Off to get some new tires fitted to the Multistrada 1200.Looks like the OEM Pirelli Scorpion Trails will be going in favour of some moresporty Dunlop Sportsmarts. The UK bikemags seemed generally in favour of making a change from the supposedly dual-purposeScorpion Trails to something more sporty and sticky – and absolutely rave aboutthe Sportsmarts. The recommendation probably also has something to do with theirview that the Multistrada’s off-road abilities are a bit token, and because of the rarity in the UK of the kind ofdry off-road trails which the Scorpion Trails seem to cope with just fine.
REAR
However, my choice was more forced on me by the poor availabilityof Scorpion Trails. In fact I thought that the Scorpion Trails were almost asamazing in their versatility as the Multistrada. Firstly, they do work on the kind of dry dirttrail that our drive consists of. I haven’t done a track day on them, but I’msure you wouldn’t be seriously unhappy with them. Certainly the chicken strips were removed offmine early in their life, and they feel totally secure at toe-scraping anglesin the dry.
FRONT
They work well in the wet with more grooves to clear waterthan most sports tires, and most amazingly of all, despite the crushing driveof the Testrasetta motor and dozens of first and second-gear wheelies (you trynot to. . .) the rear has ‘lasted’ (OK, it went south a little while ago) 5,000miles. More than any rear tire I’ve everhad. What’s a little surprising is that thefront is also worn enough at 5,000 for me to not feel too bad about replacing bothwhen I might just have put another Scorpion Trail on the rear.
The other interesting thing is that the worn rear seems tohave had absolutely no negative effect on the bike’s handling or steering. Another first in my experience, and a testamentto the amazing stability of the new Multistrada. By contrast my much-loved KTM Supermoto 990 –already something of a handful in - ahem, certain full-throttle situations –could generate full-on tank-slappers on three-quarter-worn tires, and followedand exaggerated banding strips and joints in the road surface like they wererailway tracks.
So, let’s see – perhaps the MS will handle even better onthe Dunlops. I’ll report on the them, maybe even try to get a track day in.