DUNLOP-RTS
New Member
When Should I switch from Q2 to Race Tires (D211GPA or better)?
You must evaluate what it is you are trying to accomplish with the tire to fully answer this question.
Do you want the best lap time?
Do you want the tire to last the longest?
Both are valid goals, and the choice should be simple, but... Riders often get confused by the urban myths: That tell us we must have a certain lap time or go at a certain pace to get heat into the tire or you will not be able to truly use a race tire. That you wont be able to get heat into the race tire. That you will fall down because you can't get the race tire up to temp. These are myths and exceedingly over emphasized.
The reality is, you can use race tires at ANY pace. Even a slower rider can use a race tire without issue.
Will that slower rider get as much heat in the tire as super fast rider? NO.
Does he need to get heat in the tire to ride at his slower pace? NO.
Does the tire still grip when not fully up to temperature? YES, certainly it does. Maybe not as good as fully hot, but it still grips well.
If you took a rider with a race tire and had him go 5 seconds off the class record, the tire would be well up to temperature and there would be no problems.
Now have that rider go 6 seconds slower, now 7, then 8, 9 ,10, 11... 15, 16, 17, 18... Now at what point do you think the tire would not grip and he would fall down? ANSWER, NEVER. You could do this in reverse, starting at 60 sec off the pace then going faster without issue.
As the pace gets slower, the temperature get less, and so does the DEMAND FOR TRACTION. Certainly the rider at 5 sec is demanding much more traction than the rider at 15 sec.
So where do we get into trouble? Why do we hear all about having to get heat into the tire or we fall down. It comes from the "demand for traction" conflicting with "available traction". Or simply put, "The rider went faster than the tire had traction". its really that simple.
Example: Rider A goes at 5 sec off the pace, no problems. We know he has good heat in the tire. His buddy, rider B, goes at 12 sec off the pace. Less heat in the tire. The next session rider B then attempts, on his first lap, to go as fast as rider A does, and falls down. He blames the "race tire" for not having enough heat in it. He then tells this story over and over, with emphasis on that "Cold Tire". Now riders are all worked up about race tires and getting heat into them.
If a rider progressively increases his lap times, the heat of the tire will increase right along with it, and with that will increase the traction.
So the answer to this question is you can change at any time to race tires. You can start on race tires on your very first track day.
FACT: If you had 2 identical bikes with similar caliber riders, one on Q2 and the other on D211GPA, the rider with the D211GPA would have equal or better grip, at every temperature, from room temperature all the way up to race pace. With the Q2 increasing in performance moderately, and the D211GPA increasing substantially in performance.
Riders must use common sense when going out to go fast. Slamming into turn one at full pace with cold tires is not using common sense. But doing so and then claiming it was the tires fault is simply not accepting responsibility.
You must evaluate what it is you are trying to accomplish with the tire to fully answer this question.
Do you want the best lap time?
Do you want the tire to last the longest?
Both are valid goals, and the choice should be simple, but... Riders often get confused by the urban myths: That tell us we must have a certain lap time or go at a certain pace to get heat into the tire or you will not be able to truly use a race tire. That you wont be able to get heat into the race tire. That you will fall down because you can't get the race tire up to temp. These are myths and exceedingly over emphasized.
The reality is, you can use race tires at ANY pace. Even a slower rider can use a race tire without issue.
Will that slower rider get as much heat in the tire as super fast rider? NO.
Does he need to get heat in the tire to ride at his slower pace? NO.
Does the tire still grip when not fully up to temperature? YES, certainly it does. Maybe not as good as fully hot, but it still grips well.
If you took a rider with a race tire and had him go 5 seconds off the class record, the tire would be well up to temperature and there would be no problems.
Now have that rider go 6 seconds slower, now 7, then 8, 9 ,10, 11... 15, 16, 17, 18... Now at what point do you think the tire would not grip and he would fall down? ANSWER, NEVER. You could do this in reverse, starting at 60 sec off the pace then going faster without issue.
As the pace gets slower, the temperature get less, and so does the DEMAND FOR TRACTION. Certainly the rider at 5 sec is demanding much more traction than the rider at 15 sec.
So where do we get into trouble? Why do we hear all about having to get heat into the tire or we fall down. It comes from the "demand for traction" conflicting with "available traction". Or simply put, "The rider went faster than the tire had traction". its really that simple.
Example: Rider A goes at 5 sec off the pace, no problems. We know he has good heat in the tire. His buddy, rider B, goes at 12 sec off the pace. Less heat in the tire. The next session rider B then attempts, on his first lap, to go as fast as rider A does, and falls down. He blames the "race tire" for not having enough heat in it. He then tells this story over and over, with emphasis on that "Cold Tire". Now riders are all worked up about race tires and getting heat into them.
If a rider progressively increases his lap times, the heat of the tire will increase right along with it, and with that will increase the traction.
So the answer to this question is you can change at any time to race tires. You can start on race tires on your very first track day.
FACT: If you had 2 identical bikes with similar caliber riders, one on Q2 and the other on D211GPA, the rider with the D211GPA would have equal or better grip, at every temperature, from room temperature all the way up to race pace. With the Q2 increasing in performance moderately, and the D211GPA increasing substantially in performance.
Riders must use common sense when going out to go fast. Slamming into turn one at full pace with cold tires is not using common sense. But doing so and then claiming it was the tires fault is simply not accepting responsibility.