WTB Dissent 2.3 - A positive change.
Nov 5, 2009
WTB previously launched their Dissent tire as "the official tire of Whistler Mountain Bike Park", and boy did it work good on that "A-Line" style of terrain. The Dissent 2.5 was very predictable on dry dirt, but it was a disaster when it touched wet. The Dissent 2.5 was designed with a small channel, which ejects packed up dirt in your tire and so forth, which caused it to pack up in wet conditions.
This season WTB took the Dissent one step further with the Dissent 2.3. They made the profile slightly thinner, and made the channel slightly larger, and in turn created a wicked tire for the opposite side of the scale as its bigger brother, the soft/wet side!
Read on for more information...
This season WTB took the Dissent one step further with the Dissent 2.3. They made the profile slightly thinner, and made the channel slightly larger, and in turn created a wicked tire for the opposite side of the scale as its bigger brother, the soft/wet side!
Read on for more information...
The Dissent 2.5 was a good tire when we tried it last season. It was responsive, reliable, but had issues with wet terrain. As Pinkbike is located on the "Wet Coast" we were a little turned off on the tire's ability as an all arounder. It performed quite well on its own trails, but on our home town soil it wasn't always up to task.
After speaking to Dain at Interbike 2008 he informed us of a change they had planned. WTB had realized that the Dissent was a dry dirt tire, and its main hold back was the channel. So, they went back to the drawing board, and drew up a tire that was the "nasty" version of the Dissent. On this drawing board the Dissent 2.3 was fathered, then after months of design work, testing, and riding the Dissent 2.3 was ready to hit the shelves, just in time for the 2009 season.
Designed around Dry to Moist conditions, with varying terrain densities, the Dissent 2.3 is the all new addition to WTB's Downhill/Freeride tire line up. Constructed in both a Team DH, and Race casing, the Dissent 2.3 boasts a weight of 828 grams for the Race casing. The Dissent 2.3 features opposing direction side knobs to aid the tire in grabbing and holding on to soft soil. The center tread provides confidence while descending steep, rugged terrain. WTB's patented DNA rubber provides a reliable rubber compound to shred on, but still has an appropriate wear time.
The first thing I noticed about the Dissent 2.3 tires was the profile. WTB did away with the double stepped knobs that the Dissent 2.5 featured and went with a standard tread pattern the whole way around the tire. The rolling resistance of the Dissent 2.3 is very minimal for a DH casing 2.3 tire. This rolling resistance could also be aided by the DNA compound, providing a harder base compound to roll on.
One small turn off I had on the Dissent 2.3 from the get go was the name. I think it would have been a better idea for WTB to rename the tire something else, but that being said the tread pattern does resemble the Dissent 2.5 a fair bit. I am stoked WTB did not decide to try to "revise" their Dissent 2.5 tire to work better in both conditions, they simply designed a new tire. Weight of the Dissent tire range was reduced significantly with the Dissent 2.3, which weighs in at 229 grams lighter for the Race version.
As Dain explained at Interbike 2009 WTB has dialed in their Dissent tire to work the best in both conditions, by offering 2 different tires. The Dissent 2.5, which excels in dry conditions, and hard pack, and the Dissent 2.3 which works best in the looser, wetter type conditions. There was no price increase or drop for the Dissent 2.3 tire, both Team DH and Race casings are the same price. $60 USD for the Team DH casing, and $50 USD for the Race casing.
Update from WTB for 2010:
WTB will be releasing an all new Dissent 2.5, which shares the same features as this 2.3 tire. For more information check out WTB.com
After speaking to Dain at Interbike 2008 he informed us of a change they had planned. WTB had realized that the Dissent was a dry dirt tire, and its main hold back was the channel. So, they went back to the drawing board, and drew up a tire that was the "nasty" version of the Dissent. On this drawing board the Dissent 2.3 was fathered, then after months of design work, testing, and riding the Dissent 2.3 was ready to hit the shelves, just in time for the 2009 season.
