KNOW YOUR RUBBER

of the tires used now are roadrace-type tires and

they’re not running the really tall tires so I think in the
future you’ll be seeing 75 series and say 80 series front
tires more prevalent. But because right now we’re
TIRE TECH 101 pulling out of the roadrace pool we’re kind of stuck
with the lower profiles. I would definitely stay away
W I T H J E R RY J I R K O V S K Y from 65 or 60 series front tires since they aren’t as
forgiving on the lighter bikes, especially in the dirt.

In the world of tire technology and supermoto So, should most guys getting into supermoto How do you pick a tire for a specific rim size?
machines, there are a lot of misconceptions as well as stay away from off-the-shelf street tires you A lot of it has to do with the track and what will fit on
ever-changing variables. To gather some knowledge, would get at a standard shop? the bike. For the most part, front rims are 3.5” wide
we hooked up with tire guru Jerry Jirkovsky, owner of Yes, they should and the main reasoning there is grip. and the standard rear is 4.25” for most aftermarket
California Race Services to find some answers. They don’t offer the grip. They’ll last forever but there’s wheelsets. KTMs, for example come standard with 5.0”
no grip and that’s the whole thing right there—the rears. We are starting to see more riders running 4.5”
SMR: What are the differences between DOT, grip—gotta have the grip. and 5” rears on their Japanese bikes. Even the 150
slick and rain tires—and when and where series rear tires were not designed for 4.25” and the
should they be used? Tire pressure—what do you recommended and wider rims such as the 4.5” and 5” allow the tire to
JJ: It all comes down to track conditions. If there’s a lot of how does it affect the handling of a bike? work better. The wider rims spread the tire out and
asphalt, probably 80/20 percent split, I recommend slicks— We’ve found that on average, 22 pounds cold is a good offer more contact patch on the pavement. However,
that is if you can get away with it and the dirt section is starting spot. We’ve run as low as 18 pounds though. clearance is often a problem with the 160 and 165
pretty hard packed with a blue groove formation. We’re using predominantly roadrace tires designed to series rear tires, even with a wider rim. 4.25”- 4.5”
However, for the average club racer DOTs are probably run 30 pounds of air but because supermoto bikes are rims should run 150 series tires and the 5” should run
the best because they’re already pre-cut and in most considerably lighter, they don’t produce enough heat in 160 to 165 series rears.
cases it avoids having to mess with grooving the tire. the tire to work well with standard pressures. Dropping the
Rains work in varied conditions such as tracks with a pressures gets more heat in the tire, which consequently Now what’s up with 16.5” front tires? Why
lot of dirt, really slick surfaces or of course—rain. You provides more grip. In supermoto, we see 160 to 180 would you need them and why switch from the
just need to be sure the rains will last the race before degrees Fahrenheit and most roadrace bikes produce standard 17s?
completely wearing out. But it just varies from track to 190 to 205 degrees in a tire. I think the biggest advantage of 16.5s is in the
track, if you can get away with slicks—definitely, but if transitions. The transition of a 16.5” is so much
you don’t want to spend the money then DOT race tires How does an innertube come into play? quicker than an actual 17” front wheel. When the
are a good alternative and very versatile. The innertube does change things, at least in Pirellis, it bike is on its side there’s more grip because of the
generates more heat. The tires weren’t designed to be way the tires are profiled. A rider can drop into the
What does DOT mean? run with tubes, but right now they don’t cause any real corner faster and plant the front tire much harder and
DOT is more of a roadrace-type term. It means issues. I’ve been testing tubeless SM wheels by sealing be more aggressive compared to traditional 17s.
Department of Transportation. Basically it’s a racing the rim and I hope to keep developing a system to
tire for a production roadrace class. For the most part remove the tubes in the future. Probably 95% of the Do you believe eventually everyone will end
they are basically cheater slicks with a minimum of guys are running tubes right now. up going that route?
grooves in them to pass through DOT rating. A DOT I think we’ll still fluctuate between the two because
race tire for all intensive purposes is a cut slick that But doesn’t tire pressure also affect the handling currently most of the factory guys are on
is slightly lighter, warms up faster and usually characteristics as well as how the tire flexes on 16.5s and the club racers and riders run
incorporates newer technology. Be aware DOT race the rim itself? 17s because of cost. There are still
tires are slightly different compared to standard high- Absolutely. The lower the pressure, the more flex you situations where the 17s are still a
performance tires that you are able to buy from most get and a greater amount of heat is produced. Some of plus. However, the 16.5s possess
dealer catalogs. Most street tires come with harder the manufacturers’ tires flex more than others. Pirellis the latest tire technology and
compounds and don’t offer the grip of a race tire. and Metzlers both have a steel belt where you can run best compounds. A lot of it has
lower pressures with less flex and keep the continuity to do with the rider and what
of the tire. Although there are some that weren’t they feel works best for them.
designed to run pressure that low.
Is the overall diameter of
How does someone go about selecting a front 17”and 16.5” the same?
sidewall tire height, 120/60 or 120/70 for example? The 16.5s are very close to a
Front tires, which are the key here, come in 60 series, 17” in overall diameter. The big
65, 70, 75 and even some 80 series fronts. If the track advantage there is the profile on
is really bumpy or has several stutter bumps, the taller the tire. The triangulated profile
tires work better because they’re more forgiving. Most allows the bike to change
directions quicker and once Jerry Jirkovsky of California Race Services
really knows his rubber. This is actually a
photo of his living room—he eats, sleeps
Front Rain Tire and dreams about rubber.

