I've always wanted to do ride my MTB more other than just singletrack, but there has never been a tire fast enough for me to have much fun on lighter terrain. This tire changes that completely! I got my MTB up to 41.77 MPH already and that wasn't the limit at all.
It's been amazing to ride the MTB on the gravel paths and compare times with the gravel bike because the MTB bike is barely slower now with these tires.
They are being run with TPU tubes, and after 300 miles there hasn't been a single issue. The rear tire still looks new!
I'll be riding the MTB more now, and also much more willing to explore some of the longer routes in this area that a just a bit too harsh on a fixed gravel bike. My range for adventure will be extended in a palpable way from these tires. I only own a pair, and I'll have to get another as a spare just in case as these are going to be a staple for certain types of riding.
As a former fan of the Schwalbe RS PRO and Rene Herse Snowqualmie Pass Extralight, the Caracal Race 45 (tan sidewalls) had some tough competition. These tires exceeded my expectations in every way. My tires weighed 587 &588. They seated by hand in minutes on my Enve 45 AR, 25ID rims without removing the valve stem. After riding a few times, they settled in at ~47.65mm/R and ~47.75mm/F inflated to 30R/29F. I use the Silca PSI calculator and set the tire type to High performance for PSI (Im still playing with PSI). The Caracal Races are very supple and smooth . The Compound used is Hutch's race mix and it is FAST. Its also has an extremely soft and grippy feel that magical absorbs bumps and washboard. These tires have amazing grip and the width makes the ride very smooth and calm. The side lugs seem to their job as the tire corners with a lot of confidence. In testing speed, I ride a regular route with a power meter and these are just as fast as the Snowqualmie pass's (but the Caracal is wider, smoother and corners better) and faster than the Schwalbe RS Pro's (the caracal is wider and much more supple) on a route with pavement, Class I and 2 gravel. Overall, these tires are my new favorite hands down for speed, confidence and ride quality.
This is my favorite bar tape. Although I haven't used any of the thicker thicknesses of Lizard Skins bar tape. Which I think would be more better for gravel bike applications. It dampens better than any other bar tape that I have tried. And it surprisingly wears very well, considering how soft it feels. The instructions tell you not to stretch it when applying it. But I have found that around sharp bends it's necessary to stretch it some.
I had the first gen Reavers and really liked the traction and ride quality. They didn't feel overly slow but drum and real-world Chung testing both indicated the original compound wasn't the fastest rolling vs the crop of fast gravel tires. Enter the new HYPR-X compound. All of the same traction and ride quality is maintained, but in a much faster compound that also lasts a bit longer and has better wet traction. So far I am very impressed with the new compound. I like the knurled tread design down the middle, similar to an Aspen ST it provides more traction that one would think looking at it, especially on dust-over-hardpack conditions. The cornering knobs are also solid and predictable in cornering performance, and are at just the right angle to contact the ground on gravel and dirt to give you reassuring cornering performance where other tires start to slide. With the new compound, this is among the best gravel tires on the market. Only knock is that if ridden on pavement a significant percentage of the time the wear of the center knurled tread can be significant and quick.