 |
Designed around Dry to Moist conditions, with varying terrain densities, the Dissent 2.3 is the all new addition to WTB's Downhill/Freeride tire line up. Constructed in both a Team DH, and Race casing, the Dissent 2.3 boasts a weight of 828 grams for the Race casing. The Dissent 2.3 features opposing direction side knobs to aid the tire in grabbing and holding on to soft soil. The center tread provides confidence while descending steep, rugged terrain. WTB's patented DNA rubber provides a reliable rubber compound to shred on, but still has an appropriate wear time.
 |
 |
The first thing I noticed about the Dissent 2.3 tires was the profile. WTB did away with the double stepped knobs that the Dissent 2.5 featured and went with a standard tread pattern the whole way around the tire. The rolling resistance of the Dissent 2.3 is very minimal for a DH casing 2.3 tire. This rolling resistance could also be aided by the DNA compound, providing a harder base compound to roll on.
 |
| Staying high to avoid the trench |
One small turn off I had on the Dissent 2.3 from the get go was the name. I think it would have been a better idea for WTB to rename the tire something else, but that being said the tread pattern does resemble the Dissent 2.5 a fair bit. I am stoked WTB did not decide to try to "revise" their Dissent 2.5 tire to work better in both conditions, they simply designed a new tire. Weight of the Dissent tire range was reduced significantly with the Dissent 2.3, which weighs in at 229 grams lighter for the Race version.
 |
| Right in the trench |
As Dain explained at Interbike 2009 WTB has dialed in their Dissent tire to work the best in both conditions, by offering 2 different tires. The Dissent 2.5, which excels in dry conditions, and hard pack, and the Dissent 2.3 which works best in the looser, wetter type conditions. There was no price increase or drop for the Dissent 2.3 tire, both Team DH and Race casings are the same price. $60 USD for the Team DH casing, and $50 USD for the Race casing.
WTB will be releasing an all new Dissent 2.5, which shares the same features as this 2.3 tire. For more information check out WTB.com
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78 Comments
- + 5
chrisrussell
(Nov 5, 2009 at 0:16)
Of course its going to work in the dry, its basically a minion
quite a variance to the minion, for one this has the same tread patter down the centre, minion alternates etc.
WTB puts out quality tires for everything and makes sure if it doesn't work amazingly the first time around that they get it the next time.
btw someone has horrible foot placement on their pedals >.>
btw someone has horrible foot placement on their pedals >.>
Show me a top 10 WC racer who has his feet like that....good luck with that.
Here are arguably the 3 top DH riders in the World...all with correct pedal placement.
Peaty
http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/4057547/
Hill
http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/4041537/
Gee
http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/3534870/
Here are arguably the 3 top DH riders in the World...all with correct pedal placement.
Peaty
http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/4057547/
Hill
http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/4041537/
Gee
http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/3534870/
naa...for me thats a riders thing...i ride like that too..well..i was a motocross racer, and in mx we place the feet on the pedals like that, and because of mx i ride on my bike like this aswell, i dont see any problem with that...
really... you are seriously going around telling people that they place there feet in the wrong spot on the pedals? get a life! maybe some people don't really give as s*** as long as they are having fun.
yea, what collin7 said
if your racing you tend to be more on your toes, but when doing FR trails, you put your feet more in the middle so you don't f*ck your ankle. at least thats what i do
if your racing you tend to be more on your toes, but when doing FR trails, you put your feet more in the middle so you don't f*ck your ankle. at least thats what i do
Yeah we ride for fun, but I'm pretty sure that better form is more fun. If you want optimal power and control your feet should be further back than the ones in the pics here.
i bet if this guy put his feet farther toward his toes it would feel wierd. just like if i put my feet in the middle, that would feel weird too. i guess whatever suits you riding style, so it doesnt really matter that much.
and NorCalNomad, please shut up and ride, wherever you want to place your feet
and NorCalNomad, please shut up and ride, wherever you want to place your feet
Peaty and Gee? Great examples man, they ride clips so they obviously can't put their feet anywhere else!
