MotoZ Tractionator GPS tires – to take you from LA to Alaska and back

Written by: Astra (2 Wheeled Adventures)

It’s been two months since we shod our bikes with new rubber. We have started our travel from Europe back in October last year on our favorite Heidenau K60 tires as they have the best long distance quality and price balance in Europe we found so far. In South America we came around the fact that Heidenaus are crazy expensive compared to their European prices, so we opted for Metzeler Tourance and Sahara for our Central American ride, but were soon sure that we want our Heidenaus back! The confidence of riding on all terrains (we don’t go hardcore on forest tracks, but we want to be able to comfortably reach a remote camping spot through whatever muddy, sandy or rocky tracks we find in that place). So as soon as we reached USA, we started looking at long-lasting adventure riding tire options available here (you know – a country of possibilities! It must have a wide choice of everything). This is when MotoZ Tractionator GPS tires appeared “in the horizon”. They seemed to have that familiar pattern which resembles Heidenaus a bit and the review said they do last long! They are in a slightly lower price range than Heidenau and they are Australian which probably doesn’t mean much, but for us it gave some reassurance, so we decided to give them a try!

We put two sets of Tractionator GPS tires on in Los Angeles and set off to ride to Alaska. Since then we covered over 13 000 kilometers (8000 miles) on them through all kinds of conditions and they seem to still be good to go for at least another 7000 kilometers (4000 miles).

We rode them mostly on paved roads (that is what you would generally find on your way to Alaska and through Northern British Columbia and Yukon, unless you don’t need roads at all), but never had any problems to get off the pavement into sandy, muddy, rocky or whatever terrain was available there and before we got up North:- Winding paved and unpaved roads of Northern California – check!

– Below freezing temperatures and wet pavement on a curvy road of Bear-tooth pass between Wyoming and Montana – check!

– Bumpy and in places very wet and muddy Dalton highway to the Arctic Circle and back – check!

– Miles and miles of miles and miles of Alaska highway and other highways in sunshine, pouring rain and hail – check!

– All kinds of short detours on double tracks, sandy trails or rocky surfaces leading to most beautiful camp spots a few kilometers away from main roads – check!

We have tried these tires in all those conditions, on two loaded 800cc BMW bikes and they performed amazingly well. They made us feel confident when leaning into a curve on cold and wet pavement as well as bumping through some forest tracks or wobbling on wet muddy surface of Dalton highway in Northern Alaska. That is exactly what we were looking for for. They are considered to be 50/50 type tires, so no wonder there is some noise when riding them on pavement, but we don’t mind that as long as we are confident that they will not let us down while riding on and off pavement. Also during the first few thousand kilometers, while moving at a very low speed, the front tire pattern would create a vibration on the handlebar, but as it got worn down a bit, it was gone.

To sum up, MotoZ Tractionator GPS tires are perfect of what we are doing – relaxed long-distance riding with bits of exploration off-road. They last very long time and provide the feeling of confidence on all types of paved and unpaved roads. We would definitely go for another set of them for the next part of our adventure! MotoZ Tractionator GPS – recommended!

Link to original article: http://www.2wheeledadventures.com/single-post/2017/08/04/MotoZ-Tractionator-GPS-tires—to-take-you-from-LA-to-Alaska-and-back