Using a fork to spread butter, using a shoe to hammer a nail, or using Shreddas on a flow trail. None are advisable, but sometimes you gotta get it done with the tools at your disposal. Schwalbe quietly rolled out the Shreddas in 2024 during the release of their radial tires, but they didn’t get much press at launch. Initial lack of availability and more traditional tires like the Albert and Magic Mary stealing the limelight kept eyes off the Shreddas initially, but they’ve recently gained quite the reputation. The Shredda Front and Shredda Rear are the two most aggressive mountain bike tires I’ve seen, and while they aren’t the tool for every job, they’re fantastic in the correct application.
Before we get to how they ride, let’s cover some basics about the Schwalbe Shreddas. Like I said, there are two different tread patterns: the Shredda Front, and the Shredda Rear. They’re designed to be used as the names indicate, and have fairly different knob layouts specialized for their roles.
The Shredda Front has a 2-2 center knob design, with square, horizontally siped knobs down the middle and vertically siped square knobs on the sides. Center knobs alternate between being connected at the base and standing alone, and while it’s hard to tell at first glance, the Shredda Front is directional. Each knob has about an area code of distance between it and its neighbor, and they stand as tall as any knob I’ve seen in my 27 years. Side knobs are supported with ample rubber down the side of the casing, and have very even spacing between each knob.
At the back of the bike, the Shredda Rear has a 2-2-3 center knob pattern, with slightly more intricately shaped knobs than the Shredda Front. A mix of angles, squares, and pentagons, all armed with horizontal siping run down the center of the Shredda Rear. Those groups of two knobs are connected at the base, while each knob in the groups of three stand alone. While designed to serve as a rear tire, there’s no ramping to be found on these center knobs. Flanking them are side knobs with gaps alternating in size between them. Shredda Rear doesn’t get quite as tall of center knobs as Shredda Front, but the side knobs are very comparable.
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Both tires are only offered in Schwalbe’s heaviest duty Gravity Pro casing and stickiest Ultra Soft rubber. That should tell you a bit about their intentions. Shredda Rear is offered in 27.5” and 29” to accommodate both rear wheel sizes, and Shredda Front is only offered in 29”, further cementing their use cases. Of course, they use Schwalbe’s radial casing, which aims to increase grip and decrease rolling resistance compared to a typical tire by changing the angle of the plies within the tire. This less braced angle makes the tire more compliant and thus requires higher pressures, but they should provide similar levels of grip to a conventional tire at a typical pressure.
These tires mounted up without issue on my DT Swiss rims, which has been my experience with pretty much every tire in the last few years. I don’t know if it’s the Stans sealant, fresh rim tape, or just a better connection between the tire and rim, but I don’t miss sweating over getting that bead to seat. Make sure to line up your logos with your valve stems or else you’re doomed to pinch flat on your first ride.
Once the Shreddas are mounted up, they’re visibly meatier than any tire I’ve run before. The Shredda Front looks akin to a moto tire, and looking down at it is almost comical. Confidence in your tires is arguably more important than their actual mechanical grip, and these Shreddas sure are confidence inspiring. Having lived in Bellingham for the last 5 years, it’s a bit embarrassing to admit that I’d never swapped to true mud tires during the winter months. I’ve played with a High Roller in the front, but a front and rear tire setup dedicated to the truly miserable conditions is new to me, and this won’t be the last time I make the swap for the dark days.
A consideration with any tire is clearance, and with the height of these knobs, it shouldn’t be surprising that I ran into some rear tire clearance issues. I’ve never been one to stress about tire clearance, and have never had issues with any 2.5” tires before, the 29” x 2.5” Shredda Rear is as large of a tire as a Large Sentinel V3 can handle. I forgot to snap a picture when the tire was fresh, but there was about 3 hairs worth of clearance between the center knobs and the seat stay bridge. In real riding scenarios where the tire picks up dirt and rocks, there is not enough clearance, and I’ve lost all the paint inside my seat stay bridge. Up front, the Shredda Front also has a knack for picking up rocks and dragging them through the fender, which is much less destructive than the situation in the rear, but also worth noting.
Climbing
The most important thing to know about the Shredda tires is that they are truly a compromise. They are without a doubt the slowest rolling tires I’ve ever ridden. Weighing 1500g each and lacking any ramping on the back of the knobs means that it feels like you’re wearing ankle weights when climbing. I’ve chosen to spin that as a positive, focusing on all the extra training I’ve been tucking under my belt as I keep up with folks with more reasonable tire setups. Gravity Pro casings and Ultra Soft rubber are never fun to lug up the hill, but the Shreddas climb noticeably worse than a Magic Mary with the same specs. There’s no doubt in my mind that these are the worst climbing tires you’d ever strap to a trail bike. While I don’t have an ebike to test these on, I imagine they’d put a dent in your range.
I looked behind myself mid fireroad climb and found that my Shreddas were nearly leaving a rut behind me. My riding buddy was using a set of radial Magic Marys, and the difference between our snail trails is undeniable.
With that being said, they do give you a slight edge when climbing up some technical terrain through some inclement conditions. Tall knobs like to bite into soft terrain, making it harder to burnout through a technical maneuver. Those loose moments where you’re fighting to put down power and kip over a root are just a little more possible with the Shreddas, but you still need the power to get yourself up and over what’s in front of you.
