When Plus tires started showing up, everyone seemed to have the same thought – “let’s make these huge tires as light as possible.” While light tires are great, durable tires are often better, and in the case of Plus, many riders were quickly chiming in that the available tires simply weren’t cutting it. Slowly, we’ve seen a move towards making all of the Plus options more robust. No one seems to be happier about this than bikepackers. Plus turns out to be a great option for hauling you and your gear across remote landscapes, but not so much if the tires are going to leave you feeling deflated miles from anywhere.
Offering up their newest Plus tire, WTB thinks they have the answer for the 29+ crowd. In their own words, they’ve “never been so pleased to produce such a hefty tire”…
Starting with bikes that aren’t the lightest to begin with, bikepacking places added stress on the tires as you strap on more and more weight in the form of bags and camping gear. Plus tires really help to smooth out the ride, and provide better traction on anything from loose sandy washes to technical trails.
Which is exactly why WTB has decided to roll out the Ranger 29 x 3.0 TCS Tough/Fast Rolling tire. Using the same Tough casing found in their burliest Enduro tires, the Ranger combines a versatile tread pattern with Dual DNA rubber and is tubeless ready to get you out there and back. The price of that durability and size is an 1140g weight, though WTB is banking on riders overlooking that in favor of something that’s going to hold up. Outside of bikepacking, these tires will be equally good under heavier riders or aggressive riders who are finding the limits of lighter weight casings.
In stock and shipping out from California, the Ranger 29 x 3.0 TCS Tough/Fast Rolling tires will run $76.95 each.
