Interesting review.
I've been running a Magic Mary 2.6, Soft in the front and a Hans Damp 2.6 Speedgrip in the rear and really liked that combo.
But I just got a new Radial Mary in 2.5, Ultra Soft and mounted that on the front, and then moved the regular Mary to the back. First day out was at Snoqualmie Pass Bike Park and it took a few laps to get used to the very different feeling on the front. It sounded different, felt different although I kept pushing harder and harder and it kept feeling good.
Mostly I think it was the Magic Mary in the rear being so much grippier than the Hans Damp that kept surprising me. I don't know that I will keep it setup like this for anything but bike park, but goodness was the grip incredible. Still slides at the rear first, which is what I prefer. But so much grip from the radial Mary it was incredible.
One note on the review, I wonder how it is possible that a more compliant tire would not rebound as much as a stiffer tire. Basically I am wondering if that is some kind of placebo because a balloon rebounds faster than a tire due to less material to flex, so in the same vein wouldn't a less conforming tire rebound slower than a more conforming tire? That feels intuitively true, and upon reflection I think there is validity to it.
Certainly I noticed no less 'pop' from my tires than before. Especially as I ran a few extra PSI than on the non-radial. (19 for park normally, and I ran 21 last Saturday and it felt 'softer' than the 19 I would have normally used.) And I did go from a 2.6 to a 2.5 so I changed that variable.
Either way I highly recommend the radial casing tires, and I love the feel of a Magic Mary. I have risen friends bikes with DHF/DHR/Assegai and not loved them. But that might be nothing more than familiarity.
And all in super trail casing. I've never had issues even riding rocky bike park trails with them.
July 5, 2025, 10:06 a.m. - BarryW
Interesting review. I've been running a Magic Mary 2.6, Soft in the front and a Hans Damp 2.6 Speedgrip in the rear and really liked that combo. But I just got a new Radial Mary in 2.5, Ultra Soft and mounted that on the front, and then moved the regular Mary to the back. First day out was at Snoqualmie Pass Bike Park and it took a few laps to get used to the very different feeling on the front. It sounded different, felt different although I kept pushing harder and harder and it kept feeling good. Mostly I think it was the Magic Mary in the rear being so much grippier than the Hans Damp that kept surprising me. I don't know that I will keep it setup like this for anything but bike park, but goodness was the grip incredible. Still slides at the rear first, which is what I prefer. But so much grip from the radial Mary it was incredible. One note on the review, I wonder how it is possible that a more compliant tire would not rebound as much as a stiffer tire. Basically I am wondering if that is some kind of placebo because a balloon rebounds faster than a tire due to less material to flex, so in the same vein wouldn't a less conforming tire rebound slower than a more conforming tire? That feels intuitively true, and upon reflection I think there is validity to it. Certainly I noticed no less 'pop' from my tires than before. Especially as I ran a few extra PSI than on the non-radial. (19 for park normally, and I ran 21 last Saturday and it felt 'softer' than the 19 I would have normally used.) And I did go from a 2.6 to a 2.5 so I changed that variable. Either way I highly recommend the radial casing tires, and I love the feel of a Magic Mary. I have risen friends bikes with DHF/DHR/Assegai and not loved them. But that might be nothing more than familiarity. And all in super trail casing. I've never had issues even riding rocky bike park trails with them.