VOL. 56 ISSUE 2 JANUARY 15, 2019 P85
Charging out of corners
with the Scout's big
torque resulted in no
traction theatrics, and
heavy braking was
never an issue.
rated plasticizers and silica in their
makeup to promote quick warm-up
and much better grip in both dry
and wet conditions.
The tread pattern on the front
Cruisetec features converging
grooves along with diverging exten-
sion grooves. The design is claimed
to provide quick warm-up, instant
turning response, and improved
grip both during straight up and
leaning situations. In emphasizing
the grip aspect, Metzeler revealed
internal test figures that showed the
Cruisetec stopping in less distance
under wet conditions from 53 mph
than all of its competitors. Mean-
while, the rear Cruisetec has a simi-
lar pattern, but with no grooves
crossing the center, which Met-
zeler says promotes even wear.
Both front and rear tread designs
also contain bridges between the
grooves to control tread deflection
under extreme loads.
To prove the new Cruisetec's
performance, Metzeler invited the
world's motopress to Mount Maga-
zine near Paris, Arkansas, in the
Ozark Mountains. The mountain's
undulating roads would offer ample
opportunity to test the Cruisetec's
cornering capabilities, while the
valleys surrounding the mountain
provided plenty of long straight
sections of highway and byway to
check out its overall ride quality.
A good selection of cruisers from
Harley-Davidson and Indian were
on hand as test mules.
My first test mule was a Harley
Road King, and while the bike isn't
exactly a paradigm of power and
performance, I spent enough time
aboard it to get a good idea of the
Cruisetec's overall manners. Right
off the bat, it was pretty easy to
tell that the Metzeler was putting
down a big footprint at both ends.
There's that sense of solid footing
and feedback you get from a tire
with a well-engineered contact
patch, and the Cruisetec gives
you that confidence—along with
