dual duty tire
 

I know I'm asking for alot here, but I'm looking for a tire that I can ride on the hardpack singletrack and also on the road for mileage. I can only have one bike to do both of these and I don't want to swap tires and/or wheels. I have narrowed it down to either the WTB All-Terrainasaurus, Conti Town and Country, Avocet Cross II, and Kenda K-Rad. Any others I may wish to consider? Comments and recommendations please. Thanks.

The Conti T&C look a bit slick for all but the mildest of off road duty. I'm running their Traffic tire. It's a bit more aggressive in the tread department which is good for the off road adventures, yet a nice smooth center section for smooth fast road riding. For what I use it for, it gets five stars. :)

http://www.comparestoreprices.co.uk/...affic-tyre.jpg

I run These...SPECIALIZED Crossroads Armadillo Elite...

"The legendary meets the future. The Crossroads, one of the all time best selling treads from Specialized is joined with our latest in flat protection, Armadillo Elite. With a 120 TPI casing, Aramid bead and dual compound the Crossroads Armadillo Elite is the perfect tyre for a wide array of applications be it unpaved paths to the city streets it performs reliably and consistently with a smooth centre tread section and substantial side knobs for traction and off-road stability. Reinforced against punctures with Specialized's proprietary Armadillo Elite casing this tyre makes flats and commuter traffic obsolete. Features: Light weight Armadillo Elite technology. Dual compound 70/60. 120 TPI Casing. Aramid Bead."

http://www.southdowns-bikes.com/smsi...ossroads-1.jpg

I used to run Conti T&C's but they moved the production of the T&C's to Tiwan and they arnt as good as they used to be. These Work GREAT!!!

Continental Town & Country. A FAST on road tire you can crank up the psi on, smooth rolling, and grippy on hardpack!. And unlike most tires today, its made with REAL rubber, not that dual compound silica ****. LONG WEARING, dual directional (you can rotate them for longer wear, my set are going on 7 years now of daily city riding)

http://img.epinions.com/images/opti/...resized200.gifhttp://www.performancebike.com/produ...-026-TREAD.jpg

You Have the ones with the gumwall sides,(The GOOD T&C)not the blackwall they currently make...The new ones arnt nearly as good as these!!! I loved my T&C's but with the move to Tiwanese Production they are not nearly as good as they used to be,Trust Me on this one ( I tour on my Mtb with a BoB)I run my arimadillos at 80-100 psi on the road and 50 psi in the dirt

Thanks everyone, I'll check the above out.

I was also thinking that maybe a semi slick may work for my application. And I was thinking maybe a Panaracer Dart in both the front and the rear. It looks like the Dart's tread has a pretty tight center knob for riding on the road. Perhaps one of these in the rear too, maybe reversed for trail climbing, might work. Anyone run the Dart?

I think you might do with a semi-slick, but pavement is going to destroy your knobs. Semi-slicks are really designed for hard trails, not pavement. Truth is nothing is going to work great for both.

I have used a Geax Easyrider that is surprising decent off road. Another suggestion I have would be Specialized Fast Traks. They make a version with low knobs and I think maybe one with super low knobs. It also uses a very hard rubber so it won't wear down as fast. I have the regular knob version that I sometime ride on pavement with and it is pretty fast.

From the looks of it, the Fast Trak won't be as smooth/fast rolling as the other tires pictured here, but it is superb on hardpack (I think it is rated as a hard pack XC race tire). Oh, it is also $50 I think, so a little pricey.

+1 for the Crossroads. I run these on my rigid mountain bike. My only complaint is that they occasionally have trouble with roots going up hill.

I'd just run knobbies on the street... Irc mythos or something that are cheap to wear out and the knobs are pretty close together.

Thanks everyone. I just ran across these Vittoria Randonnuer Cross in a 1.75". A bit narrow but the tread looks like it has possibilities . . .

http://www.cambriabike.com/shopexd.a...EUR+CROSS+TIRE
http://www.bicycletires.com/tek9.asp...cific=jokodpp0

I have the Town and Country tires on my Xtracycle... I wouldn't recommend them for off-road use. They slip out for me even on dry hardpack (although admittedly the X is a pretty unusual bike for singletrack). Nice city tires, though.

Actually, the Avocet Cross inverted tread tires strike me as a really good compromise tire (if the majority of your riding is on-road; if it's the other way around, go with a real knobby).