Conti Race Attacks review

[Biggles08]

I'm on my 3rd set of sport attacks and I can't say enough good things about them...there are 'o' for awesome! I was tempted to go the race attacks this last time, but was told by Chris at Mt Eden that they are not as good in the wet as the sport attacks ...so coming into winter I thought I would stick to the sports.

Had them on my late ZX9R (RIP) on the last track day I did on her and without a word of exageration had a two wheel drift while lent way over to the right under brakes on turn 4 setting up for the infield right hairpin turn 5. After I finished shitting myself I grinned soooooo wide in my helmet because I realized that had I still been wearing Diablo's I would've highsided for sure. The Sport attacks once warmed give such good feeback and as I found out dont 'just let go' rather progressively slip....giddyup!

[UK_GSXR]

I'm about to get a set of Race Attacks for my ZX-6R. I'll be generally be riding on dry sunny days (please) and a few track days.

What pressures work best for these on the track (I'm guessing 31F/28R) and road??

Cheers

[NZsarge]

I'm about to get a set of Race Attacks for my ZX-6R. I'll be generally be riding on dry sunny days (please) and a few track days.

What pressures work best for these on the track (I'm guessing 31F/28R) and road??

Cheers

Dunno 'bout the track dude but general consensus seems to be F 32 and R 34 psi as Stranger pointed out in a earlier post, that's a good place to start I reckon.

[Shaun]

I'm about to get a set of Race Attacks for my ZX-6R. I'll be generally be riding on dry sunny days (please) and a few track days.

What pressures work best for these on the track (I'm guessing 31F/28R) and road??

Cheers

RACE ATTACKS

front 29psi COLD

Rear 23 PSI Cold

That is what Jay Lawrence and I and others are using fior the Conti Race attack

The set I used at Taupo last Friday, are totally perfect, a lot to do with tire wear, is suspension set up as well though, but I guess you are aware of that, it takes suspension and tires working together to get the best results.

[AllanB]

Very nice tyres.
I would not bother with the race attacks for street riding - if you are 90% street and a few track days get the SPORT Attacks - stick like a smelly thing on a sheet and last well on the road. Plus they work in the winter on wet roads.
If you are a bit gentler and do street only get the Road Attack rear/Sport front. Or even 2x road.

One thing I noticed on the 1200 was the front tyres profile (sport) does give the bike a quicker turn-in. This was good on the GS, but not what I desired on the Hornet (thus the PR2's).

I was told this quicker handling is the main reason the 500km guarantee - it takes a few K's to get used to.

[roogazza]

RACE ATTACKS
front 29psi COLD
Rear 23 PSI Cold
That is what Jay Lawrence and I and others are using fior the Conti Race attack

Shaun, why is that such low pressures are used at the rear as opposed to the front , I can never get the head round that one ?
Is it because the rear temps increase more than the front , so you start with a lesser figure?
I've always gone one or two more in the rear than in the front.
(but then, I'm a bit older and probably haven't caught up with modern thinking and tyres.) Gaz.

[UK_GSXR]

RACE ATTACKS

front 29psi COLD

Rear 23 PSI Cold

That is what Jay Lawrence and I and others are using fior the Conti Race attack

The set I used at Taupo last Friday, are totally perfect, a lot to do with tire wear, is suspension set up as well though, but I guess you are aware of that, it takes suspension and tires working together to get the best results.

Thanks Shaun, just to be clear I'm getting the Race Attack Streets - rather than the full on Comps.

PS Talking about suspension are you still doing your suspension setup sessions - I know a while ago you ran these from time to time in Auckland too??

[UK_GSXR]

Dunno 'bout the track dude but general consensus seems to be F 32 and R 34 psi as Stranger pointed out in a earlier post, that's a good place to start I reckon.

Thanks NZsarge - I'll go with those pressures on the road.

[UK_GSXR]

Very nice tyres.
I would not bother with the race attacks for street riding - if you are 90% street and a few track days get the SPORT Attacks - stick like a smelly thing on a sheet and last well on the road. Plus they work in the winter on wet roads.
If you are a bit gentler and do street only get the Road Attack rear/Sport front. Or even 2x road.

One thing I noticed on the 1200 was the front tyres profile (sport) does give the bike a quicker turn-in. This was good on the GS, but not what I desired on the Hornet (thus the PR2's).

I was told this quicker handling is the main reason the 500km guarantee - it takes a few K's to get used to.

