Skinny vs. Wide Tires

passenger0_0

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Non-VOC Member
I have no idea about this Japanese style of competition but it presents a good comparison for those who think you need wide tyres for better grip as the rider of the skinny tyre bike simply rode around the outside and inside the other riders. In our BEARs series I was up against Ducatis' with 6" wide rear rims and slick tyres while riding my Rickman Trident with WM3 x18 rims (120/90 rear and 90/90 front - treaded Metzelers) and slid (sometimes horizontally) to an eventual F750 class championship win in the mid 90s. Strangely enough they didn't like getting too close to me on corners as I was often using opposite lock both going in and coming out. Down the straights though they had the mid-range power. Sliding suited my competition riding style then. At the end of one series I swapped bikes with my main opposition and he was stunned by what a 'heap of s##t my bike was' and couldn't believe this machine had beaten his bigger budget efforts. I couldn't believe how good his bike was except on the corners where you needed to literally hang off the bike to get it to turn into the corner. Not fat tyres for me. Happy days :)
 

greg brillus

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VOC Member
I watched that video a couple of weeks back........It is quite amazing, if not bordering on madness to watch and enjoy............Very good indeed.
 

vibrac

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VOC Member
From a post of mine April 13
I know when we had a track day at Snetterton to run the racing Comet in and have some rides out on our track bike I was out on the Comet with some intermediate riders on crutch rockets.
They blasted past down the straights but if encountered on the twisters sometimes the bikes close in front would suddenly heel over with arms and elbows scratching the tarmac while the Comet would majestically sail past with what seemed a much less extreme angle and power away for a distance before the inevitable happened and they came past again.
Ignored in the pits before the sessions the Comet had lots of visitors later.
I did not mention it was a lot more to do with rolling radius of their tyres compared to 400X18 AM23 and the fact it takes a good man to regulate the harsh amount of raw power on a modern bike when heeled over rather than the skill of the Comet rider or the fine Stevenage product
 

bmetcalf

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VOC Member
After a 500+ mile trip on my trusty Rapide over twisty Wisconsin roads, where I could open the throttles (within reason) without going too fast in the corners, the next day I overcooked it in a corner on my 100 hp Buell and fell down, so " it takes a good man to regulate the harsh amount of raw power on a modern bike when heeled over" was proved right then!
 

vibrac

Well Known and Active Forum User
VOC Member
After a 500+ mile trip on my trusty Rapide over twisty Wisconsin roads, where I could open the throttles (within reason) without going too fast in the corners, the next day I overcooked it in a corner on my 100 hp Buell and fell down, so " it takes a good man to regulate the harsh amount of raw power on a modern bike when heeled over" was proved right then!
Yes just another area where the little black boxes in road bikes from 2016 onwards make skill redundant. I would not be surprised if riders were excluded from Moto GP after 2030 just race the computers
 
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