The Specialized Hillbilly is a tyre known for its prowess in wet and loose conditions, though it has gotten a little long in the tooth. For 2022, the brand has given the tyre a serious overhaul, draping it with a fresh tread pattern and new rubber compounds for even better performance over slick trails making it an ideal contender as one of the best trail and enduro mountain bike tyres you can buy.

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The Hillbilly is designed to excel in steep, slipper and loose conditions where traction is imperative. Where natural terrain is uncertain, this tyre is shaped to find grip.

2022 specialized hillbilly tread.jpg, by Liam Mercer

Most noticeably, Specialized has given the Hillbilly an all-new tread design. This time around, it gets tall centre knobs paired with high-volume shoulder knobs in order to bite into loose surfaces. The tyre also gets block-in-block transition knobs with the aim of reinforcing the tyre's structure and boosting traction, and stability, whether it's through deep loam or over slick rocks.

2022 specialized hillbilly hero.jpg, by Liam Mercer

The new Hillbilly is available in two casings, either GRID Trail or GRID Gravity. The former comes with bead-to-bead protection and the latter is built with a two-ply construction, offering even more support and stability when pushed hard. Both casings are 2Bliss ready (or tubeless ready to me and you).

Specialized's new loose conditions tyre is available for both 650b and 29" wheel sizes in a 2.4in width. The GRID Gravity T9 tyre will set you back £37.50 while the GRID Trail is priced at £50.

• www.specialized.com

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