With riding photos and additional input by TJ Kearns

It’s pretty easy to adjust Keith Bontrager’s time-tested aphorism “Strong. Light. Cheap. Pick two.” and make it applicable to about anything bike-related. Take mountain bike tires, for example. If you sub “grippy” for “cheap” and swap “light” with “fast,” you get a puzzle that works: Strong. Fast. Grippy. Pick two. Or Strong. Light. Grippy. Pick two. Either applies, but the point is, one of the three traits usually falls short when the others are optimized. It’s really hard to find a tire—particularly a front tire for burly trail exploits—that ticks all three boxes. Surprisingly, Teravail might just have a winner on their hands with the new Clifty, because from my experience with it over the last few months, it’s indeed strong, fast, and grippy. Read on for my review after riding all my favorite chunky trails and bikepacking with it over several hundred miles.

The Clifty was one of three new mountain bike tires Teravail released in April, and it’s the most aggressive of the bunch. It features uniform center lug sizing and spacing to maximize trail contact and interlocking shoulder and transition lugs that the brand claims offers predictable traction in unpredictable terrain. Offered in both a Grip or Grip Plus rubber compound—although I’ve only seen and used the regular Grip compound—the Clifty isn’t offered in a “Light and Fast” casing like most of their other tires. Instead, it’s only available in a Durable (1,020 grams) or Durable Plus (1,220 grams) casing. The latter features a two-ply, 120 TPI casing that defends against punctures and cuts and an apex wedge for more impact protection. The Clifty is available with a black or tan side wall, one 29 x 2.5″ size option, and costs $80 for the Durable version and $85 for the Durable Plus model. 

I’m always chasing the perfect tire combo—especially pairings that feel planted and predictable on rugged trails. Sure-footed, knobby rubber is king when dropping into the spicier stuff, but it’s a classic catch-22: I love climbing and long days in the saddle just as much as I love descending. The problem is, chunky tread usually means heavy tires that can feel like pedaling through molasses or trying to spin up a steel Ferris wheel. That trade-off shows up most with front tires: the ones that inspire confidence on steep, technical descents are often painfully heavy, while lighter, faster-rolling options tend to find the edge of my comfort zone on the slick, rooty, rock-strewn trails of Pisgah National Forest.

Over the years, I’ve found a faithful companion in the Maxxis Minion DHF. It’s predictable, grippy, and fairly tough, though a bit on the heavy side. Since it’s not the quickest, I typically pair it with a Rekon—or sometimes a Teravail Ehline or Aggressor—in the rear for balance. Another one of my all-time favorite ultra-grippy front tires is the Maxxis Assegai, though it’s far from light or fast. Similarly, the Teravail Kessel offers impressive toughness and traction, but it’s a tank.

When the new Clifty came out, I decided to give it a chance, mounting it both front and rear to see how it handles on a semi-aggressive trail hardtail. Based on the press photos, I didn’t expect much. Judging purely by its looks, it appears comparable to the Maxxis Rekon or Forecaster (another tire I like, though it doesn’t have the same chops or confidence as the Minion).

I rode the Clifty on all of our tough trails here in Pisgah, including Farlow Gap, Pilot Rock, Bennett, and the rocky side of Daniel’s. On every one of those rides, and then some, I thought or said that I was amazed by how well it performed as a front tire. It honestly didn’t feel too far off from a Minion DHF when it came to holding a line, hooking up, and simply remaining composed in dicey situations. This was even the case when wet. We had a decently rainy June and first half of July, and I found myself descending trails after a thunderstorm more times than I’d like. I was pleasantly surprised that the Clifty didn’t suddenly lose its mojo in these situations.

Perhaps the Teravail Clifty’s greatest strength lies in its casing. I typically run 2.4 to 2.5” tires around 20 PSI and often let them dip closer to 18 before topping them back up—a relatively low pressure for a rugged trail tire without an insert. Even so, I experienced fewer rim-bottoming thunks with the Clifty than almost any other tire in this size range. The firm sidewalls are a big reason why, and that stiffness also shows up in the corners, where the tire holds its shape and stays composed when pushed hard. That being said, it’s also not a harsh tire. The grip area feels generally supple, which makes it a particularly interesting option for bikepacking.

Over several hundred miles, I didn’t suffer a single flat or sidewall cut, which also speaks to the durability of the casing. As for tread life, the Clifty seems on par with tires like the Minion. While I haven’t logged thousands of miles just yet, the wear so far suggests it should be pretty good and outlast a Maxxis Rekon as a rear tire.

I’m equally as impressed with the Clifty when it comes to speed. I’d put it a similar category as the Maxxis Rekon, but I’d say it’s even a little faster rolling. Plus, the Clifty’s excellent grip translates to solid climbing traction as a rear tire. On steep gravel grinds, such as Pilot Mountain Road en route to Farlow Gap, I was surprised at how well it stuck to the loose gravel. Out of the saddle on a singlespeed, where I might spin out on an Ehline or even a Rekon unless I consciously weighted the rear wheel, the Clifty held firm and kept me blissfully winching upward with far less fuss.

I suppose if I had one complaint about the Teravail Clifty, it’s that there’s just one size. A 29 x 2.5″ tire is versatile, but expanding the lineup to include a beefier 2.8″ would be interesting. Or on the flip side, a narrower 2.3″ for ATB and “gravel plus” bikepacking setups would open the Clifty up to an even wider audience.

• Model Tested: Teravail Clifty, Durable, Black
• Actual Weight: 949 grams
• Place of Manufacture: Taiwan
• Price: $80 at Campfire Cycling
• Manufacturer’s Details: Teravail