My tires are getting pretty worn, I think the hot Arizona pavement is really taking it's toll. Can anyone recommend a good set of tires for the rocky/sandy/thorny desert?

I try to ride mainly off road, but have to spend some time on pavement to and from the trails, in reality it's probably about 40% on and 60% off.

The trails I ride have lots of loose, sharp rock, plenty (too much) of sandy areas, etc. Very little mud though Pavement-wise most roads are 45 or 55 mph, with the occasional 65.

Seems like a hard bill to fill.

Right now I have Dunlop D603 on front, Bridgestone TW-302 on rear.

 

The K772 Kenda Parker Desert rear might fit your bill. It's DOT, 6 ply, has stiff side walls and seems to hook up pretty good on a wide variety of terrain similar to what you mentioned. It's held up quite nicely, although starting to get some chunking from all the sharp slate where I've been riding.

If DOT isn't a factor, I've heard good things about the Maxxis Maxxcross Desert IT also. A buddy has one on his xr650r and is very impressed with how well it's held up.

 

Man, I'll give a very strong vote to the Kenda Parker...at least for the front. I have not found a front tire yet that resists chunking like the Parker and still yields excellent traction. I'm hard on front tires, and I think the KLX is particularly hard on fronts. Peeling ***** has been a perpetual problem for me. My KLX is modded to where I can just about ride it like a competition bike...except for the power...and I think the added weight of a KLX compared to a full race bike makes tire selection for durability an even bigger challenge. I've been through a bunch of tires on this bike. The Kenda Parker has held up better than anything else I've tried including a Maxxis Desert, 606, Pirelli Scorpion, Trakmaster, and several others. It's my go-to front tire at this point. You will get an odd wear pattern of mushrooming on the center row of *****, but it apparently affects nothing and the ***** don't chunk. Dirt Rider magazine had an article earlier this year about DOT rated knobbies, and the Parker was their favorite front tire. I concur.

On the rear, I didn't get the same results on the Parker. Spacing on the center ***** was almost too wide, and as a result they suffered some minor chunking and cuts. I've used several other brands/models on the rear, and oddly the good ol' Kenda Trakmaster seem to last the longest and yield traction as good as any higher dollar tire. I found it was a waste of time and money to use anything else. I run a 110/100 on the rear.

I ride most consistently in rocky, ledgy, loose terrain in my home area...desert-like. Southern Utah is very similar. Even Colorado on the more challenging sections is almost all loose rock and scrabble. The Parker and Trakmaster have been surprisingly good in the wear and traction department.

 

Take a look at the Pirelli xcmh 90/90x21, it's dot a harder compound that wears better, I like the scorpion pro too a bit softer compound. The Kenda Parker 100/100x18 wears well, hasn't chunked/thrown any ***** on the big bore klx