Dunlop, not Joey

Dave Shakespeare, Sunday, 18 May 2025

So, on my GSA I've been running Dunlop Meridians for the last 2 changes, and have always considered them to be a supremely good tyre.

I'd compare them, as a slightly harder wearing Pirelli Scorpion trail 2, also (in my opinion) a very good tyre for the GSA.

However, after discovering the rear Meridian was 'just' legal (honest officer), I thought I'd have a go with Dunlop Roadsmart IV.

Now, I confess, I'm no expert or any sort of tyre afficionado, or even a good rider! But wow! What a set of tyres.

After sweating them in for a 100 miles or so, I've been out this morning and had a bit more of a relaxed ride with them. Nothing heroic, nothing super enthusiastic, but just a reasonably spirited, carefree ride out in the lanes.

First thing I noticed was how quick to temperature they get, offering almost instant grip within the 1st mile, very reassuring.

They're quiet too, not that the Meridians were particularly noisy, but usually I can hear some road noise coming up from the forks, Bridgestone A41's are almost deafening in comparison, but the Roadsmarts - nothing, just nothing!

Flexing - previous tyres have always felt like they were flexing a little bit, especially in some of the sharper bends. But these RS4s feel very stable and surefooted, even with my 16 stone bulk aboard, the GSA felt just like a sportsbike. Negotiating bends in series with quick flicks to the left and right was effortless, in fact, in my minds eye, I imagined these tyres would have their chin in their hands reaching new heights of boredom with my feeble attempts at high-speed cornering!

In fairness, the GSA tips in and out with zero fuss anyway, and is a very forgiving bike to ride.

But the RS4s seem to (if actually possible) lift the whole riding experience up another level.

I'm running out of ways to explain the feeling they gave me, it's almost as if they have a built in GPS device, allowing them to know when and where the bends are, if that makes sense?!

Wet weather - Of course, no idea yet, but if the dry road riding is anything to go by, I'm not worried.

Longevity - Well, we'll need to come back to that question as well, won't we? But given the confidence in the bends they give me, my suspicion is they may not do so well as the Meridians.

20 years ago, if somebody said "you need to get yourself a set of Dunlops on there", I'd have laughed. Not now though!