Thanks for the advice, but because I'm primarily looking for track day performance I'll give the Race Attacks a go for the summer and then switch to the Sport Attacks for winter.

To be honest on the road I don't have any problem with my stock BT-15s anyway but perhaps that's because I ride too slow...

[Ivan]

Thanks NZsarge - I'll go with those pressures on the road.

Ok go with the pressures Shaun stated I am a Conti user and race on them,

The tires are designed to work at those low rear presssures I think it is to do with the carcass design you will tear the tire to pieces running higher pressures.

I have been told Jay has run as low as 18PSI in the rear.

and I ran 28PSI all weekend to get the front end working a bit better after some advice from hamish (conti guy)

[BIGBOSSMAN]

They're fantastic tyres - I had both Race and Sport Attacks on my '05 ZX10R and they were both superb, especially the Race Attacks on the track.
I'll chuck 'em on the new bike once I've shredded the std equip Diablos!

[UK_GSXR]

Thanks for the comments guys - I'm sold!

[JayRacer37]

Glad to hear all the positive feedback on these tyres! I can assure you that a helluva lot of work, effort and passion was put into making the RaceAttack what it is, with development from both Europe and here (our summer is their winter, so my team and I have been Continental's winter development team for the past two years.)

I just wanted to expand on the tyre pressure debate. Most everyone here is right, (other than Ivan, sorry mate, 18 PSI is a bit...out there) or very close. Shaun is dead right with the pressures he recommends, but that is for track use with tyre warmers only. On the road or even track without warmers running this low will cause bad handling characteristics and increased wear. I actually have a full listing of pressures recommended by Continental that I will publish here. This is even down to pressure for specific compounds in race attack, and the application the tyre is to be used for. All pressure is initially in BAR, so I have rounded to the nearest PSI. (BARx14.5=PSI)

This is word for word extract from Continental’s pressure advice:

“Air pressure is dependent on various factors. Engine performance, chassis set-up, choice of suspension springs [rates], riding style, lap times – the list is endless. Therefore, information on tyre pressures can only be recommendations to be used as a basis for further experiments.
There are two ways to check air pressure in race tyres, cold or warm. Here are the cold air pressures (ambient temperatures):

RaceAttack Comp Front: 1.9 bar/28PSI
RaceAttack Comp Rear: 1.6 bar/23PSI
RaceAttack Street Front: 2.1 bar/30PSI
RaceAttack Street Rear: 1.9 bar/28PSI
RaceAttack Rain Front AND Rear: 2.3 bar/33PSI

Here are pressure figures warm (heated to 80 degrees centigrade and run for 2 laps):

RaceAttack Comp Front: 2.1 bar/30PSI
RaceAttack Comp Rear: 1.9 bar/28PSI
RaceAttack Street Front: 2.3 bar/33PSI
RaceAttack Street Rear: 2.1 bar/30PSI
RaceAttack Rain Front AND Rear: 2.3 bar/33PSI

Two Points:

- For use on the road, the air pressures given by the manufacturer shall be used as a basis.
- These Figures are valid for all sizes, regardless of the tyre of motorcycle.”

So, basically if you are on a track and/or using tyre warmers, the pressure chart above applies to you. If you are using these tyres on the road, or on the track WITHOUT tyre warmers, pressures you ran with your bike stock, ie the pressures recommended by Yamaha, Honda, etc are a valid starting point. We genrally recommend the hot pressures (second list above) as a starting point for cold pressures for use without warmers ON TRACK, and advice and recommendations from people like The Stranger/Noel who have run these tyres on the road are very valid for non tyre warmer use/road application. Needless to say, tyre construction has moved on in the past few years making these pressures, particularly the rear, seem very low, so I understand if you are a bit sceptical. As a quick explanation the tyre sidewall can now do more work holding the tyre up so the pressure can be lower giving a greater contact patch without the excessive overheating that would have and does occur with older technology tyres.

Also, if you are riding on the road, RaceAttack street is a very attractive choice. This tyre has a much lower temperature operation corridor, meaning it works well from cold. It is also capable of lapping at a close pace to RaceAttack Comp. Here is a general breakdown of average fastest laps for a single day testing on my 2005 ZX6-RR at manfeild.

RaceAttack Comp: average 1.10.00 or so (compound specific to temperature, this is a basis of med comp)
RaceAttack Street: average 1.10.50
SportAttack: average 1.11.20, but beginning to overheat after approx. Ten laps at this pace

This shows that the SportAttack is also a very valid option for fast riding, whilst less compromise on milage and cold performance.

