As we rapidly approach the clocks going back and British Summer Time coming to an end, we give you our favourite mud tyres for battling the winter slop.
A good mud tyre will shed the cack off the tyres well, allowing the tread to cut through the wet stuff and down to the grip. They should also do a pretty good job of holding an off-camber pretty well too.
Most modern mud tyres for enduro riding though will be pretty good as a front tyre option even in the drier months, so they’re certainly no on-trick pony.
Here’s our pick of the best mud tyres for enduro right now.
Maxxis Shorty.
Ah the Shorty. The go-to tyre for downhillers when things aren’t quite at cut spike territory yet should give you a good indication of what it can do.
An excellent front tyre all year round, slap one on the rear after the clocks turn to stop your back wheel trying to overtake you through the winter.
You can find full details on the Shorty over on Maxxis UK’s site here.
Continental Der Baron Projekt.
A strong Team Wideopenmag favourite, the Der Baron Projekt with the Apex casing and Black Chili compound is a force to be reckoned with and one of the very best wet conditions tyres available.
Slap a set of these on a DT Swiss wheel and you can get them seated and sealed tubeless with a hand pump.
Check out the full Der Baron Projekt range over on Continental UK’s site here.
Vee Tire Flow Snap.
Rich tested the Vee Tire Flow Snap tyres at the start of the year and found himself pleasantly surprised by the amount of grip and support on offer. An open tread lends itself well to unclogging and getting down to the grip and the sturdy carcass means they won’t fold under you when you’re pushing them hard.
Full details on the Vee Tire Flow Snap can be found on Vee’s website.
Michelin Wild Enduro.
Michelin’s Wild Enduro range are arguably the least like a mud tyre on this list but do a solid job of providing plenty of grip in all conditions thanks to a deep tread that has mixed spacing between the blocks. You’re not going to lose an off-camber with those shoulder knobs either.
We think that these are probably up there with the Der Baron Projekt as one of our favourites.
Check out the full Michelin Wild Enduro range on Michelin’s website here.
Schwalbe Magic Mary.
Schwalbe’s Magic Mary is a bit of a behemoth. If you’re going to run these on the back wheel, don’t expect to be going up hill or along the flat fast.
The trade-off there is that you can point a Magic Mary down the sloppiest of root-infested chutes with reckless abandon, knowing you’ll be in control the whole time.
You’ll want to go for something a little less spiky once the sun comes out in April and the grip coefficient starts to rise again.
Check out the full Muddy Mary range over on Schwalbe’s website here.