WTB

Kodiak 29 x 2.5

Just returned from a 50 mile ride in snow and ice with a Kodiak in the front w/12 psi and mounted on a SnowCat rim (44mm wide). The tire barely cleared my Rockshox Reba fork. Compared to the Nokian Gaza Extreme I have been winter riding for years, the Kodiak's float is much better (no surprise here - 2.1 vs. 2.5), and I was able to ride on top of untracked snow that had been through a couple of freeze/thaw cycles. Traction on broken ice is ok, but on glaze ice it is poor. The Nokian's work well on glaze ice. However, the Kodiak is so fat I was often able to balance the bike to the end of the ice patch even without grip, going solely in the direction the bike wanted to take me. Scary was not being able to slow down going downhill on ice. The Kodiak is huge - it's a bummer it is too big for my frame in the rear. I'm thinking a Kodiak up front and Nokian in the back will be an optimal combo for my frame.