Descending
Once you’ve lugged 3 kilos of rubber to the top of the hill, what does that mean for the way down? Well it depends what the down looks like. Flatter or harder packed trails like we find locally here on Galbraith mountain are not what the Shreddas were designed for. Unfortunately, sustainable and sanctioned trails are not what Schwalbe had in mind when these tires were placed on the idea board. There are tons of fantastic tires out there for the flow trails or the jump tracks, but the Shreddas are the worst tires out there for pushing into hardpack berms or racing down a pseudo pumptrack in the woods. Tall sideknobs like these tend to roll over rather than bite in when the dirt has seen tens of thousands of tires in the last few years, and that’s exactly what popular trails in Galbraith are subjected to in a typical year.
Going down jump lines where carrying maximum speed to clear is key to getting over the knuckle, I really noticed the heft and drag of the Shreddas. Pulling for unintended gaps isn’t encouraged with these ankle weights, and they much prefer to stay connected to the dirt and dig in whenever possible.
It sounds like I only have bad things to say about the Shreddas, but that’s about to change. It’s no secret that there are trails off the beaten path. Those that spread through word of mouth rather than apps. Bellingham may or may not have an incredible number of these trails, and that may or may not be where I spent most of my time riding the Shreddas. Trails that see less traffic and make their way down steeper terrain are where the Shreddas are absolutely fantastic. Whenever those knobs can penetrate the soil rather than roll around on top is when the grip is like nothing else I’ve experienced.
Shredda heaven
Holding a line across an off camber that typically sends you slipping to the support below is child’s play for the Shredda. Those tall, widely spaced knobs are built to dig, and dig they do. Slashing a high G carve through loose dirt is how the Shreddas put a smile on my face on every ride. The Shredda Front has no transition knobs between the center and side knobs, and it rewards a confident and decisively executed corner where you intentionally engage the side knobs. Tires without the transition knob can often have a vague feeling between the center and corner knobs, which is certainly the case with the Shreddas on hardpack terrain, but that uncertainty goes away in loose dirt where the lugs can dig in. It feels like when the tire sinks in, the center knobs and corner knobs work together much better, while on hardpack dirt the tire is sitting either on the side knobs or the corner knobs, and getting from one to the other isn’t as seamless as I’d like.
| But once you get the Shredda side knobs properly engaged, they’re truly in a league of their own. Whether you’re leaning into a flat loose corner or have the bike stood up on an off camber, I’ve never felt this positive of a connection between my side knobs and the trail before. My favorite rides this winter have been on the particularly wet and sloppy days that have the parking lots empty as could be. When the ground is saturated and the Shreddas can really sink their teeth in is where they shine, and I’ve been looking for every opportunity to let them do exactly that.
Typically, my limiting factor on steep, loose, off the map trails is my braking traction. We can all lock up a skid like a pro, but how much that skid actually slows you down depends on the tire that’s churning up the earth. The huge knobs of the Shredda Rear are like dragging a 10 ton anchor behind you, and I am constantly amazed at how quickly I can shut it down on steep terrain. Braking traction is an underappreciated facet of tire performance, and the Shreddas always amazed me at how effectively I could control my speed in terrain where I typically find myself accelerating with both brake levers pulled tight. |
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Radial Casing
Schwalbe is now synonymous with radial, as they were first to the punch and have even recently expanded their line with the new Tacky Chan and Romy. Radial tires have a distinct feel, with their higher pressures and supple casings deforming to trail features. Of all the radial tires I’ve ridden, the Shreddas are the least “radially” in their on trail feel. I don’t have x-ray vision to figure out exactly what’s going in the casings, but I believe they have the standard radial configuration. All that extra rubber on the tread really changes their demeanor compared to a radial Magic Mary or Albert. Typical radial tire pressures are 3-5 psi higher than standard tires, but Shredda pressures are more in line with standard pressures. About 23 in the front and 27 in the rear is where I end up, but that’s also during the winter time in some soft conditions, so take that with a grain of salt.
Just a few days ago, Schwalbe announced a new “Pro” designation for their tires, with radial and non radial options, but there are currently no non radial Shreddas to be found. That may change in the future, but for now it’s radial only.
Durability
While I’ve been riding the Shreddas through the wet months when tire life expectancy goes through the roof, they’ve held up exceptionally well. While the knobs aren’t quite as sharp as they were in January, there’s still plenty of meat left on the bone for the rest of the wet season. There’s no undercutting on any of the knobs, and while I did get one puncture from landing on a rock, I’ve been very happy with the life expectancy of the Shreddas. They'll hibernate in the tire pile until they're called upon again next season.
Front/Rear Usage
While I haven’t gotten experimental in this category quite yet, there’s certainly room to play with ignoring Schwalbe’s recommendations and using the Shredda Front or Rear on the opposite end of the bike. It looks like the Shredda Rear could be a sweet front tire in the right conditions. With the 2-2-3 knob pattern and slightly shorter knobs, it’s a slightly more well rounded tire than the Shredda Front. If you’re an ebiker obsessed with crawling up the nastiest loosest climbs known to man, then the Shredda Front in the rear could be a good condition, but with how good of a climber and braker the Shredda Rear is, I don’t think there are many scenarios where this is the right setup.
Conclusion
With tons of very similar tires on the market from different manufacturers, it’s a breath of fresh air to ride a truly different tire. Shreddas are unlike any other tire I’ve ridden, and while they’re often the wrong tire for the job, it’s a special feeling when those knobs dig into deep dirt and carve a rut behind them. If you’re considering buying the Shreddas, I would recommend having an honest look at the trails you’re riding, because there’s a very good chance that these are not the right tires for you. But for those of you with access to and knowledge of trails off the beaten path, there’s not a better tire setup than the Shreddas.
