Apart from your brakes, your tyres are the most important thing on your bike. Especially on the roads, there’s so much they have to go through. Different conditions, different temperatures. It can be damp, it can be wet, it can be hot, it can be dry, you could be on gravel or sand. You never know what’s on the road so your tyres have got to be one hundred per cent safe.
How much consideration do you give to the tyres your bikes are equipped with?
I give loads of consideration to the tyres my bikes are equipped with because it’s so, so important. It’s the only bit that connects you to the road. Apart from your brakes, your tyres are the most important thing on your bike. Especially on the roads, there’s so much they have to go through. Different conditions, different temperatures. It can be damp, it can be wet, it can be hot, it can be dry, you could be on gravel or sand. You never know what’s on the road so your tyres have got to be one hundred per cent safe.
How important do you consider tyre condition to be for road riding and racing?
I think it is super important that your tyres are suitable for the road. In racing it is so, so important. They go through so much stress. I’ve said it before, they most go round a million times, and the amount of power and pressure that you put through a race tyre – it’s mega important. But also on the roads, they are designed to do so many thousands of miles and you have to have absolute confidence in them that when you get on the bike in any conditions they are going to be safe. You have to be confidence that you have the grip and stability underneath you.
Do you replace your tyres if they are punctured, or repair them, and why?
There’s absolutely no chance that I would repair a tyre. To be honest it wouldn’t even enter my head. I didn’t even know you can repair a motorbike tyre. I know you can repair car tyres, but there is no way I would put a plug in a motorbike tyre. In a car you have four wheels, you may have half a chance, but with two wheels it is a lot more dangerous. If in doubt I would definitely put a new tyre on.
What advice do you have for motorcyclists on tyre safety?
Just check them. Check your tyres. Before you go out on your ride there’s nothing wrong with having a look round it, maybe get it on the stand and see if there is anything in them. You could ahvea foreign object in them, maybe a screw or a lump of glass or something. You could be getting a slow puncture and it could take two or three days to go down and you wouldn’t know. You’d just jump on your bike and go. Every now and again check your tyre pressures, make sure there is nothing obvious, no blisters. Make sure you have some tread left on your tyres. A bit of common sense really, have a good nosey round. It’s for your own safety.
To find out more about basic checks you can do on your tyres, click here https://www.tyresafe.org/the-checks/