Michelin Pilot Street Radial rear tire review

[akima]

Originally Posted by Sirref

Trust me, it's not easy to run out of tire in the front. You'll hit mental walls from obscene entry speed first.

Amazing how many things in life that slow us down and stop us are down to mental walls... not physics... not our bodies... our mind.

I remember the very day I became a better mountain bike rider. It was the day I realised that I was using mental energy focusing on negative outcomes. I tried out switching my mind purely to visualizing success and it was the biggest improvement I ever made to my riding. I'm far from being pro, but I have had people ask me how I can do certain things on my bike that they can't. It's difficult to explain that most of it is just believing. It's kinda something you have to realize for yourself.

I think those people at the top of their game -- Ben Spies and the like -- probably have a level of mental focus that they have honed far beyond that of the average person. I expect that is how they can do what they can do. Well.. that... and crazy amounts of practice!

[Sirref]

It is something that once learned can be carried over to all aspects of one's life, which is one of the reasons why many champions are successful in all aspects of their life. There is little more powerful than the human mind.

I have it click inconsistently but when it does the results amaze me. Last weekend when I crashed out of VIR N I was dropping time at an alarming rate. I started dragging my knee then my foot then my peg, then my elbow touched (only once, in the corner I crashed out of the lap before I crashed out) then I started dragging my fairings, then my exhaust hit the curb and I was off...I dropped 16 seconds across a 15min practice sessions and the first half of the race (from the first 15min practice session)

so overconfidence does exist to an extent but there is definitely that fine line in there and it's amazing what can be done when you get close to it

[cadd]

Originally Posted by Sirref

if you're coasting through corners (I.E. not trailbraking into or throttling hard out) then you should theoretically be using the same percentage of the tires which would mean a larger strip on the rear though not by much. This sounds like the case

Trust me, it's not easy to run out of tire in the front. You'll hit mental walls from obscene entry speed first. Most people that I know that are racing in the class aren't using their whole front (but definitely are using the whole rear if they're on a 140, almost the whole rear on a 150)

I almost never trail brake into a turn. The way I set up my turns/corners (again, on the street) is as follows:

I start braking gently and line up to the outside of the turn, I usually aim for a late apex. I continue to downshift until I'm in the correct gear (either 2nd or 3rd). Just as I'm about to push on the handlebar to lean the bike over, I crack open the throttle and maintain that throttle position. As my field of vision widens while I'm in the corner (normally a tiny bit before the apex), I progressively open the throttle and the bike drifts back to the outside of the turn and i get a "planted" feeling. I do not shift my butt. I just lean my torso a tiny bit forward, inside and down making sure my inside elbow is pretty bent.

I try to take each and every corner with the outside - inside - outside line. The only time when I'm late onto the throttle are 90 degree turns in city like traffic (going under 15mph) where either traffic ahead or pedestrians are stopping me.

[choneofakind]

^^^ that's a good, safe, properly cautious technique for street riding that will help you ride accident free.

You're leaving yourself performance leftover for surprises and that's a good thing. kudos!

[cadd]

This is probably as "aggressive" as I'll ever ride. Most riders that I've encountered on the road ride much faster and corner harder than I do. And I'm perfectly fine with that.

I've only ridden the road in the 1st video once or twice. I remember there was a pretty constant radius left turn coming from a long straight. I normally get back on the gas a tiny bit sooner, but I saw that car approaching from the corner of my eye and hesitated a little before getting back on the gas. Took the turn in 3rd gear.

Link to original page on YouTube.





This next video is a bit boring. But it shows how I corner through nice long bends. 40-45mph speed limit with yellow suggested turning speeds of 35mph. I took this road 3 times before and know it's nice and wide. Because there was no traffic ahead or behind me, I decided to stick closer to the white lines giving myself room on either side should I need it.

Of course I need to make a disclaimer: I switched the bike from MPH to KPH right before I turned on the camera

Link to original page on YouTube.




And finally....NO! I don't normally ride this "aggressive". I'm usually a really relaxed rider who prefers to cruise around.

But from watching these two videos of me taking corners, do you see any particular reason why I would have larger chicken strips on my rear PSR and smaller chicken strips on my front DR2?

[Sirref]

first off, chicken strips don't matter at all

you corner fairly neutral, what this means is that you are using a similar percentage of each tire. The front being smaller means the strip will also be smaller with the same percentage of the tire being used when compared with the rear. Riding neutral like you do is preferred as it reduces risk of losing grip immensely as the two biggest risks of losing grip are braking or accelerating with lean.

If you want to lean more then I suggest doing circles in a parking lot for a bit. However, you don't need to do that as your riding is fine as it is. A true sportbike mentality doesn't belong on public roads.

The only issue that I see is that you make a lot of steering corrections mid corner which is a direct result of you turning in earlier than you need to.

[cadd]

Originally Posted by Sirref

The only issue that I see is that you make a lot of steering corrections mid corner which is a direct result of you turning in earlier than you need to.

KUDOS!!! This is a problem I've been battling with for years!!!! Wow, you caught that real quick.

The reason I think I have this problem: I'm afraid I may not "flick" the bike fast enough if my speeds are too high and I aim for a late apex. When i ride at a normal pace (much much much much slower than the videos above), I have no issues delaying my turn in....and turning in at a slightly quicker pace.

