Tires.. where the rubber meets the road.

There are a lot of different opinions among motorcycle aficianados about tires. Some are very committed to their brand or type of tire & will promote & defend them to the death! The tire is very important. It is where you connect to the earth in the ride. My basic philosophy on tires has been to get the best tire for the worst conditions i might find myself in.

For many years i used the big teraflex on my drz. It had amazing traction, was very tall, & lasted a long time. I got 5k miles on them.. of course they were nearly bald when i replaced them. I noticed that i seldom used all the traction they provided. Most of the miles i put on the bike are on long dirt roads & paved sections. But then there will be a steep rocky climb, or sand, or some mud. That's when the tires prove themselves.

On occasion, i've considered downgrading to a less aggressive tread. 90% of the time i would be fine with a typical dual sport type of tread, rather than full knobbies. But then i remember some of the spots i've gotten into. Spinning out halfway up a big hill isn't much fun. Better to have the traction & not need it, than to need it & not have it. So i stick with the big knobbies. They wear a little faster on the longer rides, but it's not that hard to change them, & there are reasonably priced tires out there, & tires are part of the maintenance of motorcycle riding.