WTB Riddler

The 45c Riddler is an awesome gravel adventure tire. Bought a pair to ride the Oregon Outback this summer, which includes some long stretches where a 29×2.3 would have come in handy. In these sections, fully loaded, the Riddler held up. It hooked up well on dirt and gravel descents, provided a fairly cushy ride (running tubeless 35 psi front, 40 rear), and was fast on the paved sections of the ride, where it never felt like I was fighting to keep the knobs rolling. Only got one flat in 405 miles of rough country roads, and that was more the sealant’s fault than the tire’s (do NOT buy Finish Line’s water-based sealant, it does not work. Stick with Stan’s or a similar latex-based sealant).On the very last day of the trip, I noticed a lump in the back tire when on pavement, but once we got back to gravel, it went away so I finished out the ride. The next day, the entire rear tire was covered in blisters where the tread had separated from the casing and filled with

My bike: Breezer Radar (steel gravel bike); Mavic A319 & A719 rims (not tubeless rated, but taped and valved and used tubeless)About me: 215 lbs., average fitness, gravel cyclist, recreational commuter, live in rural northeast KansasUse case: Mostly commuting with this bike. Occasional long gravel rides. Exclusively tubeless.I’ve ridden a variety of tires and have 5 bikes (MTB (x2), cargo, gravel (x2)), so I have a little bit of experience to be able to suss out some differences. I can compare these against the Clement MSO 700×40 (tubed), Schwalbe Thunder Burt 29×2.1, Panaracer Gravel King SK 700×40, and Specialized Sawtooth 700×42 (last 4 tubeless with Orange Seal).This is all anecdotal.Based on the tires I have experience with, the Riddlers feel like they have a somewhat higher rolling resistance than the Gravel Kings, Thunder Burts, and Sawtooths. The Thunder Burts and Gravel Kings roll notably faster. I would say these roll faster than the Clement MSOs (tubes may be to blame).Gravel cornering with these are superior to everything except the Thunder Burts; however, for as thin as they are, at 30-35 psi, I was disappointed with the combination of smoothness and fast-rolling as compared to the other tires. For the additional volume, I could not perceive the additional cushion/rollover or ease of carrying momentum over chunky gravel as compared to the Gravel Kings or Sawtooths (both tires are nearly the same size as the Riddler 43 and 42mm, respectively, versus 45 for the Riddler). These were superior to the MSOs; however, the MSOs were not run tubeless, so some of that difference could be due to the use of tubes.For general riding (i.e. commuting, recreational riding, errands), and using a tubeless setup, I would not recommend these tires. With a tube and tire-liner setup, the Riddlers may represent a solid solution.I have a 30-mile one-way commute through Kansas City, Kansas, and into rural northeast Kansas. While the tread is more than capable of tackling my urban commute, the tread is not very resistant to puncture, and seems to wear very rapidly on paved roads. For my last two commutes home, I have had punctures that were wide enough that tubeless sealant alone could not seal the puncture. In one case, with a lot of attention, it finally sealed, while the second required a bailout trip home. I would estimate both tires have 300-500 miles of combined gravel and commute use. In neither case could I identify a particular object (such as a nail or glass) on the ground surface that I rolled over that would have obviously induced a puncture.While the price is enticing, and the volume and tread pattern should represent a versatile combination of on- and off-road capabilities, the durability and wear life of these tires is not up to the same level as several of its peers.P.S. I’ve completed the same commute with roughly the same number of trips with the Gravel Kings and Sawtooths, and in neither case did punctures ever slow or stop my commute.

These tires are great on road and off road, and they look great while doing it. But the amount of time I spent trying to seat the tires was unbelievable. I searched for youtube videos about them and the reviewers also mentioned how difficult it was too. Your best bet would just be to take them staright to the bike shop and have them do it. I eventually got it, but not without plenty of lube and some tricky tire techniques.

Initially has some problems with the tires not been seated all the way which resulted in a bumpy ride. Called the retailer in California, he was super helpful gave me MTBs customer service number. I reset the tires and rode this morning no issues.

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