Dunlop Trailmax Meridians – 700 Miles Later

Tyres are round and black, and after the initial celebration of new tyres fades, we forget about them. At least I would if the Dunlop Trailmax Meridians I’m running would stop reminding me just how excellent a motorcycle tyre they are.

We are in the middle of a Summer Long Tyre Test, so why am I not waiting to tell you how good they are? Because the difference over the first 700 miles has been very noticeable, to the point where the Dunlop Trailmax Meridians are worthy of a dedicated article.

Annoyingly, the KTM that is wearing the Dunlop Meridians has developed a radiator leak, and while waiting for the warranty claim to be processed, the KTM is parked in the naughty corner of the garage.

The first of this year’s road trips starts in a week, and I will miss the Dunlops that have so far proven to be confidence-inspiring in all weathers.

Seven hundred miles isn’t much when it comes to judging tyres, yet the Dunlop Trailmax Meridians have made a marked impression on me.

Slicks

The only time I’ve used fully slick tyres has been on four wheels rather than two. Compared to anything with a tread pattern, the level of grip that a slick tyre gives is phenomenal, and the level of grip is tangible. It is something you can feel as you make demands of the tyres.

The Dunlop Trailmax Meridians are not slick tyres, and I’m sure other road-legal “slick” tyres will offer even higher levels of grip. However, I’m talking about an Adventure Motorcycle Tyre. Something designed for a 250Kg monster of a motorcycle. For a tyre designed for Adventure Bikes, to give grip you can feel is quite something.

This realisation occurred to me when I was arriving, slightly quicker than perhaps I should have been, over the crest of a rise in the road that is closely followed by a tight right bend.

Now, before I go any further, let me put out of your mind any visions of balls to the wall heroics; I’m not that sort of rider. It was a dry and sunny morning, and I was merely getting on with enjoying myself.

As I crested the rise and the road dropped away, I felt the front get light, a sure sign that I was arriving a little faster than I should have been. No dramas were about to kick off. A little extra rear brake and everything would be fine.

As the weight came back onto the front, the Dunlop Trailmax dug in, and that was when I felt that slick-tyre type feedback. That sensation of the tyre gripping the road and feeding that sensation back to me.

It sounds dramatic, and that isn’t my intention. I’m sure any number of other tyres would have safely taken me around that corner. What most of them would not have given me is the reassurance of such positive feedback.

Continuing on, it wasn’t the bend I remembered, but the tyre telling me that everything was completely under control. If I would like to continue enjoying myself, the Dunlops were happy to oblige.

Mixed Conditions

Congratulations, I hear you thinking. Dunlop has made a tyre that gives you feedback on a dry road when the tyre is warm.

The weather over my first 700-miles has not been the greatest. Mostly it has been the most unpredictable conditions, a mixture of dry, damp and wet. Those rides where there are stretches of road with a visible dry line. Then you arrive at a corner, especially if there is tree cover, where the road is at best damp and occasionally thoroughly wet.

Whereas you can predict the sections of road where it might be damp, it remains a little unnerving when you are mid-corner and the road surface changes from dry to wet.

Happily, I’ve got nothing to say about the Dunlop Trailmax Meridians in these circumstances. The KTM remained on the line I plotted. The bike went around the corner without a twitch or a squirm.

It is the same story for white lines in the damp. Leaving that wonderfully dry line for the damper parts of the road to complete an overtake usually requires crossing either a white line or some other form of road paintwork. All well-known tyre brands can do this easily, but not all can do it without sending you some unwanted feedback.

Again, the Dunlop Trailmax Meridians didn’t make a fuss, squirm, or complain. Most of the time, the only feedback I’ve received has been a gentle bump if the white line was raise higher than usual. Even then, it was only the same as a rough road surface. No slips or twitches, just calm and collected feedback.

Heavy Rain

The road trip to Wales was when I expected to test the Dunlops in heavy rain. Riding in Wales for five days had to include at least one downpour. That rain-soaked day will now be endured on a Yamaha Tracer 9 GT, but that is a different story.

Don’t Tell Anyone

When we began talking to Dunlop about a Summer Long Tyre Test, none of us had any experience of the Dunlop Trailmax Meridians or had picked up on much from the numerous tea stops and forum chats.

Dunlop Trailmax Meridians are something of a well-kept secret in the Adventure Motorcycle world, with most riders opting for the tyres you are perhaps thinking about right now. I can only urge you to revise that thinking and include the Dunlops in your list of tyre choices.

I’m nobody. I think I watched some highlights of the Dakar once. I’ve never raced in MotoGP, at the IOMTT or competed in WorldSBK. All I can tell you about is what my backside tells me, and my everyday motorcyclist backside is very much enjoying the Dunlop Trailmax Meridians.

There will be more miles on the Dunlops to come just as soon as the KTM is allowed out of the naughty corner with its bright new radiator.