Stiff dunlop tire saved my butt

Last night, halfway through my highway commute home and traveling at around 72mph on I-85 northbound by ATL airport the handling and feel of my S'wing abruptly changed. I pulled on to the shoulder and did a walk-around of the bike and kicked the tires, and noticed that my rear was completely flat due to a 1/4" puncture directly in the center tread of the tire. However, in contrast to the 2 other flats I have experienced with my Swing, the tire did not deform and the tire bead did not separate from the rim, which would have been disastrous at that speed (I had it happen previously going 10-15mph and lost total control of the bike in those instances).

I was able to slowly ride the bike on the shoulder to the next exit (thankfully only 200 feet in front of me) pull in to a Denny's parking lot, plug the tire with 2 sticky plugs, fill it with my little Tire Slime branded air compressor and ride the bike the remaining 20 miles on back roads through parts of Atlanta I have never, and hope to never visit again.

This was a Dunlop SX-01 rear tire, and I have read previously (I think on this forum) that the Dunlop is the widest, stiffest and with the hardest compound of all of the various tires available for the S'wing. I have to credit the design of this tire for saving my butt, because I don't know if my previous IRC or Michelin Pilot would have had such gentle road manners at 72mph while completely devoid of tire pressure. 

BTW I had the tire filled with Ride-On tire sealant. I guess the hole was just too big to seal that leak. 

I have a Michelin Pure Power SC already mounted on my backup set of wheels in my garage, but I am going to seriously consider installing another dunlop next time I am due for a tire.

Jesse in Atlanta

That could have been nasty, glad you were fine.  A good reminder for us all to inspect our tyres often.

Maybe the Ride-On helped slow down the air escaping, did it get sprayed around on the inside of the mud guard?

Yes, it did. I think the "farting" of the ride-on was part of what alerted me to the problem. The question is what caused the puncture?. I had ridden past a shredded tire on the highway maybe 2 miles back, but I thought I had avoided all of the debris. There was no shrapnel in the tire as far as I could see, but I'll investigate it tonight after I swap wheels and dismount the tire.

Jesse in Atlanta

I too am interested in what you found.

It was almost 100 degrees in my garage last night. I'm going to wait until the weekend to dismount the tire.

Jesse in Atlanta

glad you are ok , it could of been really bad , I have always had good luck with Dunlop , they make some tough tires, I feel safe when running Dunlop's .......

You know, there used to be a requirement for Police bikes in US, that tires would stay on rim if flattened in motion---probably good idea--Harley had it and thus got a lot of police deals.

Dismounted the tire on Sunday morning and didn't find a cause. There was just a hole in the tire, which I have to assume was caused by road debris. Since there is plenty of tread left on that tire I'm going to have it professionally repaired and keep it as a backup.
Yesterday I installed the rear wheel with Michelin Power Pure SC that I had mounted a few months ago. I also have an unmounted front Power Pure SC that I'm going to swap on to my second front wheel next weekend. Since it's supposed to rain all week in Atlanta I don't expect to miss too much riding time. 

Jesse in Atlanta