Test and Review: Kenda Slant Six Pro SCT 29 x 2.0

Fast and Grippy with burly shoulders!

Friday I picked up a pair of 29×2.0 Kenda Slant Six SCT tires. They felt a little hefty; they felt sturdy; and they looked like they had some skimpy knobs, skimpier than, say, the Specialized Renegade, or the Bontrager XR1. Those were my first impressions. Friday night I hopped in a car and drove to Bend, Oregon and was out and about until after 2AM for a bachelor party, um, session.

Saturday I was up too early, coffee in hand, sitting on a sunny porch, yanking the XR1′s that I rode many, many miles on last season off my wheels, and putting on those heavier, stiffer, and on closer inspection, more toothy Slant Sixes. I can usually get away without an air compressor and these Kenda’s mounted up nice and easy with a cocktail of sealants I had on hand, the front with a hand pump, the rear took a little coaxing because of the ding in the rim and old tape that was folded in one spot. Soon they both were seated and then with only a few hours sleep we set off on our merry way into the hot sun of Central Oregon.

My legs were heavy and felt like they were pushing through molasses, I wanted to blame the new unfamiliar tires but I knew better. The more we rode the more lucid I became, the less the Friday night before was fogging me up! I began to enjoy the trails and the newly apparent playfulness of my bike in those semi-loose sweeping corners I had never been particularly fond of. I welcomed the suddenly predictable skids and drifts and comfortably leaned my way around the trails faster and faster until at the end of the ride just myself and one other were going full-gas, hootin’, hollerin’, and laughing, all while, strangely, still in “control”.

Sunday, well, it was only a matter of time before Sunday’s riding turned into something similar to Saturday’s finale and those tires continued to make Bend funner than ever for me.

Sticky Fast 29er Tires

Now it’s Monday and I’m wondering if these will become a secret weapon? I’d never ridden the SCT casing tires before and they’re much stiffer than other lighter, whippier race tires. I’m willing to go out on a limb and say that they’re worth just about every gram of extra weight, unless you’re riding pavement (no comment)! These are staying on and I’m already looking at what else Kenda’s got to offer for my other bikes.

Ross B.