Question:
How do you deal with a flat tire on a motorcycle when traveling at higher speeds?
How do you deal with a flat tire on a motorcycle when traveling at higher speeds?
Answer:
I have never heard of a motorcycle tire blowing out. Being an avid rider for most of my life, I have had to deal with many flats. Every time I have had a flat, I had more than enough warning before the tire was deflated enough to become a hazard. When a motorcycle tire starts going flat, you feel the bike gently drifting from side to side. So much so, that you will know something is wrong. You will even know which tire it is by the way the bike is handling. Stay off the brake to the slack tire and apply gentle braking to the good tire. If this is something you are worried about, don't. Bad decisions and bad drivers will give you road rash way before a flat tire will. Have fun and be safe.
Open the bleeder and let gravity do the work.
Last year I had my rear tire, blow out on me at about 35mph. I was going straight, so I just let off the gas and braked with the front. Once I was going slow enough, I pulled off to the side. The tire stayed on the rim and I was almost home. So I slowly rode it home, was like riding on ice. I had a few seconds of warning before it went, so I was ready.
Most bikes with cast wheels have safety rims (two ridges inside that keep the tire on the rim) on the rear for sure, others on the front as well. I've had a rear go down in a big hurry after having something cut a big gash in the tire. I rode it home about a mile at night on a field road and while it squirmed around a lot, it never came off. Tubeless tires usually go down slowly but tube type tires on spoke rims will go down pronto. You know what pilots say, any landing you can walk away from is a good landing and I think flat tires are the same, if you can walk away with your hide intact, you did it right.
Open the bleeder and let gravity do the work.
Last year I had my rear tire, blow out on me at about 35mph. I was going straight, so I just let off the gas and braked with the front. Once I was going slow enough, I pulled off to the side. The tire stayed on the rim and I was almost home. So I slowly rode it home, was like riding on ice. I had a few seconds of warning before it went, so I was ready.
Most bikes with cast wheels have safety rims (two ridges inside that keep the tire on the rim) on the rear for sure, others on the front as well. I've had a rear go down in a big hurry after having something cut a big gash in the tire. I rode it home about a mile at night on a field road and while it squirmed around a lot, it never came off. Tubeless tires usually go down slowly but tube type tires on spoke rims will go down pronto. You know what pilots say, any landing you can walk away from is a good landing and I think flat tires are the same, if you can walk away with your hide intact, you did it right.
I have never heard of a motorcycle tire blowing out. Being an avid rider for most of my life, I have had to deal with many flats. Every time I have had a flat, I had more than enough warning before the tire was deflated enough to become a hazard. When a motorcycle tire starts going flat, you feel the bike gently drifting from side to side. So much so, that you will know something is wrong. You will even know which tire it is by the way the bike is handling. Stay off the brake to the slack tire and apply gentle braking to the good tire. If this is something you are worried about, don't. Bad decisions and bad drivers will give you road rash way before a flat tire will. Have fun and be safe.
