Many riders of large adventure bikes, such as the Yamaha XT1200Z, will never take them off-road.
There are a range of tyres available for those who are into serious off-roading, such as the Continental TKC 80, but what options do road-only riders have available to them?
They could of course just stick with the rubber that comes with the bike, and often make a compromise on tyre life or feedback for example, but there is now a very good range of pure road tyres, with GT spec sizes for big adventure bikes.
In the 21st January 2015 edition of MCN, one end user posed our very own Bryn Phillips this very question, wanting to know what pure road tyre options were suitable for his Yamaha Super Tenere.
The hugely popular Bridgestone Battlax BT-023 is approved on the bike, and is well known as a great all-rounder. However, Bridgestone also have the newer Battlax T30, which also comes in a GT version for heavy bikes. Oddly, the new T30 is not approved on the bike, but our Sales Manager Mathew has a pair on his Super Tenere, and reports rock solid stability along with fast, accurate handling.
Last year Michelin introduced the Pilot Road 4 sport touring tyre, which includes a ‘Trail’ version. The use of the word ‘Trail’ in the name doesn’t mean the tyre is for off-road use, simply that it is designed for sport touring use on large trail bikes.
You could also look to the ContiRoadAttack 2 EVO, which boasts more mileage and better wet grip than the very popular ContiRoadAttack 2. Bryn comments “What is often overlooked by riders is how a tyre affects handling, and Conti have an uncanny knack lately of producing tyres that have very accurate handling with high levels of feedback.”
Dunlop also produce the Roadsmart II, which also has very good wet weather characteristics, but the Michelin and Continental options offer slightly sharper handling.
But if you want a tyre that still looks the part on your big ADV machine, and handles well on the road, with the option to go further afield, then with some fantastic reviews since it was launched in the summer of 2014 the new Continental TKC 70 could be right up your street (or fire road..!)
