🚵 Firecracker 50 Tire Picks – Fast, Grippy Combos for this Breck Classic

Published: 7/1/2025

Tags: firecracker50, tire pick, race setup, breck epic, tire

Updated July 7, 2025

Don’t forget anything! - Run through the Firecracker 50 checklist ↗️

Firecracker 50 Tire Picks

I pre-rode the full 2025 Firecracker 50 course yesterday, and it’s a fast, rewarding course with a mix of fire road climbs, steep/loose hike-a-bikes, and fast, fun singletrack. The loop overlaps heavily with Breck Epic Stage 1 (Pennsylvania Creek) and touches parts of Stage 6 (Gold Dust). My setup and recommendations below are based on testing during the Breck Epic last summer and pre-riding the course on June 30th.

Conditions Overview

2 Major Climbs: Starts up Boreas Pass Road — sustained fire road followed by some fun descending. Then hits Little French Gulch, which is steep, loose, and mostly hike-a-bike.
Descents: Fast and fun — includes shale-lined singletrack and some punchy trail sections near the end of the course.
Surface: Dry at the moment and afternoon storms have kept things tacky, not dusty.
Tech: Not super technical overall, but line choice is important and braking confidence is key in those loose-over-hard corners.

My Recommended Tire Combos

Here’s how I’d break it down based on weather and grip confidence:

Conditions	Front Tire	Rear Tire
Mixed / Tacky	Rekon Race 2.4 WT	Aspen 2.4 WT
Dry & Loose	Rekon Race 2.4 WT	Aspen 2.4 WT
Wet	Ikon 2.4 WT	Aspen 2.4 WT
Max Confidence (Dry)	Rekon Race 2.4 WT	Rekon Race 2.4 WT

✅ I pre-rode the Rekon Race front / Aspen rear combo on Monday and it felt perfect for the current conditions.

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Tire Pressure Plan

I ran the following setup (total rider + gear weight ~86kg):

14 psi front
16 psi rear

This felt pretty good: enough compliance to soften chunk, but no squirm or rim strikes.

Use the SILCA tire pressure calculator ↗
I suggest adding a few PSI for rough terrain, especially some of the sharper stuff that you encounter towards the end of course when things get a little punchy.

I’m running Vittoria Air-liners ↗️ , which let me ride lower without risking rim damage or burps.

Why Not Big Trail Tires?

I’ve ridden these trails on Specialized Purgatory / Ground Control trail tires. They bite hard in the loose and descend confidently, but you have to drag them up Boreas Pass and French Gulch.

Ride Report Takeaways

Course was in great shape — tacky with minimal dust, thanks to recent afternoon rain.
Singletrack was fast, fun, and not overly technical — but stay sharp in those loose-over-hard corners.
Little French is a hike-a-bike in two spots for me - unless you’re feeling heroic and don’t mind paying for it later.
Finish has some punchy climbing, but very fun.

I filmed the full course except the last ~5 miles. This footage gives a good sense of conditions, terrain, and how these tires handled the climbs and descents.

Fueling Notes

I’m treating this as a dress rehearsal for Breck Epic Stage 1. I’ll be targeting:

~100g of carbs per hour
~1L of fluid per hour

See my hydration and nutrition picks for what I use.

What Other Racers Run

In past Firecracker 50 coverage — including a YouTube video from Macky Franklin — I’ve seen riders go light and fast with a Rekon Race up front, favoring a little more grip than an Aspen without sacrificing rolling speed. That’s exactly what I ran and would recommend particularly as a front tire.

Final Thoughts

This course has it all: big climbs, loose sidehills, fast descents, and fun singletrack. While race-day conditions were unexpectedly wet and muddy, the core character of the course still favors fast-rolling tires with reliable grip.

In dry or tacky conditions, I’d still recommend the Rekon Race / Aspen combo with inserts and tuned pressures. But if there’s rain in the forecast, consider swapping to a front Aspen or Ikon for added control.

Race Day Conditions

A few minutes before the race started — skies were mostly clear. The hail came later.

Post-Race Notes (2025 Firecracker 50)

Race day threw a curveball. Conditions turned wet and sloppy during Lap 1 after rain and hail hit shortly after the gun went off. I lost a contact lens at some point, which left me with compromised depth perception and no confidence on the bike. I ended up pulling out of the race about 5 miles before completing the first lap.

In hindsight:

The Rekon Race front wasn’t the ideal tire once the course turned muddy. It was packing up with mud quickly.
A second Aspen up front, or even an Ikon, would have been a better pick for control and braking in slick conditions.
The course began drying out just as I pulled out — the sun came out, and the trails were setting up for what looked like a much grippier and more enjoyable second lap.

Sometimes the smartest race-day setup can’t account for an unexpected hailstorm or a missing contact lens. That’s racing.