New Hutchinson Bulldogs

Hutchinson Bulldog 34c cross tire

I have been riding these new Hutchinson Bulldog cross tires for a couple of weeks now, and as a guy who loves his tubulars, I have to say that these are great tires, even though they are clinchers. Mounted up on a set of the beautiful white DT Swiss RR 1450 Mon Chasseral wheels, DT's 'light' climbing wheels, this setup was very light, and fast. I ran just under 40psi in both front and rear.

As mentioned, I love the ride of tubulars, and have ridden my wife's setup on occassion, Ksyrium SL's with Kenda Small Block 32c tires - which I dislike as much as long visits from in-laws. Her setup is harsh, the wheels are too flexy and unpredictable in corners, and sketchy all around. My preferred setup are my Reynolds Cross carbon tubulars w/ Dugast 34c Rhinos, which I run around 32-35psi in. So going to an all aluminum wheel w/ a clincher, admittingly I was skeptical.

To my surprise, my first ride out, I warmed up quickly to this new setup. The wheels proved to be stiff laterally for great cornering, but supple enough to smooth out the ride. The 34c Hutchinson Bulldogs complimented the wheels, with predictable grip in various conditions, supple ride, not too mention a cool Euro appeal in their silver/ black skin, pairing nicely with the white scheme of the wheels.

After hitting the Lower Loop trail up in Crested Butte on my Indy Fab Planet Cross, I found this setup to be much more. The wheels hooked up nicely on loose climbs and descents, and were a blast to ride through the corners. I never felt like I was over-riding the wheels, and even ran down a couple of mountain bikers.

Perfect pairing


Back on the campus cross course, perfectly timed sprinkler systems afforded me the opportunity to turn some wet laps on the grassy lawns. Off-camber, downhill and tight turns were no match for these tires and wheels. I pushed hard through the turns, and lept out of the saddle on the steep inclines with not a hint of any slipping. Even on very slick corners these tires grabbed like velcro.

So would I race this setup? Absolutely. The Hutchinson Bulldogs paired up with the DT Swiss Mon Chasseral's provide a inspiring package that would benefit any cross rider. These will be seeing much more action this season, including some races.