I just thought while its fresh in my mind I would post the difference between the above two tyres. I have ridden with the standard Pirelli Dragons for 1500 miles and overall they are a very good tyre but I feel the wet weather performance is not that good and wear is really poor.

I just fitted a full set of Avon Distanzias and have just about scrubbed them in. The big difference between the two on the plus side are the Avons feel much more planted and certainly offer better grip levels and the tyre wear is considerably better (roughly 3 times better on the rear). The only negative for the Avons are they do not turn in as quick as the Pirelli's I think this is because of the profile of the flatter Avons it is harder to push the bike over into corners. This is obviously a plus when it comes to straight line handling and for that it is a good compromise.

Overall I like the Avons and heartily recommend them.

PS - My bike is in perfect order with no head bearing issues which can result in the steering feeling stiffer.

I will post a picture later of the different profiles that compare the two together.

__________________