Is your next destination on dirt, but using pavement to get there? To make the most of it, you need a set of dedicated dual sport motorcycle tires. Adventure-sport tires offer some off-road capability, think 90% road, 10% off-road. But they’re not meant for serious dirt, mud, rocks and narrow trails. True off-road tires have radical, pronounced tread blocks, often called “knobbies”. While these work for near-impossible off-road conditions, they’re terrible on pavement. Many aren’t legal for street use, unless they feature a DOT stamp on the sidewall.
What if you want the best of both worlds? The dual sport tires in this list are designed to split the difference between true off-road tires and adventure sport tires. They’re designed for off-road performance, but are capable on pavement as well. Think of the ratio as 50/50 road/off-road with a little variation either way. They’ll have deep (and wide) enough tread for unpaved surfaces, and they’re designed to quickly clear loose material, water and mud away. But they’ll also hold up satisfactorily on roads you’ll take to get the dirt trails.
Dual sport tires usually fit 21-inch front-wheels with 17 or 19-inch rears. This opens up your tire options. They’ll likely be mounted to spoked rims which are more forgiving than cast-alloy. This means (unless specified otherwise) dual sport tires require inner tubes, unlike tubeless tires.
Avon TrekRider is a slightly more aggressive design than its Trailrider stablemate, allowing greater off-road ability. The manufacturer suggests around 50/50 on/off-road bias (rear tyre here). This means it will suit road journeys on the way to off-road adventures and offer grip and traction across a range of conditions, including gravel and mud.
Continental TKC 80 Twinduro is described by the manufacturer as the King of the dual-sport market and intended as 60/40 off-road/road. Its large tread blocks give excellent traction in wet and muddy conditions and generate great traction. The large spacing means they will clear mud and gravel away from the tread-block edges, allowing them to continue to allow the bike the steer and drive forward (rear tyre here)
Designed for going the distance on both on-road and off-road for big adventures, the Trailmax Mission is a large-block tyre with defined edges to provide grip and stability on-road but generate traction and clear loose gravel and mud away from sealed surfaces. Wrap around edges help to prevent the wall from damage while off-road and they are said to be good at climbing out of ruts.
Estimated to be 60/40 road/off-road and intended for hard-packed surfaces, the Karoo 3s feature a blocky design but not as much as a knobbly, meaning better on-road performance with good off-road grip and traction. The V-shaped tread blocks give traction in varying conditions and the grooves help clear loose material away from the tread. A good option for primarily road riders who want some proper off-road ability as opposed to a token opportunity.
Similar-looking to the Metzeler Karoo 3s but with larger blocks and spaced more like a familiar off-road tyre, the AX41 is, by Bridgestone definition, a tyre with an off-road bias though it has been designed to offer excellent grip on and off-road with traction generated by the large blocks and edges. It is a rigid construction to offer a combination of stability and performance.
Designed to offer a combination of on and off-road ability, the Michelin Anakee Wild features large tread blocks with wide grooves to clear loose gravel and mud and allow the blocks to generate grip and traction. They are intended to have a long life and be resistant to high operating temperatures, as you would expect to find on-road while resisting damage off-road.
Designed to be used on-road on the way to off-road adventures, the Scorpion Rally STR is a blocky design with reasonably wide grooves to dissipate gravel and mud and allow the blocks to generate grip on-road while also providing traction on the loose. On-road heat is dissipated to prevent damage to the blocks and a high silica content helps with mechanical grip on all surfaces.
Cut through the jargon with MCN’s tire explainer video:
- Just so you know, we may receive a commission or other compensation from the links on this website - read why you should trust us.
