michelin wild race'r 29

[tailwaters]

Was in search of something a bit different for Racing this year and ran across these Michelin wild race'r 29. Seem to be very little as far as reviews out there but what is available seems to be good. They mounted up very easily on my BWW 29 rims with Stan’s Rim strips. Matter of fact I mounted them up without sealant 1st and after 4 days had only lost about 5lbs of pressure. These are the non-advanced version and are claimed to weigh around 670 grams per tire. Not the lightest but they offer a pretty thick sidewall so they should be pretty durable. These are the 2.1 version, however after a couple days they tend to grow a bit and they now measure right at 2.2. They offer good volume so ride quality should be pretty good. As you can see by the pics they inflate and have a more squared off profile. I thing that has more to do with the fact the side knob is fairly tall and the shoulder of the knob is cut off. I currently have them at 25psi each and feel that maybe a little to firm. As soon as the weather here in Michigan breaks I'll get out and give them a try. Of course not the ideal conditions for this tread design, but you never know. Maybe I'll be surprised.

[thomllama]

I tried Mich tires a few yrs back, honestly I really liked the traction and the roll resistance felt low for a taller knobbed tire, but .. went thru one every ride as the knobs would tear off in less than 5 miles... got like 6 replaced before the shop just sent them all back and gave me store credit. I have since moved to Conti tires but if Mich has fixed the material/manufacture issue I'd like to try them again...

[Sin-man]

I have the "Racer" tires on my Yelli Screamy and love them. They are not mud tires, but for 90% of the trails in north eastern MA, they feel great to me. No excessive wear on them, and low rolling resistance.

[Appalachian]

I find this ironic as both my conti race king and mountain king II are loosing knobs, but my michelin wild race'r and grip'r II have been wearing awesome!

I tried Mich tires a few yrs back, honestly I really liked the traction and the roll resistance felt low for a taller knobbed tire, but .. went thru one every ride as the knobs would tear off in less than 5 miles... got like 6 replaced before the shop just sent them all back and gave me store credit. I have since moved to Conti tires but if Mich has fixed the material/manufacture issue I'd like to try them again...

[Vespasianus]

I find this ironic as both my conti race king and mountain king II are loosing knobs, but my michelin wild race'r and grip'r II have been wearing awesome!

I had the exact same problem. My MK II protection lost all its knobs in a month. The Michelin Wild Grip'r II Advanced look untouched after 2 months and have better grip and rolling resistance to boot. Funny how things change.

[thomllama]

I got a 4 yr old Mtn King on the front.. and a newish X king on the rear.. both are great shape and are standard rubber no fancy skins or any upper end compounds. I hear the ones falling apart were the fancy dual compound ones.

actually, the Mich's I had that fell apart were dual compound and it was the softer stuff just tearing away from the harder inner body.. wondering if all these fancy compounds are worth it..?

like I said thou, the Mich's I had were SOME time ago.. (like 2006 I think?) and have been looking into try again... both the shop and Michelin were VERY good about warr and issues so even thoou I had the problems I have no qualms about trying them again.

[tailwaters]

What reviews that were out there did mention the advanced compound was wearing a bit faster than expected. This is why I opted for the standard as I also seem to run into issues with the fancy models. Looks like I may get lucky and the snow may melt in the next couple days so I hope to get a ride in. More than likley the ground will be frozen so not sure what value if any the feedback will be in regards to grip. I have noted it looks like I will need to drop the air pressure a bit more as at 25psi they still seem a bit firm.

[Vespasianus]

I got a 4 yr old Mtn King on the front.. and a newish X king on the rear.. both are great shape and are standard rubber no fancy skins or any upper end compounds. I hear the ones falling apart were the fancy dual compound ones.

actually, the Mich's I had that fell apart were dual compound and it was the softer stuff just tearing away from the harder inner body.. wondering if all these fancy compounds are worth it..?

like I said thou, the Mich's I had were SOME time ago.. (like 2006 I think?) and have been looking into try again... both the shop and Michelin were VERY good about warr and issues so even thoou I had the problems I have no qualms about trying them again.

My MK I Protection was a great tire. Loved them. From everything I heard, the MK II was even better. Was surprised at how bad they were. The X-king does not count, as it has no knobs to start with! (:

[thomllama]

My MK I Protection was a great tire. Loved them. From everything I heard, the MK II was even better. Was surprised at how bad they were. The X-king does not count, as it has no knobs to start with! (:

actually i was surprised at how well the X-king works... it's a taller knob than the Mich wild R's listed here...
normally switch out the rear tire for something a bit more aggressive for winter/snow riding... been riding the X-king all winter and multiple times in the snow and have not had anymore issues than anyone else who are running much nastier tires. only in extreme steep hills did they slip out and then, everyone did. Tread is smaller but not tiny or jammed to tightly together that they pack up (think Small block 8's,... crappy tire LOOL)

I will be keeping an eye on the these Mich's thou... look like a sweet summer tire for New England riding

[mike_mtn]

What reviews that were out there did mention the advanced compound was wearing a bit faster than expected. This is why I opted for the standard as I also seem to run into issues with the fancy models. Looks like I may get lucky and the snow may melt in the next couple days so I hope to get a ride in. More than likley the ground will be frozen so not sure what value if any the feedback will be in regards to grip. I have noted it looks like I will need to drop the air pressure a bit more as at 25psi they still seem a bit firm.

Tailwaters - have you had a chance to ride these tires? What do you think of them? Considering for front on loose over hard conditions as a summer tire.

[Holmes]

I ran the previous (non-tubeless) version for one season, tubeless on Blunt rims. I thought they were a good tire for the $$, still in decent shape.

[owtdorz]

I'm running the Wild Racr Ultimate on WTB i19 rims. Tubeless with Orange Seal.
I used them at Sea Otter and here in AZ in Sedona and around Phoenix.
They are definately fast rollers and so far handle great and no wear issues.
They are 29x2.0

[tailwaters]

I’ve managed to get about 50 miles on them thus far. First few rides were a bit on the muddy side but all in all they did fairly well. I think the fact the 2.2 run a bit on the large side 2.3 so that helped aid in some added traction. I also hit a trail that had some sand sections. They did have a tendency to wash out but the large side knob was always there to save the day. Riding my normal trails and conditions which are loose over hard packed single track they have performed very well. Tires are very fast and actually grip much better that expected. With the tall side knob I’ve found I can really lean the bike in the corners without the fear of losing tractions. I am running them tubeless and have noticed that the ride improves greatly with lower tire pressure. I’ve I run them at my standard 25PSI they tend to get a little harsh. I think that’s due to the thicker side wall? We’ll see how they do on race day!