Continental Race King - Tubeless Mountain Bike Tire - First Choice for Racers - Black - E25 Ebike Rated

Ultra fast on hardpack and gravel, rolled really smoothly. I ran them with tubes, usually around 55–60 psi for pavement and closer to 45 psi for trails, and they handled great at both pressures. They weren’t really asphalt commuters but worked pretty good in a pinch, smooth and quiet enough that I didn’t mind a few miles on the road. I could still feel a bit of vibration from the knobs, but it was much less than I expected for a mountain bike tire. However, grip was MAGICAL on dry and mixed trails. Not so hot through mud or wet/slippery roots, that just wasn’t their thing. Overall an excellent XC tire!

I put the 29x2.0 on my gravel bike, replacing Specialized Pathfinder Pro 700x47's, set up tubeless. I've done a couple of rides on them now, I'd say rolling resistance wise they feel pretty good, comparable to the pathfinder pro's which I surprised at, cornering and braking grip there is no comparison, the race kings are awesome, rode with some friends at the weekend who are on Rambler 40 and 42's and the increase in my cornering speed to theirs was significant as well. I am impressed, and for $50 a tire they are a bargain, I wish I'd got rid of the pathfinder pro's a long time ago now, they were great in a straight line but that's about it.

This is good one. The tires spinning great and are fast on the straights sections. Low weight makes them perfect for the long rides. Be careful on the corners especially for first couple rides you must learn the new tires. Worth to buy if you do cross country. Ones you switch for them you newer change

I've run these tires a lot over the years. On the plus side, they roll fast and are light-weight. Performance is good if conditions are mild. On the down side, in-line traction (braking and steep loose climbs) is a little lacking. The other oddity with these tires is that they feel tall and narrow and seem to want to 'roll-over' a bit in hard cornering. Can be un-nerving!

I use tubeless systems on most of my mountain bikes but the problem is finding an acceptable manufacturer that can consistently put out a lightweight tire that holds air incredibly well while being able to take the abuse of hits on the trail and still have decent sidewall integrity. Many tubeless tires for 29 inch wheels weigh over 600 grams for one tire alone (and over 570 grams for 26 inch tires). For most of my needs, ... at least in the XC and Trail riding arenas, ... that is too much weight. (I'm okay with 600 to 700 gram tires when it comes to all-mountain (AM) riding though).) The answer to this optimization problem is Continental's Race King utilizing their "Black Chili" compound. First they nailed the weight correctly, .... 527 grams average for my 26 inch x 2.20 tires (see images of an old Cannondale Raven I slowly restored) and 552 grams for my 29 x 2.20 inch bikes. Many other tire companies, like Schwalbe try to get their weight down slightly lower, ... as with their 480 gram 27.5 x 2.1 inch Rocket Rons but the problem is amount of sealant needed. Race Kings are so good at sealing to the rim (especially modern carbon rims built in the last seven years or so) that you can often run them with 10 or 20 grams of Stan's sealant. Yes, ... you read that correctly, ... 10 grams of sealant. With Schwalbe's Rocket Rons, you need roughly 70 to 100 grams of Stan's sealant to fully seal them. The point is that a 530 gram Race King with 10 grams of sealant weighs only = 540 grams while a 485 gram Rocket Ron with 90 grams of sealant weighs = 575 grams! After several years of experience, I have found the Rocket Rons to actually be heavier when the amount of sealant is accounted for. They also leak air faster. Come back three months later to a Rocket Ron tire originally inflated to 40 PSI and you will have a flat tire versus a Race King under the same conditions will still be holding 25 PSI. This long experience leads me to suspect that the 525 to 555 gram range is the perfect intersection point of light weight, durability, and air retention. Secondly, the Race Kings made from their Black Chili compound, although lacking their 2nd and heavier level of "Protection" sidewalls are still very tough. I have two seasons on my 29 inch Race King Black Chili's with zero problems. I've also repeatedly used these for everything up to four foot drops and run offs with zero flats, rim damage, or problems. Provided you are mating these with a modern rim built for tubeless (especially any modern carbon rim made since about 2021, ... Btlos rims seal up great with Race and Cross Kings), you will have zero problems. And now a few caveats, ... to get these benefits, you need the high-end and very specific Race King Black Chili tires. Continental makes about a zillion different Race King versions and it is very easy to purchase a pair and believe you have the Black Chili version when in fact you do not. The easy validation method is to weigh them, ... if they come in at 518 to 540 grams for a 26 x 2.20 inch tire or about 535 to 560 grams for a 29 x 2.20 inch tire, ... you have the Black Chili compound (which will also be noted on the sidewalls of the tires). If you come in at 570 grams or above, you have the heavier "Protection" or another version. The Race King (and Cross King and Mountain King) are all excellent but the downside is that all the Black Chili versions are their high-end models. This means they are all partially hand made at their main mountain bike production facility in Korbach, Germany and will have 240 TPI (thread per inch) under the tread and 180 TPI for the sidewalls. Some other lines of Race Kings are made in Hefel, China but the Race King Black Chilis are made in Germany (and will say so on the sidewalls). The downside to this is obviously cost, .... one Race King Black Chili tire is roughly $70 to $80 at any reputable seller. I would finally add that if you need a little more traction and tread, the next step up is the Continental Cross King models also utilizing their Black Chili rubber mix. Whereas the Race King is, umhhh, surprisingly geared to racing (who'd a' thunk it), ... the Cross Kings with Black Chili are more of an "all-rounder." The 26 x 2.20 Cross King variant weighs 557 grams +/- 15 grams while the 29 x 2.20 variant weighs around 575 grams. (The Cross Kings are also made in a heavier non-Black Chili, "Protection" variant that is much heavier, so pay special attention to the exact variant you are ordering.) The next step up from the Cross Kings is the Mountain King with Black Chili. This is more of an all-mountain tire and will be better in mud as well. The Mountain Kings with Black Chili weigh about 590 grams for the 26 x 2.20 variant and about 605 grams for the 29 x 2.2 variant. The winning combination of light weight, good grip, air retention, and durability means that the Race King (and for a few bikes, the Cross King) are my go to XC/Trail tubeless tires. Five stars with their worst aspect being their $83 price tag because they are partially hand made.

