tire question/ opinion
 

i have a specialized sirrus 2010 model, if i want to commute to my new job i would need to go through a crushed granite mup trail which is about 6 1/2 miles roundtrip plus about 6 miles of regular road riding. i was looking at the small block eight by kenda in 700x35c but thought i would get your opinions on a good all around tire.
thanks for any and all opinions and help it is appreciated

looks a little aggressive. Sorry, I don't know what 'mup" is.

You want your front tire to be a bit more aggressive for the crushed granite, so the Small Block Eight would probably work well; maybe even a bit too aggressive. A 700x32 might be a better compromise, size wise.

For the back something less aggressive, narrow and higher pressure will work better, for example the Kwick Trax in a 700x28

It depends on the crusher fines used for the trail surface. If it's solid with small particles, a wide (35+mm) smooth tire should work just fine. If it's more gravel, you might want something a bit more aggressive. I don't think the Small Block is called for, however. Look at a Kenda Kwick Trax, Happy Medium or Kommado (or similar in other brands). I've ridden similar trails (Katy Trail in Missouri and Steamboat Trace in Nebraska) on a fully loaded touring bike with a smoothish touring tire and never had problems.

nfmisso: MUP = multiuser path. AKA bike path or rail trail.

I ride 4 miles of gravel road each way to and from work, and I'm happy with 32s. I'm currently running Marathons (not Plus or Supreme) and in the past have run Race Lites, Kwests, and Panaracers. They've all been fine, except when the gravel road is recently graded at which time there are rocks from pea up to about golf ball sized loosely covering the road. During those times riding that road truly sucks and probably would with anything short of very wide MTB tires. I don't think a crushed rock MUP would be that bad ever.

I rode ~15 miles of loose gravel forest service road on 32mm Pasela TGs during a 300k brevet last summer. A crushed stone path should be no problem for just about any 32mm tire. Definitely no need for something as aggro as the SB8, especially since you're doing a fair amount on the pavement.
If you want something with some extra cornering lugs and a nice ride on the paved parts of your commute, check out the Conti Travel Contact in a 37mm.

Check your clearance first. I'm not sure with the 2010 model, but a friend of mine owns an older Sirrus and can't fit fenders with her winter tires (which I think are 700x32, though I'm not 100% certain). 700x35 with knobs may not be very functional.

If the crush is fine and well packed, I would worry less about the tires size and profile, and more about keeping mud and gravel out of your face. Last summer, I did a loaded tour of PEI, spending a couple hundred kms carrying heavy loads on a crushed gravel trail. My 700x32 slicks gave me no problem.

Also, look into flat resistance.

thanks
 

thank you all for taking the time to answer, i am going to look into the different options you guys suggested. i will give it a run with the tires i have now which are the smooth road type tires it came with and see how that goes. i just wasnt sure if they would take to the gravel well as far as the puncture resistance. if i have problems i will surely change them out later on. thanks again for the helpfull replys.

See also: http://sheldonbrown.com/tires.html

especially the section about 3/4 of the way down "Mixing & Matching"