Well, my previous tire suffered an irrepairable blowout a few months back, and I needed to find a capable replacement, that wouldn't wash out under pressure, would hold the trail very well on both hardpack and loose, as well as loose loamy stuff (I'm talking Tokai here) and would give me a reasonable life-span for the price. The options were as follows (all UST, all similar pricing including VAT for CRC orders) Conti Mtn King 2.4 (most expensive) Kenda Nevegal 2.3 WTB Wolverine 2.3 (replacement for blown tire; cheapest) WTB Weirwolf 2.3 The Conti, though being a front-runner in the beginning, was a little too narrow in profile for the riding I like to do, as well as the pressures I like to run up front. Even though this is by all means a VERY capable performer in all conditions, the profile size was a major contributor to me deciding not to go for it. That, and the fact that nowhere, and I mean NOWHERE, stocked the tire in anything but 26" 2.2 or 29" 2.4. Both of which were useless to me. CRC did, of course, stock the tire. But I wasn't willing to go there just yet. The Kenda was the next logical choice. Big, reasonably spaced knobs would have guaranteed great grip in the twisty stuff, and the stick-e rubber was a big drawcard. However, I thought that the knobs were slightly too prominent, and had no discernible profile to them other than being straight up & down. In other words, they would grip. And grip hard. But they would be monstered on the road - not a good thing, seeing as I ride the 10km from my place to Tokai on the local rural passageways, only 50% of which can be bypassed on grass/gravel. In addition, the tread pattern was just too.... bland.... for my taste. Plus, they were touted to have been less than desirable on the hard stuff, owing to the blocky nature of the tread. That, and the tread ends very abruptly on the radii, owing to a potentially lower max lean angle. The Wolverine was next on the list, seeing as this was the tire that I had on originally. However, the spacing of the tread is very close for a trail-oriented thrashing tire, and I have on occasion pushed it past (what I believe) were its limits while it was on the front. A very capable tire, do not get me wrong, but one I think would be more suitable at the back or on hard-pack only - sort of like a hyped-up Race King would be. The volume was perfect for me, but I had been confronted with the not so attractive washout on occasion. Something that, rather strangely, lended me to place more trust in my previously attached 1.95 IRC Mythos XC when it came to the tricky (and quick) stuff. This tire was still a front-runner, but was still behind the Conti, due to the less than inspiring performance up front. The last option was the Weirwolf 2.3. This was, at first glance, the most attractive looking tire of the lot. Styled a lot like the old & very capable Velociraptor, the tread is extremely aggressive, albeit more current in its technology with the chamfered tread on the outside, instead of the single triangular knob on the outside that lent the Velociraptor its "take no prisoners" tread pattern. This inspired confidence, as I had previously ridden the Velociraptors on my old Giant ATX 830 that I had in high school. And they were sublime. The only problem with these tires (Weirwolf) is that they are no longer brought in by the agents, and they were only available online via CRC. ***, since I still wanted to support my LBS (EPIC cycles - a TRULY great team) So it was now down to 2 tires - the MK 2.4 and the Weirwolf 2.3... Off to the current interweb deity I went. Google them I said. While the 2 both had VERY good reviews, I happened upon the WTB website and had a look at the development video for the new Weirwolf. Watched the whole thing, and was enraptured. The write-ups were amazing - from the UK, AUS, USA and even the continent, there were rave reviews. Add to that the fact that I KNEW that the WTB's categorization of profile / tire width was more generous than CONTI's, I decided to go the route of the Weirwolf 2.3 UST 2011 version. Plus, it looks pretty. Fast forward 10 weeks, and after a wedding (my own) 6 additional kilo's (all thanks to an all inclusive hotel deal) and the preventative ban from all things potentially bone-breaking (I have a bad history of weddings and broken bones) I took the WTB for its first test drive. And what a test-drive it was. This tire, while looking (and feeling) very meaty - rolled over everything as if it were air. Made the front seem as if it were riding on a carpet of pine needles, whilst translating my every input into either a change of direction or the grip that I need so badly. Come to the tricky bits, the pairing of the Wolverine at the back and the Weirwolf at the front seemed to come alive like the fuzzy woodland pairing that they are. The Weirwolf searched for its prey - the soft, loamy flesh of the trail - whilst remaining true to the human side of the pairing, going exactly where I wanted to go whilst retaining that wild, inane knowledge that it is the king of the trail and as such it knows that which I, a mere mortal, can not fathom. A living, breathing, super-sensory being that can see all and overcome it. Rocks, roots, sand & clay, nothing is its master. The Wolverine is the strength bringing up the rear. Like its namesake of the Sci-fi world, it is the strength, the never-say-die and the endless determination that you know will never let you down in a tight spot. Bringing up the rear, this tire is just what you need to lay down the smack-down. Too closely-knit to be good up front, the knobs - while at the back - group together and FORCE the trail into submission, keeping the back tracking straight while the front searches, searches, SEARCHES. Then BITES the trail when the smallest amount of traction presents itself, always looking for the next prey while the rear gobbles up the newest offering from the Weirwolf up front. To sum up - this new tire is all its cracked up to be. A trail warrior. A tire that inspired so much confidence that I, a mere 100kg 28 year old with a gammy knee and more broken bones than I know what to do with, could smash the trail in the fastest, most visceral way I have ever done. And after a 3 month break, I hasten to add. Would I buy this tire again? I think the question should, rather be... Why should I buy another?