Travel Report: using Metzeler Tourance tyres off–road

Follow-up to Travel Report: off–road GS photos from Transversality - Robert O'Toole

After the heavy rain we have had this week, I thought that my trail riding practice session on Saturday morning would be quite difficult. The Metzeler Tourance tyres that I have on my R100 GS PD are a good compromise between road and trail. However, the tread tends to fill up in muddy conditions, with no self-cleaning action. This reduces grip, especially when crossing ruts. The consequence being that the rear end is thrown out sideways.

Here's a photo showing the tread on a dry track:

The trick is to reduce the pressures by 1 bar at the front and back. This keeps more of the tread in contact, with the result being much greater control. The R100 GS PD, as with all Boxer GSs (not F650 or G/S), has no problem with tyre creep at low pressures, as it uses the Akront tubeless spoked rims.

Once back on the road, I reinflated to 2.4 and 2.9 bar, and after shedding the remaining mud from the tread, was able to ride fast like a road bike.

Robert O'Toole : 04 Sep 2005 08:31 |  Tags: Bmw Gs Motorcycle Travel Travel Travel And Motorcycles Travel Writing Writing |  Comments (0) |  Report a problem