Total Motorcycle Community Forums

I just LOVE this season.
It's Tar and Chip season again here in SE PA.

Chipseal is bloody horrendous until it has months of traffic on it. Feels like you're riding in gravel with an occasional piece of road under it. One or the other, road, decide!

Perhaps it's time to take longer trips to get away from it, eh?

Waddya mean??? Chipseal is a poor mans retread. Just roll down a freshly slurried road and your old tires will be vulcanized and ready for another fun season! ...
Of course you know I'm kidding...doncha?

At my last house it got so hot that the road sealer melted. Nothing like hitting a nice wet patch that dried in your wheel wells... Forget walking on it - darn stuff would melt your boots.

(having not gotten a bike yet, hear comes the nOOb question) After the all the gravel as been sealed in the tar and it is decently smooth, do you get pretty good traction out of it?

NooB Question Alert!!!!!

Well, after it's been pounded down for a month or so by good heavy cage traffic, I s'pose you could say it gives good traction. Depends on what you mean by traction?
I ride a Yamaha Venture, and it travels well on most any surface...gets a bit shaky in loose gravel or sand, but as a matter of driving over it...it's ok. If you are wondering if you get good take off traction for a sport bike, or as in a racing takeoff, I wouldn't want to try it. The gravel and tar aren't like ashphalt, and will break away easily.
Hey~ always glad to help a NooB when ever I can...gotta keep em all up on two wheels.

lol, im thinking about getting (when i return for basic training and AIT) an SV650S and i'm worried about gravel/sealcoated roads.. like 90% of the twisties here in WI are sealcoated so thats out, but just normal riding sealcoated roads are fine?

Just use a dose of caution. You'll eventually get to where it doesn't even faze you to ride on it. Sometimes experience is the best teacher.
Hey~ Good luck with basic and AIT...I am proud to know you and thanks for serving!!!

Right. A little common sense goes a long way.
The fresher it is the more caution (slower) you should use.

The stuff really sucks for about a week after they do it until all the loose chips get bedded in, the tar dries up some and the excess stones get rolled off the road surface.

The first two or three days it even sucks to drive it in your cage.

I just hate this season when they're "repairing" the local roads with it.
It's bad enough coming home from work at midnight trying to dodge rabbits, skunks, possums and road apples only to come around a corner and find a fresh patch of tar with loose stone chips all over the place.

Try driving in Michigan during the orange cone season...
Mich used to have the best roads in the country, now they build lousy ones and just keep repairing them...WTF..it's job security for someone...