The New Maxxis High Roller 3

During Crankworx Whistler, Maxxis held a coming out party for a tire that isn't really a replacement for the High Roller II. It's an entirely different tire which they are calling the High Roller 3. Or maybe High Roller III, but on the sidewall it just says High Roller, perhaps anticipating running out of room when the High Roller XVIII launches. Mountain bike 'journalists' brought along personal bikes or testers to have them re-shod in fresh rubber. I brought along my We Are One Arrival 170.

We were told this tire began its development in 2022 in response to athlete feedback; "they wanted a tire for steep high speed, changeable conditions and mixed terrain of the modern World Cup course." Further, the riders, "wanted something a little bit more aggressive, a little bit more open that still performs well in hard back conditions." This was so it would slot into holes between tires like the Assegai, DHR II, Shorty II. In the end, over 10 concepts were explored

It's currently only available as a 29 or 27.5 x 2.4 in DH casing but Double Downs are apparently on the water and EXO+ will be coming later in the year. The price we were quoted was 105 USD.

So why did Maxxis name their new tire the High Roller, when it doesn't seem to have much in common with previous tires of the same name? Well, it actually comes down to this: names are hard. Finding a new moniker for a tire may sound easy but, after digging through copyright databases to find something appropriate, the new tire wouldn't arrive with the goodwill associated with the much-loved earlier versions of the High Roller. So the new tire, which looks more like a cross between a DHR II and a Shorty, is now the High Roller Trois, and it's much more about grip than rolling speed. Apparently testing says it isn't bad in that department either though.

An element this High Roller shares with the previous High Rollers is large voids to encourage mud shedding - or a high void ratio as a tire engineer would say. Looking at the tread pattern it becomes obvious that this is a gravity tire and they aren't really "Rollers." I can confirm that you can pedal these just fine on pavement in a pinch, but they wouldn't be my first choice. Maybe on the road should be called the Low Roller? They seemed fine on the dirt though.

Anything athletes say about products made by their sponsors has to be taken with lots of salt, but the conversations we were privy to spent a lot of time comparing the different treads and getting feedback from the riders about what works best in each condition, and why they like each pattern. This was useful and interesting information.

Both Dakotah Norton and Nina Hoffman mentioned that, for bike park tracks that are dry, and where ground penetration wasn't important, like Leogang and Lenzerheide, a traditional dry tire was slightly preferable in a race situation but Norton added that, "if you're not in a race situation I don't think you'd need to swap out tires." Nina Hoffman said "I did not race them in Fort William this year because it was kind of dry and pretty hard, then you choose rolling speed over braking power and traction but that was the only race when I didn't want it" (referring to the HR3).

Bryn Atkinson praised the tires versatility and in particular, "anywhere it can get into that dirt just a little bit, the tire is just incredible. In the rear the DHR II would slip a little bit too much but this tire would just come to a stop down some good stuff and in the front it just carves so hard and was really predictable. And I was so surprised at how good it was on hard packed terrain. I thought for sure it was going to roll over but you can really just push into it and it holds up. A tire that was pretty similar in shape that would do the opposite was the Shorty. It would maybe break away on roots and rocks. This is a tire that would be really good for a whole race weekend or on a trail bike."*

*DH racers often call any bike that isn't set up for World Cup DH a "trail bike"

Jackson Goldstone came in with a perspective that's helpful to those of us mortals, particularly those who pay for tires; "going back to the Ebike and how long it (the HR3) and how long it lasts, my dad went to Europe for two months and did multiple 100 km days and did it on the same set of High Rollers and they were pretty smoked but were totally rideable at the end after at least 1000 kms - and on an Ebike."

