The Metzeler Sportec M5 Interact - Next Step Tire Technology

Remember when two compounds on a single motorcycle tire carcass was the top new thing in advance tire technology? Well, in the world of motorcycle rubber, the move of innovation continues forward. Metzeler's tire, the Sportec M5 Interact, has two compounds and no fewer than five different tension zones around its steel belt.

Metzeler claims each one of these tension zones has its own individual performance characteristics, 'achieving the best grip for each lean angle'. The theory is that a greater number of tension zones gives a more continuous transition from one compound to another, rather than flipping from hard straight to soft. According to the technical blurb, this new structure has also led to an eight percent increase in footprint size – at every lean angle. Which should equate to a proportionate improvement in grip.

The pattern of the tread on the Metzeler Sportec M5 Interact is also new, and resembles the Greek letter pi. Mathematicians among you will know that pi is not a filled-pastry comestible but the ratio between the circumference and diameter of a circle.

Aside from its symbolic aptness, this new Metzeler tread pattern is reported to increase stability in the dry and water-drainage in the wet.

Finally, if a rough estimate of chicken-strip width is not sufficient to judge your cornering prowess, the Metzeler M5 Interact has a lean-angle indicator. Basically, this is a series of markings on the shoulder of the tire, against which you can assess the degree of lean you've achieved – something your friends will want to hear all about, we're sure....