Tyres for winter, but not 'winter tyres'

I'm going to be using my Cannondale rigid 26" MTB for NYC winter commuting (mostly bike paths and city streets) but wanted to keep it quite lightweight/fast and fun for park shreds in the snow.
Choosing tyres at present, and I know already that spikes/studs are a total no-go and that I don't want bulletproof touring tires that weigh a kilo each and last twenty years. I'm thinking folding XC-race-knobblies or similar.

The shortlist so far:
Continental RaceKing ProTection 2.2 rear + X-King ProTection 2.2 front
Maxxis Ardent Race 2.2 3C EXO rear + Maxxis ??? front
Schwalbe Racing Ralph 2.1 rear + Schwalbe ??? front
Hutchinson Python2 2.1 front + rear
Kenda Small Block Eight 2.1 front + rear

Any input/feedback/stories welcomed, I really don't know much at all about modern MTB tyres and was almost going to buy some reissued Ritchey Z-Max gumwalls until I realised they'd probably be unbearably slow on tarmac.
If it helps, these worked a treat on my steel singlespeed CX bike last winter;



I suppose I just need something a bit more cushy that can still roll fast.
A friend suggested Schwalbe Sammy Slicks...

Re:

Wouldn't that semi slick, other than wear the little knobbles out quickly on tarmac, be a bit slippy on snow? They'll not cut through it as they are much wider than the Cross tyres?.
Have a look through Vittoria/shcalbe website and look for a narrow slightly knoobly tyre like the cyclocross tyre you are using.

Panaracer Fire XC Pro 1.8's work well for me as a mixed road / offroad tyre. I have no idea if they are any good in snow though.

Re: Re:

FluffyChicken":o9rj0fl3 said:

Wouldn't that semi slick, other than wear the little knobbles out quickly on tarmac, be a bit slippy on snow? They'll not cut through it as they are much wider than the Cross tyres?.
Have a look through Vittoria/shcalbe website and look for a narrow slightly knobbly tyre like the cyclocross tyre you are using.

Click to expand...

In 26", that appears to be a rare thing. Most 26" tyres below 1.95 are commuter-slick, no knobs at all. Also usually wire-bead, focused on puncture protection and pretty damn heavy. Those that are knobbly are cheap 60tpi rubbish, again wire-bead.
I suppose most nice lightweight small-knobbled folding CX tyres were developed for CX racing, which is predominantly 700c.
Besides, I want a little volume to keep the PSI down. Streets can be pretty rough here.

Shortlist has been revised to include
Kenda Small Block Eight 1.95 rear + Kenda Happy Medium 1.95 or 2.10 front
Schwalbe Sammy Slick 2.1 rear + Schwalbe Racing Ralph 2.1 front

Have a look at schwalbe CX comp. Might be a bit heavy though

Re:

Nobby Nics in 2.1 or 1.8 ?

Geax ,(Vittoria) Mezcall2


Schwalbe make a comparable tyre the CX Pro in 26x1.35 if you do decide to go thin.

Yep, Nobby Nic 2.1 (or even 2.25) front could go well with a Racing Ralph 2.1 rear. Added to the list!

How about Schwalbe CX Comp? The 1.3s I run on my tourer roll pretty fast.

Can't find any CX Comps narrower than 2.0 - those are wire bead only and weigh about 700g each.
CX Pros in 26x1.35 are $25 each at CRC, good call. 405g and wire bead makes me think they might be fragile though.

Oops, my mistake, I meant CX Pro. They do come up smallish in width, definitely a 32mm tyre. They have been fine for me - my area is really flinty and I have had no trouble, unlike Rocket Rons which manage to acquire 4 punctures in a single ride with flint cuts.