UKH

I'm about to head off on a little bikepacking adventure, and being both cycling-unfit and laden, I'm looking to make life easier in any way possible. I'm thinking that a DHF might not be the optimal choice for two days of flat hardpack and flinty trails...

Any suggestions for a good fast-rolling front tyre to pair with the Minion SS I have on the back?

Maxxis Ikons? 

https://www.mbr.co.uk/reviews/tyres/maxxis-ikon-tyre-review

My wife and I cycled the Whitby - Bridlington coast path and back 4 weeks ago plus a dalby forest day. 120 miles over 3 days.

My wife cycles to work every day and runs, so pretty fit. I intend to cycle and run a lot but rarely do so absolutely not fit! She has a nice hybrid, I only own a MB.

A friend who knows these things recommended Schwalbe hurricanes. Slick in the middle, small lobes next with full nobbles at the edge. They were fantastic, silent and noticeably faster on tarmac and trails but still had a good grip when I leant over on the trails down hill. The only downside was grip off road. As they are slick in the middle you just spin out. This was not a problem on tarmac or gravel.

I paid £50 for a pair of 29ers.

https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/schwalbe-hurricane-performance-tyre/rp-...

If you still want to retain off road grip ability, I’ve used Schwalbe Smart Sam for hundreds of miles of mixed on off road routes and an acceptable compromise all round. 

I use to love my Panaracer semi slicks.  

Never had any problems but depends on your terrain.

Tws

Hello mate

Had a few trail / Enduro specified tyres but also some XC dedicated ones. I've tried them on my HT (tricky if you do not chose your path wisely and willing to go fast) but also on my Full Sus bike.

As far as i remember only twice i went for diff brand / size / spec (front compared to the rear). 

Heard way too many different suggestions re: folding bead, width 2.25 going up to 2.4 or even 2.6" for more cushion, less pressure, more grip and the almighty "compound" spec.

I mean, seriously?  It seems like every second Sunday enthusiast now is Lewis Hamilton.

Yes - could agree with some of them feedbacks and completely disagree with the others. I believe the final judgement should left to DH/Enduro "racers" hammering down the rocky and slippy hill 40 mph and wearing those out weekly. 

IMHO, most of the ones i've had "worked" absolutely fine (all depends how aggressive you want to be).  

I am not reaching Hamilton level yet but far from "newbie" (just to clarify who is judging ...) 

Schwalbe mentioned above -  Smart Sam "was" ok 

WTB Trail Boss TCS Tough Fast Rolling

Maxiss Minion DHR II Wide Trail

Maxiss Creepy Crawrel Trail

Heard good things about MM DHF Exo (never tested myself)  

Enjoyed a lot WTB Judge TCS Tough fast ....

Hoping this might help you a bit

Good luck

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Forgot to mention, tested those in Wales - mainly (only once in Scottland).

Penmachno area, Marin trail (aka Gwydir Mawr), Bike Park Wales, Llandegla forest, around, Coed-y-Brenin and Snowdon summit. 

Cheers all. I was looking at the Ikon/Ardent, but a cursory Google led to a lot of comments of people meeting wet terrain on Ikons and subsequently meeting terra firma. Something I'd quite like to avoid!

I'm not too concerned about all-round ability; if I'm going to go on a more 'proper' mountain biking adventure, I'd stick the DHF back on the front. In this instance, I'm going to cycle 70-odd miles around hardpack in Norfolk on an overly heavy and inappropriately sturdy bike, where the longest climb is, err, 40m, and ditto the descent! Equally though, I want something that won't be absolute death at the first sign of slightly sub-par terrain. At the minute I'm leaning towards possibly the Ardent Race, or maybe a Conti Race King, but I will check out those suggestions.

I'm hoping to get out on these sorts of trips more often in the future, so having the option of a faster option up front while keeping the semi-slick on the back seems like a sensible investment.

Schwalbe tyres are renowned for their lightweight casings which give lovely low rolling resistance but does make them susceptible to cuts.  They offer as many as  4 different casing options for the same tyre, so watch which one you pick.  I've just had to retire a Racing Ralph with "performance" casing in less than 1300km of riding on rough moorland tracks in Aberdeenshire, I don't think it would have lasted half as long riding somewhere with flint.  In contrast I've been running a 2.5" Maxxis High-Roller with LUST Silkworm casing for over 3000km on the front of the same bike and the tyre has no visible cuts.