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The wordsmiths at Clement didn't include an apostrophe in the X'Plor USH 60 TPI Clincher Tire just to add a little zing to the title. Instead, the apostrophe's role as indicating an omission is a perfect grammatical metaphor for what we mean when use the phrase gravel grinding. Instead of just grinding gravel, the term serves as an apostrophe for riding a bike across all manner of terrain. This implied roster of surfaces starts with gravel, of course, but expands to include dirt, grass, washboard, singletrack, and tarmac. The tire lines up with Clement's airport naming convention by taking its name from the airport code for Ushuaia USH in Argentina, the southernmost city in the world and the gateway to Tierra del Fuego. Clement cites Tierra's adventure bike touring scene as the inspiration for the tire's construction, which features low, broad knobs and a hard, smooth rolling compound on the centerline that's as at home on dirt as it is on slipshod chip seal. The softer shoulders are bedazzled with rows of diamond shaped tread for traction on less hospitable surfaces.
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