"great examples" was sarcasm as the guy who put the examples up obviously didn't know they rode clips..it's simple really
even though it wasn't a cover up, i would have to be reterded to actually think that was a genius post, but anyway...
i had 2.5's and they sucked ass at whistler while they were awesome at northstar. i definitely look forward to getting these new ones, i hope theyre cheaper than minions
i had 2.5's and they sucked ass at whistler while they were awesome at northstar. i definitely look forward to getting these new ones, i hope theyre cheaper than minions
oh im sorry NorCalNomad i didnt realise there were rules to ridng a bike? maby you should share these rules with everyone else as u seem to be an expert at knowing them? MTB RULES by NorCalNomad. i can see that going down a treat 
and unlike you obviasly i dont watch pros to copy them and look how they are riding a bike and ohh yeh, look where there feet are. i ride put my feet where i want to put them. i dont want to CPOY people like you, but you stick to your rules and see how far that gets you Maby one day you can share your sheer awsomeness with the rest of us maby
and unlike you obviasly i dont watch pros to copy them and look how they are riding a bike and ohh yeh, look where there feet are. i ride put my feet where i want to put them. i dont want to CPOY people like you, but you stick to your rules and see how far that gets you Maby one day you can share your sheer awsomeness with the rest of us maby
oh also you pics showed nothing, fair play the peaty one shows it and maby gee at a push but i love the same hill photo you gave haha. considering one foot is off the pedal and the other one is front on, it clearly shows how they put their feet idiot lol
idiot lol
maybe his feet just slipped a little bit too
that happens to me... but he was wearing five tens
why did this spark such a fat argument?
that happens to me... but he was wearing five tens
why did this spark such a fat argument?
If you want a WTB tire for the wet, why not just use a Timberwolf? Slower rolling, but incredible mechanical grip... Only wish the weights for their Timberwolf w/ dual ply casing were inline with Maxxis.
gustofwind, you need to try some other tyres mate. The Prowler MX is not a wet tyre, by any stretch of the imagination, my left shoulder and elbow know this from personal experience.
I'm going to put that down to us being on different continents then, I've come off twice having lost my front tyre in the wet when I really shouldn't have. (Not ridden prowler's in the wet before recently, only had them on since the summer).
Listen to the guy who lives in a wet climate, not a guy from a dry area. Most tires work in the dry. In the wet only a few tires actually perform well.
I say again, I rode a Prowler MX 3.5 and a Prowler XT 2.3 ALL WINTER (i.e. rain and muck). They were great.
@ NorCalNomad
Seeing as Peaty and Gee ride with clips i dont really think they have to much choice on foot placement?
Seeing as Peaty and Gee ride with clips i dont really think they have to much choice on foot placement?
MBUK says "Forcing your heels down will transform your decending. It feel strange at first but results in greater traction and control.You also use yor bike's suspension alot more efficently". Tryed it myself works like a charm specialy on real steaps.
Of course, its how you 'push' into your suspension when riding flats in the steeps, and if you're good enough, can be applied to spd's as well.
The people saying its poor form really don't know what they're talking about.
The people saying its poor form really don't know what they're talking about.
I think hes talking about how the pedal is in the middle of the arch of his foot.. which is generally pretty bad for pedaling.. im sure it works great on gnarly descents
these tires are great, corner like nobody's business, are light, and roll really well. I honestly don't care that they look like minions, they grip amazingly and aren't gonna fall apart after a season. I'm in love.
Man, I took these tires off a girl's bike and put some other nevegal DH tires on and it shaved over 1.2lbs of weight. These things are heavy, and the sidewall didn't exactly feel that robust.
hope they are better 2010! my 09 race wtb dissent tyres was nearly crap after 4 days of riding.. and 3 puntkture (spelling)..
get a set of minions instead. we have both these tires on the rental bikes at cop and they liiiiiiiiiick
don't be fooled. these tires are garbage
look at the world cup results.
buy the tires those guys run, i'm sure they're not wtb's
look at the world cup results.
buy the tires those guys run, i'm sure they're not wtb's
You're right. Fabien Barel didn't podium nearly every world cup this year running those garbage WTB tires. 
