This is an opinion thread so there's that to preface. That's what you're looking for....opinions. This is the right place for soliciting opinions.
I suppose I'm a Michelin tire snob (preface again). I currently have Anakee Wild's mounted up and the rear is wearing pretty fast. Don't care. It's one of my main hobbies and I'll pay to play. I might go with Adventures the next time. That was my 2nd choice behind the Wild's since I'm riding mainly offroad now.
Why Michelin's as a brand? Well, I've always had reliable service out of Michelin's. Meaning the tires balance very well and hold a balance. There is almost zero air leak from week to week to the point that I haven't had to air up to spec in several weeks. OEM Bridgestone's before that required weekly air ups to get them back to within 3psi of spec. Michelin's seem to be consistently round. I've only noticed the Wild's are pretty heavy for a radial. Big ol' lugs. Noisy (Wild's). Smooooooth (round).
Continental makes some well regarded tires. Like I said, I'm a Michelin fanboy and just don't feel the need to look at other tires anymore after many streetbike, dirtbike, car, truck, motorhome and mountain bike excellent Michelin tire experiences! I did run TKC80's on my DRZ400SM and they were not round and balanced poorly. Bias vs. radial though.
Good luck! Two great brands.
Dan:
I also love Michelin street tires. 4 RTs in a row and I've tried a lot of brands. I love Michelins. However, I've had two punctures out in the middle of nowhere with Michelin Road tires. I think they're simply too light and thin (racy?). They're great fun but they've left me stranded twice in 1.5 years...always rear tire and some dumb thing on the road that shouldn't be enough to cause a puncture in a tire in the first half of its life.
So, I tried Road Attacks....Not quite as sharp as the Michelin Road tires, but really good...and no more surprise punctures....
The last incident happened in moto heaven in rural WI...on Sunday of Labor Day weekend. No tow assistance available. I tried AAA and Progressive. I spent 4 hours on 3 sincere attempts at patching the rear tire. It would hold for 5 miles and leak down again. I finally ended up limping 20 miles on the flat...believe it or not, it's possible if you keep it slow but not too slow. I got into La Crosse (brick streets!!!) and the sidewall really gave out and I heard the rim touch the deck for the first time...That was it. I put it in a parallel parking space and walked 3 blocks to the hotel. I called the cops and told them the bike was disabled, please don't ticket it. They kept an eye on it for me. A repair shop called me back that night and we arranged to meet at 9AM on Memorial Day. We got the wheel off and went to his shop in his car. He sold me a 190/17 sport bike tire. It got me home. If this were the first time, I'd chalk it up to experience....but it had happened 6 months before too. They're just too thin for my needs. I've read a bit on other forums about this issue as welll..so I don't feel like the only one who has experienced multiple punctures on Michelin Pilot Road/Road tires.
I thought the Road Attack was OK. Sticky and good leaned over. I feel like the profile is perfect on Road GTs for my RT and it's the most fun with those tires.
I think the Trail Attack is an even better and I'd have put them on my RT if I'd known about them last year. They're quiet, long-ish lasting, sporty handling and hold up to light off-road use too. I think this is gonna be my tire for a while. It's the choice of my GS riding pal for a few years now.
I've heard that Anakee dirt tires are fantastic but not long lasting. Certainly support that idea of playing hard and being willing to shell out a little bit more for it. But on the road, it becomes a reliability thing and I'm not willing to sacrafice that for a 3% sharper feeling road bike.
I wrecked my knee last year and won't be off-roading seriously for at least another season so that's not in my play-book for 2022. I'm going to moto-camp, travel to rallies, maybe take a trip out west and will do a trip to the Carolinas fairly soon. I think I'm better off on Trail Attacks for the present.
My needs change, tire companies change and sometimes I need to adjust my preferences. I'm with you, but I'm not the dirt rider that you are and I didn't feel like the OP was really asking about dirt tires, but more about road tires. This Trail Attack is a very nice road tire for a GS. You can really lean it over. It's quiet and is great if you aren't taking it on serious off-road slogs.