But for whatever reason, when speeds increase I want more room for error....thus, I mentally turn in sooner (which really isn't good because I can run wide on exit).

Another fear that I have with a later turn-in: When going slightly quicker than I'm used to, I'm afraid that when I reach my turn-in point....the road will have potholes or be bumpy or have gravel. I hate to lean the bike over quickly and aggressively on anything but smooth blacktop.

[Sirref]

@cadd have you done a track day?

that would help you deal with many of these issues in a safe environment (while also having a ton of fun)

many of these issues are mental as you are very far from the limits of your bike. The other issue seems to be visual, that being if you are worried about gravel or potholes at your turn-in point then you haven't scanned the turn-in point properly. Both of those, and any other issues, can be easily found by a rider coach which would help improve your riding drastically.

You're also in NJ so NJMP is right next door and that's a great track

[cadd]

Nope, never been to the track. Took the ARC earlier this season as a refresher. Planned on hitting NJMP to do a beginner's track day (track school), but never got around to it.

Definitely next season for sure!

[Sirref]

If you do it with TPM I will be there literally every single time so I should be able to help you out with anything if you need it. If I have a trailer at that point, which I intend to, I could also help you get there.

[akima]

Originally Posted by cadd

I try to take each and every corner with the outside - inside - outside line.

I often stay on the outside line the whole way through the turn to either increase visibility (and be more visible) or to keep my head away from oncoming traffic. Lots of very tight roads in the UK.

Also, I prefer not to cut across the centre of my lane. I prefer to stay where the tyres of the cars frequently travel. I find the centre of the lane is far more likely to contain debris and dirt. There are times when I do move outside - inside - outside, but generally I prefer to just stay on the outside of the turn.

[rojoracing53]

Ok so I finally killed my second pilot street radial rear. This weekend I rode out to Park City UT for some Mtb racing. Iwould have liked to have change the rear tire beforehand because it looked like the cords could show at any second but I didn't have the money. At one point on the trip I glanced down at the tire while moving and thought I saw the white of the cords so I rode practically side saddle till my next gas stop to keep it off the center. Luckily the white I spotted was just the grey of the road on the tire vs the clean rubber on the sides. I mad sure to check the tire at every stop after that although without a plan for if it failed I was just hoping it would get me there and back home somehow. Just got back yesterday without issue and although the cords are showing yet, the center rubber is separating and delaminating from the outer layers. I don't have the total mileage on hand so I'll check tomorrow at the show to see what I recorded in my log sheet.

Good news is I have enough money for a new tire now and I'll be getting to changed ASAP

Maybe a celebratory burnout till it pops is in order for getting me home safely.

[allanoue]

Originally Posted by rojoracing53

I don't have the total mileage on hand so I'll check tomorrow at the show to see what I recorded in my log sheet.

Good news is I have enough money for a new tire now and I'll be getting to changed ASAP

Maybe a celebratory burnout till it pops is in order for getting me home safely.

And

[rojoracing53]

Ok so here's 19,500miles on the RojoRacing Mtb carrying rig. Just got done mounting up a brand new one and I'm hoping for another 15000 or more miles. I love this tire.

[xXecuterXx2]

Well, looks like ill be buying a new bike to fit this tire. #TeenLogicFTW

[choneofakind]

Y U NO BURNOUT VIDEOOOOOOSSS

You're leaving us hanging here, bro.

[Sirref]

burnout? there's nothing left to burnout with

[choneofakind]

Everyone likes to see the tire blow Plus he said he would.

[sendler]

One thing I can say for the Pilot Street bias tires that come on the R3 is that they are very low rolling resistance. I thought I had noticed this when I put the Bridgestone S20 evos in their place and my fuel economy on the R3 went down. Then when it was time to replace the IRC Roadwinners on my CBR250R commuter bike after 15,000 miles rear/ 31,000 miles front, I got another 10% improvement in fuel economy. I hope they last longer too. Some endurance riders on the Ninjette forum are getting 20,000 miles on a rear with the Michelins.
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http://www.fuelly.com/motorcycle/hon.../sendler/78563
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[Alex]

Not sure I remembered you picked up an R3 , how do you like it? (time for a profile update! )

[sendler]

The R3 has a really smooth engine and a nice, long wheel base type of ride. The front is a bit soft for the track but is really comfortable for sport touring on longer rides. And it is actually pretty fuel efficient despite the fact that it has more displacement.
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http://www.fuelly.com/motorcycle/yam...sendler/373805
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[rgx107]

I have just replaced a pilot street rear radial tire after 33000 km. It was due for replacement but it could have been stretched another few thousand km had it not developed a slow air leek. After a repair last season, I think.

I went for the radial version because Michelin say they are more suitable for "heavier" bikes. It's impossible to know exactly what they regard as heavy in this context, since the tire is designed for lighter bikes. I concluded that the Ninja 300 is a heavy light bike. The radial tire comes with a sticker that says maximum 210 km/h and maximum 300 kg. The load on the rear wheel could probably reach around 250 kg, which supports that decision.

[verboten1]

Nice, that's a lot of use on that tire. I know what I'll be getting again if I Ever get another small bike.