There are three things crucial to a motorcyclist ’ s ongoing happiness – lawyers , oil , and tyres . A man should never skimp on any of them . Always hire the best lawyer , always use the best oil , and always buy the best tyres – and price should never be a consideration . Especially with tyres . Those two palm-sized patches of uber-rubber are all that stand between you and ... well , an unpleasant outcome . Do not compromise on tyres , because you ’ ll end up paying for it in other ways . It was with this hard-wired programming I presented myself at the press launch for Metzeler ’ s new Karoo 4 and Tourance Next2 tyres . Just between you and me , I ’ m a bit of a Metzeler fan , and have been for a while . No amount of free food and nice hotel rooms was going to influence my position there . And the moment the industry works out I ’ d sleep under a tree wrapped in newspapers to sample its wares , the worse off I ’ ll be in terms of comfort . But I ’ d still go to the launch , for I am an accursed creature . Anyway , I had ridden Karoo 3s a fair bit , and while my dirt-riding abilities pose no threat to
Toby Price , I struggled to fault them . A harsh critic might say they don ’ t last as long as they should , to which I reply : “ Shut up , Scrooge McPovo ! They last as long as they last . Then you buy another set .” A still harsher critic might opine the Karoo 3s offer a nervy transition from dirt to tar , to which I would reply : “ Maybe put some more air in them , you putz .” The Karoo 4 was meant to address several socalled issues , which then meant I was to put it through its paces on 250km of dirt roads – which had been helpfully lashed by 200 days of rain . On the other hand , the Tourances and I have had a “ thing ” for a few years . It ’ s a hell of a tyre . It ’ s road-biased , but quite good on easy dirt ; think fire trails not hard enduro . And when you fit it to a BMW GS , a Multistrada , or a KTM 1290 Super Adventure , you ’ ll find yourself giggling at the insane amount of grip it offers . I struggled to see how the new Tourance Next 2 was not going to be as good if not certainly better than its predecessor . Up and down the Mother Putty for a total of 350-odd-km would undoubtedly put it to the question .
58 KIWI RIDER