Also, Conti Stockists at the moment should have some great specials on, so if your looking, approach your dealer and see what they can do for you!

Cheers,
Jay #37.

[HenryDorsetCase]

Glad to hear all the positive feedback on these tyres! I can assure you that a helluva lot of work, effort and passion was put into making the RaceAttack what it is, with development from both Europe and here (our summer is their winter, so my team and I have been Continental's winter development team for the past two years.)

I just wanted to expand on the tyre pressure debate. Most everyone here is right, (other than Ivan, sorry mate, 18 PSI is a bit...out there) or very close. Shaun is dead right with the pressures he recommends, but that is for track use with tyre warmers only. On the road or even track without warmers running this low will cause bad handling characteristics and increased wear. I actually have a full listing of pressures recommended by Continental that I will publish here. This is even down to pressure for specific compounds in race attack, and the application the tyre is to be used for. All pressure is initially in BAR, so I have rounded to the nearest PSI. (BARx14.5=PSI)

This is word for word extract from Continental’s pressure advice:

“Air pressure is dependent on various factors. Engine performance, chassis set-up, choice of suspension springs [rates], riding style, lap times – the list is endless. Therefore, information on tyre pressures can only be recommendations to be used as a basis for further experiments.
There are two ways to check air pressure in race tyres, cold or warm. Here are the cold air pressures (ambient temperatures):

RaceAttack Comp Front: 1.9 bar/28PSI
RaceAttack Comp Rear: 1.6 bar/23PSI
RaceAttack Street Front: 2.1 bar/30PSI
RaceAttack Street Rear: 1.9 bar/28PSI
RaceAttack Rain Front AND Rear: 2.3 bar/33PSI

Here are pressure figures warm (heated to 80 degrees centigrade and run for 2 laps):

RaceAttack Comp Front: 2.1 bar/30PSI
RaceAttack Comp Rear: 1.9 bar/28PSI
RaceAttack Street Front: 2.3 bar/33PSI
RaceAttack Street Rear: 2.1 bar/30PSI
RaceAttack Rain Front AND Rear: 2.3 bar/33PSI

Two Points:

- For use on the road, the air pressures given by the manufacturer shall be used as a basis.
- These Figures are valid for all sizes, regardless of the tyre of motorcycle.”

So, basically if you are on a track and/or using tyre warmers, the pressure chart above applies to you. If you are using these tyres on the road, or on the track WITHOUT tyre warmers, pressures you ran with your bike stock, ie the pressures recommended by Yamaha, Honda, etc are a valid starting point. We genrally recommend the hot pressures (second list above) as a starting point for cold pressures for use without warmers ON TRACK, and advice and recommendations from people like The Stranger/Noel who have run these tyres on the road are very valid for non tyre warmer use/road application. Needless to say, tyre construction has moved on in the past few years making these pressures, particularly the rear, seem very low, so I understand if you are a bit sceptical. As a quick explanation the tyre sidewall can now do more work holding the tyre up so the pressure can be lower giving a greater contact patch without the excessive overheating that would have and does occur with older technology tyres.

Also, if you are riding on the road, RaceAttack street is a very attractive choice. This tyre has a much lower temperature operation corridor, meaning it works well from cold. It is also capable of lapping at a close pace to RaceAttack Comp. Here is a general breakdown of average fastest laps for a single day testing on my 2005 ZX6-RR at manfeild.

RaceAttack Comp: average 1.10.00 or so (compound specific to temperature, this is a basis of med comp)
RaceAttack Street: average 1.10.50
SportAttack: average 1.11.20, but beginning to overheat after approx. Ten laps at this pace

This shows that the SportAttack is also a very valid option for fast riding, whilst less compromise on milage and cold performance.

Also, Conti Stockists at the moment should have some great specials on, so if your looking, approach your dealer and see what they can do for you!

Cheers,
Jay #37.

This is one of the best posts I have ever read on KB. Seriously. Informed, lucid and BLOODY USEFUL. Thank you very much.

I am pondering the "what tyre" thing presently because the Diablo Corsa on the back of black sunshine has worn square. (note to self re touring on soft tyres....). I will go have a yarn to Don.

I am a big fan of Continental tyres from back in the day (TK11/TK22) and use them almost exclusively on my mountain bikes.

Thanks again.

[HenryDorsetCase]

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