What is "offroad"

I've been reading some posts on tires lately and I see everyone throwing around references to 50/50 and 80/20 on road/off road, then reading further between the lines I'm seeing that they are calling gravel roads off road.
Is this what is considered off road, a gravel or dirt road?
I guess I come from a different background, off road to me is tight single track not the road to someone's house that I would drive my wife's Juke down.
Am I wrong in my thinking? Or are there a bunch of posers out there that talk tough?

Yer over-thinking it...

They (the tire sellers) are just trying to give you some guidelines on expected use for when you're tire shopping. For their purposes, anything that's not paved is "off road", whether that's gravel, sand, graded dirt or gnarly single-track. But don't get all tied up over it, it's just a marketing way of broadly categorizing their tires.

So, when you see 80/20 or 90/10 on/off, they're just generally indicating that the intended use will be much more street-biased (again, PAVED street-biased).

You'll see that 50/50 is much more off-road oriented - ie, bigger knobbies.

And, similarly, a 20/80 on/off is pretty nearly just a DOT-approved full knobby.

So, there y'go...

Hers some random photos of roads - no single track in sight.


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<o>On a long weekend there will be a convoy of 4x4 , pedestians, light aircraft and fishermen, Some beaches have speed signs and mobile patrols with radar. </o>
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<o>Maybe your horizons and definitions are too restrained by the single track, there is a whole lot more adventure out there.</o>

Most people who say "off road" simply mean "off pavement".

One way to look at it:

Is it a public roadway? If so, it's "on road". I must say I've seen some single track public roadways before, so even that is questionable.

I'm personally thinking if it is a public roadway that has been maintained to the point of being passable by a Honda Accord, even if they have to creep along at 4 mph it is "on road".

Off road is exactly that in the strictest sense - off the public road ways.

As for tires, it is a subjective rating of how bad they are:

• 50/50 is half ass on either surface.
• 60/40 is a bit better on the road than off and
• 40/60 is the reverse.
• At the extremes a 90/10 sucks off road,
• but the 10/90 only kinda sucks on the road.

So, as you see it is much like the proverbial 70% braking is with the front brake - totally subject to circumstances and riders. I've seen guys ride stupid trails doing wild stuff with a stinking street tire and I've "seen" (actually done) a bike that couldn't get out of its way on a simple grassy path with the old Avon "Slipster" on it.

A good gauge for "off road" versus "road" could be this:

• Can you wash the front end out in a rut that takes up half the front wheel, and break ribs? It might be "off road"
• Is the mud deep enough to swallow your rear wheel and hold the bike up? It might be "off road"
• Is the wash board deep enough to have you endo when the front wheel sticks on one of the "ripples"? It might be "off road"
• If you don't make it to the top of the hill you will your bike flip flop to the bottom or will you flip over backward trying to get over that rock lip in the middle? It might be "off road"
• Are there grapevines hanging over the "road" that will grab your arm or, worse yet, your neck and rip you off your bike like octopus tentacles? It might be "off road"
• Did you have to go around a rock bigger than your front wheel that was left by the great glacier? It might be "off road" :eek1

Any additions guys?

Set the mouse down, go ride and find out

To me as a nearly street only rider it's mild off road as soon as it's not paved. Next level are ways that are mainly used by heavy working machines. (I'd never use my bike for such.) But real off road is something that's not regularily frequented by other vehicles at all. (Seldomly I go there by ATV and then only a few metres.)

One ride may include many different surface conditions. Do you expect a mile-by-mile breakdown of different surfaces?

For brevity we all leave out some details of each ride. I'm glad of it. My rides on ATV trails always include about 30 to 50% pavement. Then again, about half of those ATV trails are nothing to brag about.

But then perhaps someone is getting away with bragging . . .

Sorry, I was making a smart assed comment about what passes for off road to a lot people.
I am a trials rider, stuff that looks impassable to other people looks like a slightly interesting section to me.
What I am getting at is that most people consider a "road" hardcore offroading.

That's my definition, aren't I the adventerous type

As a self-aware grammar snob, I try not to use the term "off-road" to describe any of the surfaces I ride on, because, well, they're all roads. I'd rather use the term "dirt" or "off-pavement."

I think the issue lies in the fact that motorcycles are inherently unstable, so lower-traction environments are automatically far more challenging than they would be for a double-track vehicle. Sliding around on dirt can occur just as easily on a graded back road as it can on a narrow trail in the woods. It's just a question of the other obstacles that can pop up - which there are certainly more of on "true" "off-road" surfaces.

Wait, this whole thread was just you making a jab at people who have a different perspective than you on what constitutes "off-road"? I feel foolish for having missed it.

Gosh, aren't you the hero, then.

Your internet penis must be t - h - i - s big...

I have found that anyone that puts the effort in to criticize others in this manner is exaggerating his own abilities to make himself look bitchin'. Who cares what people consider to be offroad? What point are you trying to make? I think you're full o shit and probably not as gifted a rider you think you might be.

I side with the OP. Maintained roads , gravel or otherwise are NOT offroad. People ashamed of their own inability always seem to try to discredit or put down people they perceive as their superiors. Get over it Nancy.

Yeah, but in this case, it's not that others perceive the OP as one way or the other at all, it's that the OP is flaunting HIMSELF as superior. That makes all the difference...

I don't think he's implying he's superior , he's just fingering the posers. Well , hell. He IS superior then , if you think about it. Ability vs. inability. Competitors and spectators. It applys through out our lives.

Sorry but, that sure as heck looks like a single track to me...just saying...

If you don't need a license plate, it's offroad.

Yup. O.P.'s a douche.

I used to ride and race motocross. Now I'm old and don't stray off the fire roads (much) and do 99% of my riding on the tarmac.

If there is no pavement under your motorcycle you are off road. Fire roads are offroad. Single track is offroad. No track is offroad. Get it?

The 90/10 tires are for dudes like me who don't stray far. If you do, you need to figure out how much and how often and pick the tire that's right for your riding.

And don't be a douche.

Then "most people" are idiots.

A road is a road. When you leave the road the you are "OFF ROAD"