Seems in genuine packaging. Tire mounted fine w/inner tube. Runs well. Purchased for grip, puncture resistance and low rolling resistance. So far (only 8 miles total) no problems. Seems a bit wider than the same size tire it replaced FWIW.

Continental and Maxxis make the best bike tires, period. I also own and use 700x25 Continental Grand Prix 5000's and Continental Gatorskins tires on road bikes.... awesome bike tires. The Race King tires are perfect for my 29er, hard tail mountain bike. Race King tread is ideal for hard pack gravel or dirt on rail trails. Race Kings are also much faster than typical knobby mountain bike tires on asphalt and concrete. These tires would probably not be ideal for single track style mountain bike riding, but are perfect for cross country gravel riding and rail trails. Race Kings are easy to install. I use these tires with tubes, but Race Kings can run tubeless. Highly recommended for 29er mountain bikes. A+

I run a 2.2 on the front of my 27.5 singlespeed, with a 2.6 Cross King on the back. Depending on your cornering technique (I counterlean when cornering rather than leaning with the bike), it’s fantastic. Light, low rolling resistance, and the side knobs are almost a wall. I don’t run a front brake as it’s pretty flat here, and as I said my cornering technique is almost unheard of but it shouldn’t be. I am always a top ten on every trail segment, at 58, on a single, and I never, ever lose the front. BTW I’m running a bar/ stem that put my hands 10” above the head tube.

En perfecto estado

Der optimale Reifen für meinen Bedarf, hält im sanften Gelände und rollt sehr gut auf Asphalt.

So far, brilliant. Replacing kenda kadre on my customised carrera vengeance pushiron. 27.5×2.2, rear only as ill run cross king front. Can feel the difference in initial acceleration and less of a difference in speed when going from asphalt to hard but not solid mud n grass. Not had my computer checking speed yet but ill let you know if i end up having a higher top speed, i reckon ittl be about 2 or 3mph in a downhill sprint

Estremamente scorrevole ( davvero impressionante !!! ). Ben costruito. Sembra robusto ed è leggero. Trazione un po' inferiore al modello che utilizzavo in precedenza (anch'esso un ottimo copertone di marca blasonata). Non mi aspetto faccia miracoli su umido/bagnato; in effetti un assaggio di perdita di aderenza su muschio umido la ho già potuto constatare... ma basta imparare a conoscerlo e prevederlo. Comunque lo ricomprerei subito perché è quello che cercavo e quello che mi aspettavo.

Cubiertas de muy buena calidad y desempeño