Ha...Fabien Barel may be sponsored by WTB, but that doesn't mean he runs their tyres at World Cups. From this year's World Champs: http://www.mbaction.com/Media/News/_K9J6773.JPG
They are less expensive than Maxxis tires, they are not the same tire that was the Whistler Bike Park Tire and they feel pretty good. I was rocking them last night on a rainy a hell right ride and they out performed the Ardents that I ran a few nights before by a long shot in the the same conditions - last night was actually a lot wetter even. As for Fabien, he's helping them with tires and races on the Timberwolves at MSA, but that pics sure looks like a DHF Minion. But like Big Trad said, some riders pick tires that they are not sponsored by, sharpie the logo and rock em because they are the best tire for a particular course. Not saying that the rider is not helping a company develop new patterns that don't work well too...
Ardents are horrible wet tires. I'd bet even Nevegals (which are also shite) are better than ardents in the wet.
I got a pair of the 2.3 race version that I run on my all mountain rig. They are great in the wet and dry, I live in Seattle so you know I spend a ton of time in the wet. I love these tires and will probably buy another pair when they are done.
A few months ago Cyclingnews actually reported on new ROAD shoes that are designed to have the cleat placed on the middle of the sole in order to increase rider endurance. When you think about it your calf really doesn't do much when you are pedaling other than stay rigid so that your quad can transfer the power to the pedals. The guy who makes the shoes likens using a traditional setup to doing pushups on your fingertips instead of on your palms. Seems logical to me. That is why I have run my cleats as far back as possible on my shoes for the last 15 years. When I dh on platforms I put my foot slightly forward of where I do when I ride my trail bike. Just food for thought. I am a proponent of providing equal opportunity to riders with different pedaling styles.:-)
With respect to the comment on what the pros ride... Maxxis dropped their sponsorship of many of their former pros but they still use their own money to buy Maxxis tires. They just black out the graphics. That is a pretty strong endorsement to me.
Did anyone see the tyres on Peaty's bike at Canberra, could have sworn that was a High Roller Semi on the back and a High Roller on the front, with the Logos blacked out & Santa Cruz are sponsored by Kenda
Everyone who says "that looks just like a Minion" is on crack. Have you honestly gone to maxxis.com and compared the two tires? They both have knobs, all right I'll give you that. Besides that they are really not that similar. The Dissent has less knobs and they are shaped differently than on any of the Minions. The closest thing Maxxis has is the Minion DHF, but it is really not as similar to the Dissent as you guys are making it out to be.
don't be a boner, seriously. its similar. more similar than the timber wolf is, or the weirwolf, or a high roller, or an ardent. if you were to compare which tire the dissent IS similar to. it is obviously the minion dhf.
wtb obviously chose to make a tire similar to the minion when they made the dissent.
wtb obviously chose to make a tire similar to the minion when they made the dissent.
I never said it wasn't similar, I said it wasn't "exactly the same" as a lot of people are claiming it to be.
i believe you said "Besides that they are really not that similar" didn't you just say that?
i think thats a direct quote from your previous post?
hmmm, lying on pinkbike again eh seraph
i think thats a direct quote from your previous post?
hmmm, lying on pinkbike again eh seraph
Yeah, I did say that. I didn't say "they are not similar at all." I said "not that similar," which allows for a select amount of similarity between the two tires. You really need to start actually comprehending my posts before you try to comment on them, bigturd.
[Reply]
[Reply]
I go for maxxis , the best choice I think , and for sure that tires are really close to a minion looks really similar.
I have never been particularly happy with any of WTBs products... especially the tires. Maxxis really is the way to go.
I've ridden a lot of WTB tires, but mostly on trail bikes. The only one I really liked (here in UK conditions) were single ply Timberwolfs. Awesome grip, decent rolling, good wear, and about 830g. Sick trail tire. And this seems to be the tire they are dropping...
[Reply]
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