58 WWW.SUPERMOTORACER.COM
 tire that is too wide for the rims.
You end up bowing the tire to a
degree you are unable to
utilize the entire tire surface.

emergency. Full rains work very well

but it really depends on the condition of
the track.

Now what about compounds? How does

a guy pick a tire compound?
Normally you go with the softest compounds up front
Tire grooving is an art form in itself and because they were designed for heavier bikes. They last
quite awhile and they give you the grip you need with a
takes patience and sleight of hand. We
bike that’s light. For the rears, that isn’t always the case.
have seen blood shed.
SM bikes are putting out between 50-65 horsepower
and you should run a medium compound which offers
decent grip and lasts longer than a soft. In full race
conditions, you can run a soft compound but a pro rider
can burn up a tire in one race if they are heavy sliders.

leaned into the turn there is a greater contact area on The sport is evolving so fast, a little over a Tire balancing, how critical is it?
the pavement. The taller sidewall also soaks up bumps year ago it was pretty much rain on the front It’s very critical on the high-speed tracks but I do it for
slightly better. with a cut rear slick and now it’s kind of going all conditions. At some of these small go-kart tracks it
away from that. Why is that? really doesn’t matter but any of the tracks that produce
Could an average rider benefit from the 16.5”? Well I think what’s happening is most courses are speeds above 50 mph, it makes a difference.
I think that new riders getting into the sport that predominantly asphalt and the dirt sections in some
are coming in with expert level skills from motocross, cases are only a few turns and one jump. I think it’s a How easy is it to balance a tire?
roadracing or dirt track will find an advantage once they tradeoff, you lose time on the asphalt with the rain We use a static balancer. It’s pretty easy, it just takes a
get up to speed. Less experienced racers probably won’t front but maybe stick a little better in the dirt. If you couple of minutes and for the time involved it’s well
be able to take advantage of a 16.5” and it might even be can just hold your line in the blue groove section of the worth it. We have stick-on wheel weights and we put
more difficult initially. dirt, guys running front rains usually aren’t going to be duct tape over them for extra security.
able to make the pass. Everything is going slick and
Now what about the new 250 class? even when you really can’t get away with the slick or What about tire warmers?
Since the bikes are even lighter, I recommend sticking DOT run it anyway because what’d you’d be losing in The advantage to tire warmers is they bring the tire up
with 150 series tires with a 4.25” or 4.5” rear rim. dirt usually isn’t worth it. to operating temperature so at the start of a race the tire
Some of the 160 and 165 slicks may almost overtire the is ready to go and offers more grip on the opening lap.
size of the bike. And because the bikes are lighter, a When do you want to run a rain tire or when If the tire is not completely warm it takes a lap to get up
rider can benefit from that by running the 150 and would you apply that application? to operating temperature and can compromise grip
transition faster from turn to turn. You want to run rain tires if there’s at least 50% dirt mix going into the first turn and on the first lap of a race.
or if conditions warrant it, for example, the X-Plex in
If you were running slicks, how does grooving Vegas. Full rains work there even though the dirt sections Where do you get tire warmers because most
the tires compromise the performance of the are limited—it’s because fine sand or dirt from the area dealers wouldn’t really know where to get them?
tire itself—or does it? tends to settle on the track. The ultrasoft compounds and Your local dealer could actually get them through Parts
The grooving generates a little more heat but you tread pattern offer more of a bite on slick surfaces but the Unlimited, they have Chicken Hawk tire warmers or you
should realize these tires weren’t designed to be downfall is that they wear really fast, sometimes not even can do a search on the Web.
grooved. I have started to see more and more racers lasting an entire race. Rains are for extreme condition
run less grooves or none at all with slicks. It depends situations but it isn’t a bad idea to have a set in case of Finally, where can a rider buy race tires, most
on the conditions of the dirt whether grooving provides dealers can only get performance street tires?
an advantage. Unlike motocross where race tires are available from a
local dealer, roadracing tires are not. For the most part,
So there is such a thing as over grooving a tire? you will need to go to a race tire distributor. California
Yes, because if some of these guys get crazy with the Race Services, for example, is the race tire distributor
grooving iron they’d be better off just running DOTs. for Pirelli and Metzler. I sell nothing but race slicks, DOT
16.5” front tires often rated
But definitely if you can get away with slicks and without race tires and rains. They are easy to get once you
in metric measurements
having to groove them, do it. However, most courses source out who to get them from. We offer tire services
such as this this tire with
require something up front for straight line braking at major events and we can ship tires anywhere.
and a little bite in the dirt. Try to run as few grooves as
120/75-420 markings.
possible and don’t cut too far into the side contact area
and compromise pavement traction.

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