Rider, Tires or Vespa?
Last year I could easily ride the scooter along a stretch of gravel road like this at 35 to 45 mph without much trouble. Now at 25mph I’m backing off the throttle. Have I changed? After some more focused investigation this past weekend I’ve come to the conclusion the tires I now have on the Vespa aren’t much good when you leave the pavement. And they may explain why I unexpectedly dropped the scooter recently on some steep, loose shale.
So I headed out into the Rothrock State Forest just a few miles from my front door; nearly a quarter million acres of forests spread across the mountains of three counties — perfect for testing a theory: Heidenau K61 Racer scooter tires don’t perform well with the Vespa off pavement.
Overlooking the World
By the time I arrived at the overlook on Thickhead Mountain I was hot, sweaty and ready for a monkey grip — that’s a banana for those of you not from Altoona. After only a dozen miles on dirt and gravel at a variety of speeds I’ve concluded the tires are exceedingly not well suited off the pavement. They wander in the loose stuff which is to be expected, but they do the same on well packed gravel and dirt. So much so that I had to reduce my speed by at least 20 percent to feel safe.
Old Man on the Mountain
Like a smart dog I seek shade and water on hot days. But I do so with the knowledge that my tires deman an extra amount of attention when riding off the pavement. Maybe next time around I’ll finally spring for the Kenda K761 dual sport tires I’ve been talking about for ten years. Back in 2006 I was talking about them back in 2006 on Gary Charpentier’s Rush Hour Rambling blog — the source of my winter riding disease.
Now that I’m older and wiser I hide from the sun. This winter we’ll see if I hide from the snow.
Tires really do make all the difference on the loose stuff. Years ago I went up the haul road with my BMW (sans sidecar) touring bike with several other riders all on dual sports. I had no problem at all on the loose and wet stuff but a couple of the others with 90/10 tires were sliding all over the road. I had Heidenau K60 Scouts. Not really a knobby but a lot better than street tires.
Avoid tires that have “Racer” as part of the name… 😉
The moment I saw them on the scooter I knew they wouldn’t be great off the pavement. I was surprised how bad they were compared to other street tires though. I’ll just need to be a little more careful. Translation — go slower.
Next set will be more aggressive.
Yes tires matter in gravel but small diameter wheels are not ideal.
The front wheel on a real dirt bike is LARGE diameter for a reason.
I aplaud your off road adventures on those small wheels.
If you ride Moshannon way…avoid Underwood…loggers or Frackers have destroyed it wihin the last week.
I miss riding a dirt bike but wouldn’t want to give up the scooter. It’s still a good around machine. A better tire selection would improve everything.
I generally don’t go off road. In Moshannon about the roughest area I’ll ride the Vespa is on Six Mile Road. Just gravel.
Underwood has a great view all the way back to Tussey ski slope above Boalsburg.
Steve, the photograph of you holding the water bottle is perhaps the best rendition of you and your riding experience that i have seen in some time.
Perhaps have a large print made; hang on a spare space on the wall in your house.
Lookin’ good!
I don’t often take the time to set up the tripod and remote trigger on the camera to make this kind of “selfie”. When I saw it I said to myself, “Yep, that’s how I feel.”.
Not sure we need a print of it on the wall though!
Scooters are not meant for dirt. Oddball engine placement, tight steering geometry, small wheels and little ground clearance. Even with knobbies you would be hard pressed to feel secure on a vehicle meant for an urban environment. That you press on Off Road as much as you do is pretty brave Steve. It’s why Paul uses a Ducati.
Scooters certainly aren’t naturals to the dirt. That said, there have been scooters racing Dakar and other serious off-road events. I should be able to rough it a bit for a short period of time right?
Paul and I are riding tomorrow morning. Not sure what he’ll ride.
Like RichardM said, tires can transform the motorcycle or in this case the Vespa.
My problem is wear, the pusher tire just doesn’t last as long since it’s working so hard. But, that’s another conversation.
How about these tires? 🙂
https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IK7n-kT02Tk/URkxHduqLXI/AAAAAAAAUj0/mmM0xTrOjZs/s1600/IMG_0247.JPG
I play to get something in that direction but now that severe.
The Vespa wears out the rear tire about three times more quickly. Always feels great to have new rubber underneath the scooter.
Portrait of Old Man On The Mountain. One of the better photographs of you.
Perhaps print it, frame it, hang it on the wall?
And as to the off pavement capabilities of your Vespa; as has been noted elsewhere, your tires are most important. Too bad you’re not able to make quick changes of your tires as the conditions change!
I’ve definitely though of buying a second set of rims so I can have the winter and summer tires always easily available. Otherwise tire changes remain a pain…