Cold tires

[FloydV]

I was riding last week and temp was about 55 and so were the roads. I road about a mile and a half and made a left turn. I felt the rear tire slide sideways. Not enough to do anything, but it did send shivers up my spine.

How far do you think you would have to ride in 55 degree weather for the tires to get warm?

 

[Gunnybusa]

depends on the type of tire compound.

 

[Tufbusa]

Accelleration and braking is the great heat producers for warming your tires. There are so many factors involved in this question it will be tough to get an accurate answer. Outside temp, road surface temp, tire compound, tire pressure (Probably the most important factor) riding style, speed, jsut to name a few. I don't think a mile will get your tires warm in 55 degree weather under any circumstances?

 

[greeneinc]

A few miles just to play it safe can't hurt and always check the tire pressure when the weather drops. a few psi make a world of difference in the tire characteristics.

 

[stkr00]

As much as you don't want to hear this...

Try to take it easier when the temps drop. It's the only way to be truely safe.

As an example...While at Road America in April, the day started out at 36 degrees, and we were taking at least 2 laps (8 miles) to warm up the tires. Even then, it was sketchy. As the day went on and it got up to 60 degrees, we still took 2 laps for warmup, but the tires stuck a lot better.

But...This is on a track where multiple bikes are running pretty much the same lines through the turns, and the heat is being kept in the track due to the traffic. You don't have this luxury on the public streets. We were all running lower tire pressures which created a lot more heat in the tires than you would want on the street.

Ride Safe

 

[FloydV]

Thanks! I think below 60, the tires probably never get that sticky in normal riding. Slower would be better. It's a freaky feeling when you feel a tire just slide sideways.

 

[lot boy]

Accelleration and braking is the great heat producers for warming your tires. There are so many factors involved in this question it will be tough to get an accurate answer. Outside temp, road surface temp, tire compound, tire pressure (Probably the most important factor) riding style, speed, jsut to name a few. I don't think a mile will get your tires warm in 55 degree weather under any circumstances?

+ 1

 

[vman1300]

Accelleration and braking is the great heat producers for warming your tires. There are so many factors involved in this question it will be tough to get an accurate answer. Outside temp, road surface temp, tire compound, tire pressure (Probably the most important factor) riding style, speed, jsut to name a few. I don't think a mile will get your tires warm in 55 degree weather under any circumstances?

I cant agree more with this statement.

Tire warmup is affected by many factors, all are mentiones in this paragraph.

To maybe help you out, what kind of tires are you using?

No one can give you an exact answer on time and that is based on your style, weight, and HP level of you bike.

 

[grabntwist]

Accelleration and braking is the great heat producers for warming your tires. There are so many factors involved in this question it will be tough to get an accurate answer. Outside temp, road surface temp, tire compound, tire pressure (Probably the most important factor) riding style, speed, jsut to name a few. I don't think a mile will get your tires warm in 55 degree weather under any circumstances?

I cant agree more with this statement.

Tire warmup is affected by many factors, all are mentiones in this paragraph.

To maybe help you out, what kind of tires are you using?

No one can give you an exact answer on time and that is based on your style, weight, and HP level of you bike.

+1. I always give my bike a good throttle crack at low speed to see if the tire will break loose. It's better to expirience tire slippage when you're expecting it and not leaned over in a turn. I also do this in the rain.

 

[pseudo]

I for one warm up my tires by doing the snake. You know, what you see the racing pro's do before each race by weaving back and fourth, creating as much travel on the ties as possible, increasing the friction and thus warming the tires. Seems to always get my tires warm before hitting the freeway. Just be careful to get the hang of it because you can possibly do a high side if you "snake" too agressivly. Oh, and be prepared to get strange looks from passing motorists, they'll think you are absolutely crazy.

 

[ICEMANN]

chicken hawks are nice

But it doesnt matter how warm your tires are if the ashpalt compounds are off and the air pockets in them are frozen/glazed!

Might as well pop a wheelie on wet leaves.

 

[NightCrawler]

You can always do a burnout. Nice warm rear tire in 5 seconds tops!

<marquee>Hey! Sit down! I was joking!!</marquee>

 

[WarBaby]

Very good advice in this thread...!

I always give my bike a good throttle crack at low speed to see if the tire will break loose. It's better to expirience tire slippage when you're expecting it and not leaned over in a turn. I also do this in the rain.[/QUOTE]

Me too, and I like to hit the brakes hard at first (controllably) for the same reason. I tend to err on the safe side and thus warm my tires extensively before hard leans but, as mentioned, even a well-warmed tire on a cold surface can produce instant trouble. Don't ask how I know...  

 

[Tufbusa]

I for one warm up my tires by doing the snake. You know, what you see the racing pro's do before each race by weaving back and fourth, creating as much travel on the ties as possible, increasing the friction and thus warming the tires. Seems to always get my tires warm before hitting the freeway. Just be careful to get the hang of it because you can possibly do a high side if you "snake" too agressivly. Oh, and be prepared to get strange looks from passing motorists, they'll think you are absolutely crazy.

Doing the "Snake" thing is to warm up the side walls of your tire. The tire generates heat only on the portion that is touching the pavement. Thus riding upright only heats the center of the tire and eventually the heat will dissipate to the entire tire. The "Snake" thing is to generate some heat in the sidewalls early.

 

[nitrousjunkie]

Pirelli Diablo Super Corsa SC-1, fast warm up.Sticks like glue.

 

[FloydV]

Accelleration and braking is the great heat producers for warming your tires. There are so many factors involved in this question it will be tough to get an accurate answer. Outside temp, road surface temp, tire compound, tire pressure (Probably the most important factor) riding style, speed, jsut to name a few. I don't think a mile will get your tires warm in 55 degree weather under any circumstances?

I cant agree more with this statement.

Tire warmup is affected by many factors, all are mentiones in this paragraph.

To maybe help you out, what kind of tires are you using?

No one can give you an exact answer on time and that is based on your style, weight, and HP level of you bike.

There OEM tires. I think the part about the roads being cold negating warm tires (to some extent anyway is right). Another thing is, around here (Texas) whenever we get ice, they throw this really fine sand all over the rodes. When the weather warms up it is still there and they just leave it. It doesn't take but a little to get you all loose in a lean.