I’ve never been more excited to wave goodbye to a tire. I thought I’d take this Pirelli MT60 on its final 400 miles Saturday to my AirBnB in Lawrenceville, PA, then swap it out for a Shinko Golden Boy before hitting the northern terminus of the MABDR, but as I glanced at the boot these past couple days before heading out, seeing just how little is left on the top portion, the dry-cracked sidewalls, and knowing just how much of a ***** it can be to spoon on and off, I chose not to even chance it. Don’t get me wrong—for light off-pavement, 80/20 type of duty, this Pirelli performs well, but it’s not great in gnarlier terrain, and installing and removing has been absolutely laborious at times. Even the shops I took it to have struggled to get the bead to seat, and I resorted more than once to the C-clamp and wood block method for breaking the bead.
Oh—that snot? It’s Orange Seal, a quality bicycle tire sealant that I shot in because the sidewall just kept leaking, even after multiple jaunts around town.
Will I get the MT60 ever again??
…maybe. But we’ll need some time apart to heal and evaluate the relationship.
