Tire Age On Sidewall

[Mik3ymomo]

I am milling over signing up for the level 1 school and just looked at the tires on my 2009 Ducati 848. Still not 100% on renting their bike or using my own. It may be easier to just use the BMW but the age of the tires may be borderline even if it only has 1200 miles on the set of tires. I am looking for opinions. The vehicle is garage kept under a cover.

 

They are Pirelli Dragon Supercorsa Pro's with date codes of 1808 front and 2208 rear. The class I am looking at is this May 2013.

[Cobie Fair]

Our tire honcho will know for sure, but they were made in '08 I believe. I'm of course biased, so you won't get a completely straight answer .

 

Actually, you have a couple of options: take it on our bike. Some prefer that, don't have to worry about getting it there, the use of the bike while at the track, and getting it back (riding/truck/trailer,etc.). And some are just nervous about their bikes.

 

What we train you on is not bike specific, it will apply to yours for sure.

 

Or, you could get a set of tires from the school at killer price (can't put it up, have to contact the school). If you are signed up for the school, you are eligible--can either get them shipped, or installed at the school, before you ride (get there first thing in the am, or better let the chief mechanic, Will, know in advance).

 

Hope we do see you there!

 

Best,

Cobie

[Mik3ymomo]

Cobie,

 

Thanks for the reply. As I understand the date codes 4 digits stand for the manufactur date. First 2 digits are week and last 2 are the year for tires made after the year 2000.

 

This would indicate the front tire was manufactured in the last week of April or first week in May of 2008. The rear tire would have been manufactured last week of May or first week of June of 2008 as I understand it.

 

These tires have just under 1200 miles and look basically new but I was I wondering what you guys felt about a set of tires on a bike for level 1 that were right at 5 years old by class time?

 

I did read about the Dunlops and will very likely take the school up on the deal either by days end or in Aug when you come back to NJ where I may likely do level 2.

 

I would like to use these tires if you are confident they are perfect for level 1 as they are nearly new otherwise. Especially the 1 inch chicken strip on each side

 

I hope to remove those strips as a result of your instruction.

 

I know my success will be based partly on trust in my tires but if you have confidence in them I will also.

 

I am still considering the bike rental as I've read fatigue by class end may have me wishing I drove my SUV to the track and back. I live about 45mins from NJMP. At 40 years old I may not have the energy of my younger counterparts.

Can bike rental be a last min decision if I sign up to use my own but change my mind?

 

 

[warregl]

...I am still considering the bike rental as I've read fatigue by class end may have me wishing I drove my SUV to the track and back. I live about 45mins from NJMP. At 40 years old I may not have the energy of my younger counterparts.

Can bike rental be a last min decision if I sign up to use my own but change my mind?

 

For what it's worth I recommend driving your SUV. If you are an active track day rider then you will know if you are going to be ok to ride home after 5 sessions on track. If you have not done a track day I would highly recommend trailering your bike or renting one of the school's bikes. Track riding will wear you out. I did my first school at 42 and by the end of the day I was very happy to be riding home in my cage.

 

Additionally, if you did have an issue with the bike (mechanical or...other) you still have transportation. Track riding is hard on equipment and a minor incident could leave you without a ride home!

 

And I believe the school usually has all of their bikes rented in advance of the school date. There's always the chance someone will no-show but I would recommend having riding plans set ahead of time.

 

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

 

Best,

Carey

[bradvanhorn]

Unless you are seeing signs of excessive wear, dry rot, etc., or unless you'll be challenging the track lap records, then I'd say your tires are just fine. If you have any doubt about their quality then I'd replace them. The school does offer a truly killer deal on Dunlop tires if you want/need them.

 

I have enjoyed riding the schools BMWs but when possible I prefer to experience the training from the controls my own bike since that is what I have to ride every day. If you don't mind training on a different bike then renting might be a better idea given your thoughts about fatigue, travel, etc.

[Hotfoot]

Here's a question. This is a great chance to get your bike on a track and see what it can really do. If you start pushing your own limits, and your bike's, far beyond what you have ever done before, will you begin to worry about whether your tires have optimal grip? Or as much grip as the guy in front of you, or your coach has, on his/her bike? Will that become a distraction?

 

5 years old sounds borderline to me - I didn't find exact guidelines but in researching it a bit, there seems to be a lot of recommendations that any motorcycle tire that is six years old or older should be changed, and more like 3-4 years for track riding; since tires tend to dry out and get less pliable with age, it sounds like a 5 year old tire might be fine for street riding but not have the grip for spiriting cornering that a new tire would have.

 

Our tire expert will have better info, of course!

 

Regarding reserving a bike - you do want to make that decision in advance (ASAP, really); there are a limited number of spaces available for students on rented bikes, the school needs to know ahead of time.

 

[faffi]

I've ridden on tyres twice as old - and then some - and leaned enough to remove any trace of chicken strips with no other issues than mild slides with the tyres cold on cold tarmac, so I'm confident yours will be fine. However, if you have doubts it may cause you to ride in a tense manner. This again will reduce grip and increase the chance of a crash. A set of new tyres are cheaper than new bodywork on your bike. And you can always take the old tyres with you and use them up on the road later

[Mik3ymomo]

Some valid points here all have me leaning towards renting the BMW.

Saves time, hassle, prep and gives me a chance to ride an amazing liter bike I always see on the podium.

Prob not a bad idea to have traction control, wheelie control and enough nanny software to help me along my way as a first timer.

 

Thanks for the info.

Regards,

Mike

 

[Pepsi Drinker]

I am late to the party but....

 

If the tires look good, ie...no cracks between the tread blocks or sidewalls, then they are likely fine. Probably not ideal, but I am confident they would get the job done.

 

From my personal experience file;

In late 2011 I took my then 1989 250 Ninja racebike to Road America. It had not been ridden since 2003 and had a set of tires on it with production dates from early 2001 that I already had used for several races in 2003. The tires looked good, ie...no cracks or obvious signs of problems, they were in the shed out of the sun, but saw 100+ temps and sub zero temps while the bike/tires sat for all those years. I took that bike and rode a full day at Road America at "race" speeds. I had some serious apprehensions about how good they would hold up and I did notice in the early laps considerable extra movement of the tires but by sessions end they seemed to have plentiful grip and I managed to run lap times within 8 seconds of what I did when I raced their regularly. My point is, you really don't need the super stickiest newest rubber to ride around a track, any track. However you do need adequate rubber and you need to feel confident in that tires available grip for the speed you ride.

 

If you don't, as Hotfoot stated it could/would be a distraction and that is definately something you don't need while spending most of your $10 worth of attention in other areas of development.

 

That said, if I would have had enough forwarning before that date, I surely would have installed new tires before departing simply for peace of mind more than any other reason. Tires are far cheaper than throwing your bike down the road or "wasting" time and energy worrying about them when you could spend that energy far more productively.

[Mik3ymomo]

Submitted for level 1 at NJMP on 5-24-13. I will be on one of the BMW's. Thanks for the advice. Until I decide I am hooked on going to the track and invest in a trailer I will rent the bike's. I suspect after the class I will be shopping for a bike trailer

Can't wait to get down to business!

[DUNLOP-RTS]

I would recommend the following:

 

PLAN A- rent the school bike. your attention will not be on the bike and all that stuff, and you can have good learing day at the school without discraction.

 

PLAN B- get a new set of tires from the school. they are top of the line and your attention will not be on your tires and you can focuse on learing.

 

Don't be penny wise and pound foolish. tires are a cheap date when you consider all the other things you spend $ on to go to a school. They are an importaint factor, get it sorted out early and with quality, then your ride and school experience will be enhanced.