ChallengeGravel Grinder Race Tire(Return to Product Page)

I ride lots of dirt roads and rail trails in New England. These are the best all round ones I've found so far (have ridden Vittoria XG, Maxxis Mud Wrestler, Clement MSO 40's). They are light for a 38mm, wide enough to avoid pinch flats, quiet and fast enough on pavement, and provide great traction on a wide variety of surface and allow you to stand on graveldirt hill climbs. They dampen the ride without being too bouncy.

I run this tire on a Niner RLT9. It has seen a fair mix of road, dirt roads, gravel roads, singletrack and jeep trails. I have run it in group rides on the road and in one of the toughest gravel races (Savage CX) in NC. It is a good all around tire that has hooked up well in turns and just enough volume to not get beat to death on rougher roads and trails. It has seen 500 miles and the center is worn on the rear, but you can still see the file tread. I have run Clement MSO 40s & 32s and this tire comes as a perfect fit for me. It is still fast like the 32 on the road and has the cushion of the 40. My one grip with Challenge and all other companies is to make this tubeless.

I love this tire, let me just say that. Once it became available, days before the 2014 Cornhusker State Games, I ordered a pair and had them 2-Day shipped to me to use in the event. At 5545 fr, they handled 120 miles of pavement, gravel, railbed trail, and MMR without a flat or an issue. The 38mm wide casing provided extra suspension and comfort for my 225lb self. I totally agree with Guitar Ted, these are the best gravel tires out there.

Last night, the sidewall on the rear tire failed along a tread block section, and exploded with a dramatic bang (fyi, I'm a former motorsports racer, so I'm freaky weird about determining optimum tire pressures, and checking them before each ride). I was able to boot the tire with a dollar bill and ride back home, where I quickly swapped it out. It failed after about 250 miles.

I love the tire, and I'm ordering a replacement today, but it's not quite all there. I'm not sure if the failure was due to manufacturing defect, or if it was damage induced from a previous ride. We ride a lot of hard gravel in Nebraska. I do not feel the tire should have failed after so few miles.

Challenge never lets me down, they have a wide range of tires, some with gum wall options. The tread on the gravel grinders is just what I want between commuting on pavement or hitting off road.

As the hosts of the unofficial Gravel Worlds, you'd imagine we've got plenty of gravel around Lincoln, Nebraska and we do. I settled on a 38mm set of these to roll on my CX to give me a little more width, but still roll well. They do their job well. Riding on pavement, they're smooth. Riding all types of gravel they handle well too.