TKC-70 Rocks - Bottom line - Highly Recommended!!
Yes, it’s that time again. Time for another rear tire. Oddly this year is a bit different than most years as this is my first, scratch that, second rear tire change of the year. Typically by this time of the year I’m on my 3rd if not 4th tire. But as you well know, this year, well…. Let’s just say its been different.
I’ve been riding the BMW 1200 GSA since I bought my first in 2014. I have gone over 80k miles in total among the bikes and have run just about every tire available for that size wheel on the market in a lot of off-road and a ton of road riding.
After all of the tires that I’ve used, at least for my particular style of riding, and IF I had an unlimited budget, I ‘d still choose the Continental TKC-80 TwinDuro. It’s just a great tire. I can do anything I want off road and enjoy a satisfactory if not excellent ride on the road even in rain, the twisties, and of course off-road. Does it lock in like a street tire? No but I can still just about drag a peg if I want to. Walk is predictable and that is something I have grown to appreciate both on and off-road. The trouble comes in when I have traction and then suddenly have no traction and it doesn’t hook back up or does so unexpectedly. That really gets me. Example for me is the Heidenau- no hate comments I know there are some passionate people out there regarding the Heidenau, I’m just not one of them. So the TKC-80 for me is perfect.. Except tire life. For me, 3500 is about a max that I can get on it. And that just isn’t enough when I’m running the miles I typically do in a year (15-20k).
Last year when I went out west I chose the TKC-70 because I knew the type of terrain would be more rocky, no mud, not even deep sand and I really needed a tire that would roll for at least 6k miles. The center strip on the TKC-70 makes for a smooth ride and it managed itself relatively well out west within reason. There was a point however, where I had trouble going up a slick dirt bank where I was losing speed due to the tire just spinning and I lost momentum and had to run it again. It just couldn’t clear the debris fast enough from the tire and I was just spinning a slick. I found myself at that moment wishing I had my TKC-80.
On my way back from Phoenix in March this year I had exhausted the 70 and had to get a new tire in Houston. The only tire choice I had was an Anakee Wild. It’s not a bad tire, but even with earplugs I call this tire loud. It’s respectable off-road and has reasonably good on-road traction given its aggressive build but it doesn’t perform on road as well as I would like. Certainly not as good as the 80 or the 70 standard.
I’ve still been in search for the perfect tire. Enter the TKC-70 Rocks. Is it perfect? Well, no. Because there is no perfect tire. Period. Hence the reason we are always talking about tires. Everyone knows there are trade offs on everything. Tires are no different. But wouldn’t it be nice if we could eek out a bit more tire life while not feeling as though we are compromising too hard on the dirt aspect of our riding. The Rocks might just be it for me.
While I can’t speak to tire life, yet, I can speak to how it hooked up in the Cohutta’s last weekend where Tracy, Evandre and myself headed out and hit the area before the loop got closed for the season. We got into gravel, mud, ice, snow, and about every type of rock situation short of steps. We were rolling on gravel/dirt roads anywhere from 35-55 mph and never once did I think, I wish I had a TKC-80 on there. If mileage is good, then I might be hooked.
I was surprised to be quite honest. I run a TKC-80 on the front regardless of what I run on the back and I do that for a very similar reason that I enjoyed the TKC-70 Rocks on the rear. When it breaks, it does so predictably. I lose a level of traction, not all of it. It starts to walk, and I’m able to dial it back until I get what I’m looking for. The same applies to the TKC-70 Rocks. Does it break sooner than an 80? Probably. Tread depth isn’t as deep so that only makes sense. But that really isn’t the deal breaker for me. The fact is we moved and moved at a pretty good clip and at no time did I feel as if I wasn’t in control. I had a blast and was able to keep up with both Tracy and Evandre who were running more aggressive tires. (I do have the Enduro Pro enable with ‘knobby’ option selected)
The silica compound used in the Rocks is the same as in the 70 and it is a harder compound in the center than the sides so hopefully there will be reasonably good tread life on the road. The tread has wider gaps which provides a better physical grip off-road and is silica based providing strong chemical grip on-road. Combined, you get a really good tire for what we do. It holds up well in the curves on road. Coming back from the mountains we went through a lot of road curves coming into Copperhill and it felt very planted.
Its a solid tire and I highly recommend it for those who want the ability to do most adventure type riding but also want to leave the tire on for more than 3k miles. I’ll do another update once I have a better idea of true life of the tire. I have high hopes. If it can get 6k it will likely be what I use from now on. Right now I’m digging it.
I believe you will be happily surprised with this tire as I have been IF you that healthy balance between tread life and off road prowess.
Until next time, ride well!
David Mays