Warchild
Benevolent Dictator
[SIZE=36pt]D*N*F*!!!!!!!![/SIZE]
It was a simple error of not properly test-riding new equipment before going into battle.
The Dunlop SportMax Qualifier, an absolutely wonderful tire in every other respect, was not up for this particular mission with regard to tread-life. I had not run this tire on the Busa prior to this event. Just no time to do that, and this came back to bite me. This is not really a fault of the tire... it's simply a poor fit for this application. The uber-high-speeds, coupled with uber-high-road surface temps, coupled with sustained non-stop operations, all proved to ask too much from the soft Qualifier. Still, based on how long the similarly-soft Pilot Power lasted on the K8 when I ran one last May (~ 4500 miles), I thought for sure the Qualifier could go at least *one* LD event.
I was wrong.
The weekend started out great... I rode with Brian Roberts (who took his silver XX) to the BBQ at the Rallymaster's house on Thursday. I had just mounted the brand new Qualifiers the day before:
Here is the K8, primed and ready at the Start Line on Rally Day (Saturday morning, Jun 28). Note the small black Tourmaster soft bag located on the Ventura rack... perfect for all that bulky cold weather gear:
Myself, Iggy, and Brian Roberts blasted out of Rally Headquarters as soon as the Flag dropped at 7am. We assumed a 3-Flight formation to Wendover, where we split off and went our separate paths. I went south towards Ely and the fast roads in central Nevada. The intent was to bring home a 2K-Day (because this year, I actually had 26 hours to break into the 2K barrier).
Below is a photo of the condition of the rear Qualifier as I discovered it at ~ the 12-hour point and 1073 miles into the event. The location in this photo is ~ 20 miles south of the intersection of HWY 6 and the Extraterrestrial Highway, central Nevada:
As soon as I saw this meltdown here at the halfway point, I knew that was the ball game. I had BTDT just two weekends before at the Cal24, when the OEM BT-015 finally wore through it's steel belts 115 miles from home, leaving me stranded at the side of the road. Not this time, bubba. Decided not to gamble it. There will be Another Day. I called Chalmers and told him I was DNF.
I rode this tire slowly - painfully - agonizingly slow 55 mph.... the ENTIRE 360 miles back to Rally Headquarters at Salt Lake City. Stopping evey 60 miles to check tread. This was torture, believe me, riding a Busa at 55 mph through central Nevada/Utah for SIX hours..... :blink:
Here is the tire back at Rally headquarters.... I was not about to take this tire back to Washington state:
Close-up of the melt-down....
Thank goodness Wright Motorcycle Accessories in SLC was opened on Sunday till 3pm. They will mount/balance your tire for free if you buy it from them. The only hitch was that I had no center-stand on the K8; thankfully, they let me borrow their rear bike stand. Working in the broiling 94-degree Utah sun, I yanked the rear wheel (taking off the rear axle nut with the stock tool kit ==> FUN!!!), they mounted up a Continental Road Attack, and I just rode back home this afternoon.
Pity about the tire causing the DNF, but like I say... there will be Another Day.
It was a simple error of not properly test-riding new equipment before going into battle.
The Dunlop SportMax Qualifier, an absolutely wonderful tire in every other respect, was not up for this particular mission with regard to tread-life. I had not run this tire on the Busa prior to this event. Just no time to do that, and this came back to bite me. This is not really a fault of the tire... it's simply a poor fit for this application. The uber-high-speeds, coupled with uber-high-road surface temps, coupled with sustained non-stop operations, all proved to ask too much from the soft Qualifier. Still, based on how long the similarly-soft Pilot Power lasted on the K8 when I ran one last May (~ 4500 miles), I thought for sure the Qualifier could go at least *one* LD event.
I was wrong.
The weekend started out great... I rode with Brian Roberts (who took his silver XX) to the BBQ at the Rallymaster's house on Thursday. I had just mounted the brand new Qualifiers the day before:
Here is the K8, primed and ready at the Start Line on Rally Day (Saturday morning, Jun 28). Note the small black Tourmaster soft bag located on the Ventura rack... perfect for all that bulky cold weather gear:
Myself, Iggy, and Brian Roberts blasted out of Rally Headquarters as soon as the Flag dropped at 7am. We assumed a 3-Flight formation to Wendover, where we split off and went our separate paths. I went south towards Ely and the fast roads in central Nevada. The intent was to bring home a 2K-Day (because this year, I actually had 26 hours to break into the 2K barrier).
Below is a photo of the condition of the rear Qualifier as I discovered it at ~ the 12-hour point and 1073 miles into the event. The location in this photo is ~ 20 miles south of the intersection of HWY 6 and the Extraterrestrial Highway, central Nevada:
As soon as I saw this meltdown here at the halfway point, I knew that was the ball game. I had BTDT just two weekends before at the Cal24, when the OEM BT-015 finally wore through it's steel belts 115 miles from home, leaving me stranded at the side of the road. Not this time, bubba. Decided not to gamble it. There will be Another Day. I called Chalmers and told him I was DNF.
I rode this tire slowly - painfully - agonizingly slow 55 mph.... the ENTIRE 360 miles back to Rally Headquarters at Salt Lake City. Stopping evey 60 miles to check tread. This was torture, believe me, riding a Busa at 55 mph through central Nevada/Utah for SIX hours..... :blink:
Here is the tire back at Rally headquarters.... I was not about to take this tire back to Washington state:
Close-up of the melt-down....
Thank goodness Wright Motorcycle Accessories in SLC was opened on Sunday till 3pm. They will mount/balance your tire for free if you buy it from them. The only hitch was that I had no center-stand on the K8; thankfully, they let me borrow their rear bike stand. Working in the broiling 94-degree Utah sun, I yanked the rear wheel (taking off the rear axle nut with the stock tool kit ==> FUN!!!), they mounted up a Continental Road Attack, and I just rode back home this afternoon.
Pity about the tire causing the DNF, but like I say... there will be Another Day.
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