed is a nice change of pace. Only a couple steep bits on our local trail that I don't yet have the legs for. All good though. Had a great time out on the bike. Might run 5 psi lower pressures next time.

gus6464

Thinking a Venture rear and Sendero front would be the gnarly combo for dirt. Grip where you need it and not where you don't.

JonathanGennick 

I might try that combination, or maybe even the Byway in the back for the added air volume. Because I pinch-flatted the rear tire on my first ride w/the Senderos.

Some of Sendoros' 47 mm width is taken up by the knobs, leaving less room for air volume. I do notice the less balloon-like feel to the Senderos as compared to the Horizons. That said, my bike frame won't allow for anything wider than 47 mm so it's a good thing that WTB held the outer width to that number.

trailangel

Another one down at the JPL parking. This must be the daddy..... 14 rattles. These things freak me out because I can't hear very well.
Never seen so many snakes in one year. Must be heavy rains displaced them, or becuase they are digging out Devil's gate damn.
Watch you step please!

pbass

Whoa! That's a big boy! Good point about them being displaced because of all the work down there. I'm in Glendale, just over the line from La Canada. Just had a baby rattler on my front steps the other day. We have open space behind our house, but still, haven't seen a rattler this close to the house in 10 years.

bcpriess

If you want good rolling tires with grip that play well with most everything, get wtb Riddler's or Donnelly mso xplor. If you need something that can handle mud and sand, specialized fasttraks are the ticket and don't sacrifice much on other terrain, but do require 2in clearance.