For what it's worth, I have confirmed that the tires on the Shift 3 or 4 are in fact Bontrager Hard-Case Ultimate 26"x2" tires. Apparently, a logo is now used to specifically define the exact model of tire it is, and the tires are Hard-Case Ultimate tires, which are supposedly one of the most rugged tires available. So THAT's very good. I'm happy. With 165 miles so far on our Shift 3 WSD's on both pavement and gravel, and, if hindsight is 20/20 vision, we would still get the same bikes. The right decision for us was made.