Does anyone have any personal favorites for wet winter riding? I just recently heard some praise on Metzlers Sportec. Any others?
Howdy, Does 50 F and heavy rain count as wet winter riding? If so, I knocked out about a 500 mile day across Texas starting in Mena Arkansas and ending in Kerrville (West of Austin). It rained or was thick fog the whole ferking way! I was not happy, as it was supposed to be getting nicer and warmer the farther South I went, NOT! However, I was making "good" time on the back roads. I was running the BT 020 on the back and it felt great, never a pucker moment the entire ride. The tire had about 400 miles on it when I started the trip. On the front I had the Pirelli Dragon GTS. This tire is fantastic on the 98-01 VFR's. Excellent grip wet or dry and excellent wear longevity. It also tends to cup less than any other tire I have tried (D204, D205, D207, M1 Sportecs, and ST010). In the dry, the Sportecs are amazing. They feel absolutely fantastic! The downside is that they barely lasted 3000 miles :'( With as many miles as I put on my VFR's, I just can't afford to replace tires every month or two! I now run the BT020 rear with the Dragon GTS on both VFR's and have found them to be an excellent combination. Good handling and longevity. Adios,
Many thanks for the tire details and ride report! I've never even considered Pirelli, but now you've given me food for thought.
I'm running the Metzeler Sportec M1, and loving it. Both in the dry and the wet. Very confidence inspiring and sticky like superglue. I have currently about 3500 miles on them and still have 3mm left, so wear is pretty good for such a soft tire, though I tend to be easy on them with the strait accelleration. For illustration: This is how mine looks after 3500mls, of which the last 700 were highspeed German autobahn miles (ie 100mph+)