High Roller 3 Highlights and specs

• Launch sizes are 29 or 27.5 x 2.4
• Currently available in DH casing with Maxx Grip Compound
• Reported weight is 1350 g for 27.5 and 1400 for 29
• Double Down casing coming soon and EXO+ later in the year
• 12% more braking surface area than the DHF and 11% more than the DHR II
• Lower knob height than Shorty but similar centre knob profile to an intermediate spike
• Side knobs are slightly larger than those on the Assegai for improved stability

As I mentioned, to my eyes this new pattern looks like a DHR II/Shorty combo but it also has some Assegai thrown in on the side knobs but these are slightly larger for stability. Like the Shorty, it has an alternating pattern of centre knob pairs. On the Shorty, the knobs alternate between closely spaced and somewhat wider, while the spacing on the alternating pairs on the HR III are within a millimetre or two of being equally spaced, apparently for cornering stability. Another difference is that one set has sipes that are in line with the direction of travel (Pair A) while the following pair (B) is at a right angle. The ramping is distinct as well with the Maxxis image of pair B showing a very shallow ramp while on pair A it's slightly more pronounced. What is clear however is that this tire is much more about braking traction than rolling speed. In terms of shape, while both pairs are trapezoids, pair A appears be slightly wider and to occupy slightly more volume.

Does any of this matter? I have no idea. Unless I destroy a tire, I run them long enough that sipes last much less than half their life. Obviously the athletes on the panel rarely do this. Could any of us tell if the sipes, when the tire is new, are in line, or at a right angle to direction of travel or if they were a combo? Could a pro? I am dubious. It does seem that a sipe may control flex somewhat, but to what degree? That can likely be quantified in a lab but whether it can be felt is tougher to determine. Would a veteran World Cup racer feel a slight difference in knob ramp, or knob shape? It seems most likely that the most important elements of this centre portion of the tire are knob spacing, size, stability and depth. These knobbers are on the small side, widely spaced and quite deep, but less so than the Shorty II, and knob stability was a big emphasis. That sounds pretty good to me.

In terms of cornering, were told that a "healthy center gap allows for precise initiation of turns. And the narrow transition gap between the center knob and the side knobs allows for confident, intermediate lean angles and off camber control." I'm not convinced this transition gap is narrow but I didn't feel an indistinct area between the centre and side knobs, despite what my eyes were telling me and while tipping into corners the tires felt natural and stable.

We did a couple of Squamish laps. The first one, on Cakewalk, was on mixed conditions but more hard than loose. It was dusty and dry and areas that weren't blown out were hard pan. The tires were great right from drop in. I found the grip to be high and predictable on every surface with very little squirm cornering and lots of braking traction. The knob stability that was a primary goal was on display here.

On our second lap we had the option of taking some double black lines and the first one in particular was very steep. The loam was plush and loam dust was noted. In these conditions the tires shined brightest while reminding me of running mud spikes (I don't recall which brand) on loamy trails years ago. Despite the cliché, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to describe the directional traction as on rails. Braking traction was very high and again predictable.

The last section of trail was a steeply-bermed flow-er that, aside from a few marbles, was hard as rock. I don't think I would have enjoyed a tire like the Shorty here but the HR3 was great. Unlike the Assegai, it has no transitional knobs to preserve grip as you your bike angles into a corner. Like many tires, the centre and side knobs alternate, so the gap in the centre knobs corresponds to a pair of side knobs and vice versa.

My next ride on the HR3s was in the Whistler Bike Park, starting on the notoriously bony and unforgiving Top of the World trail and then filing into Million Dollar, which I'd never ridden. It got softer and a little blown out in a few places on Million Dollar but the HR3s front and rear handled it without problems. They also performed well on the few rock faces we encountered on the way down.

Obviously this tire can be used front and rear, as we did, but it's currently only available in 2.4 (although with a slightly larger carcass than other 2.4s in the Maxxis Line) which will please racers but those of us who like a little more volume may want to choose something else up front.

What makes me optimistic about the HR3 is the performance in hard and dusty conditions, considering it looks like it will be a champ in damp, wet and full on muddy conditions but with fewer limitations than a mud tire. Wet weather testing was performed by 10 enduro and DH athletes, including Jackson Goldstone, on Whistler's notorious 1199 DH course in 2023. Rider feedback was apparently that the tire had the "consistency of the Assegai on wet roots, while significantly better in the mud." Importantly for the racer crowd, "rolling speed was very similar to the Assegai" and "it didn't seem to give up any significant performance in high speed bike park terrain. Over twenty days of testing were conducted in places like Val de Sole, Whistler and Windrock.

For my own use, I'm hoping this will be a great North Shore tire for the 8 wet months we enjoy so much, although for this time of year I'd be happy to have a Maxx Terra in the rear for longevity.

Maxxis High Roller 3