Michelin Pilot Road 4 on track

I rode at New Jersey Motorsports Park (Thunderbolt) on Monday with my street tires, the Pilot Road 4. I was initially concerned that I would have traction issues. The weather was perfect (about 80 degrees, mostly sunny), track grippy and I had no problems with traction at all. I leaned until I scraped my footpeg feelers and never had a moment of uncertainty in the grip.

So if you're wondering about these tires on the track, they're just fine for the FZ1 in stock trim. Maybe if it was hotter or you were pushing harder you might find the edge of grip, but not me at my level. Next time perhaps I'll take the footpeg feelers off to get the last bit of the tire edge (I was about 1/3 cm from the very edge of the rear tire when I stopped at footpeg feelers).
 
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Quite a bit globby at the edges. You can see on the rear tire I didn't quite make it to the edge (footpegs hit first), but they kept me confident and I didn't feel any slipping. I was trying to be smooth on throttle and brakes; they say smooth is the key to not suddenly finding yourself on the ground.
 
PR4 track review:

They will stick, and then get slippery because they're overheated so you end up adding a lotta air to keep the tire cooled off. The rounded profile isn't ideal for cornering/lines, especially quick change of direction, it's a rounded tire and doesn't like to hold a line too well compared to a track oriented tire. Because the edges do get so hot, they do grip well until pushed then they will start to slip because they're melting. And since they're so expensive, you're literally melting money away at a pretty fast rate compared to a street track tire.

So, if you're going at a medium group or slower pace, they will work for you. Once you push them, you'll wanna be careful and consider something like a Q3 instead.

I rode on my PR4's at the track a few times over the past 2 years, they worked surprisingly well but there is a huge difference compared to a track oriented tire.

So, if you're going to ride the track at a middle group pace or lower, it'll work just fine for you. if you start speeding up and pushing the tire, be wary.
 
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