Some customers have asked me why did you make the KELPI block and not a 19" American style tire. Well we were right at the start of the 19" Flat Track racing come back in Australia and I was having a hard time convincing riders that they will work on our tracks over here in Australia and be competitive on them. Also that by racing on 19" wheels we can link with the rest of the world ,hence making our industry bigger giving us all more opportunity for growth in the sport of flat track racing.
I was getting told that it will nether work and that I was crazy. This made me nervous and doubt myself. Maybe I was on the wrong track and we wouldn't get the support or sales we would need to survive. I new 19" were being used in just about every other country and to increase the chance of growth of the sport for our riders I would need to convince them 19" work while having a product I could sale for our new business. I could of just got a set of 19" tires and raced on them at local meetings and showed they work. But knowing my riding ability, I new I'm not going to win ever race and prove a point.
I also had fear in the back of my mind. What if I ended up with a whole lot of product I cant sell because riders wont race on them. The answer in my mind was a 19" block pattern that we already race on . Even though most people go to a 18", most mx bikes come out standard with a 19" on them. Most riders start on a 19" ,so it made sense to go a 19" block pattern that could be used on the front or rear and hopefully give riders already with 19'' wheels some confidence to try there 19" wheel sets 's on the deeper Aussie dirt tracks While giving beginners and intermediate riders a 19" tire that is affordable and good overall performance.
It took a couple of try's before we got the right combination but i now believe we do. The sipe of the tire was changed to help the tire hold the power slide better. The undoing of the tire is the rubber quality , but this was the highest quality we could get and to be honest it dose work well and gives the tire a great long lasting lifespan. The tire was developed to work as a front and rear so there was always going to be some give and take.
On any bike I believe we have the best performing 19" block pattern in the 19" range for dirt track, as we have had many podiums with riders trying them out across Australia and all the riders feedback is that they are much better that the V Rubber which is the go to when riders get started and don't want to buy a 18" rear. So what about competing against the mighty 18" Michelin?
Well the Kelpi block on a 250 is very close in lap times with a novice or experienced rider and I believe it can be competitive against the 18", but on a 450 it is a little harder as the tire starts spinning due to the horse power and hardness of the tire, breaking traction before the 18".In saying that we did find with our testing that if you run it on a 3" 19" rear rim the performance improves.
What has surprised us is how good it is as a front tire. Giving that planted feeling and plenty of grip on a heavy track the kelpi block is awesome as a front tire and you can use it in combination with your 18" on the rear or even a American pattern 19" on the rear and get great results.
Either way I had to take a risk. Design a American tire and if the sport of Flat Track didn't take off be stuck with a lot of stock as minimum orders are 500 units. Or get a tire we already use and hopefully influence people to use them front and rear on 19" wheel set's moving us one step closer to other countries around the world and growing our sport. I am proud of the kelpi block and we are on the way with the help of the Aussie flat track serries.We now to have a lot of riders on 19" wheel sets.
We see a lot of riders going back to 21/18 for club days. I would love to see you try a kelpi block on the front in combination with you 18" or even better front and back.
The Kelpi block price point is another great thing about the kelpi block. It is keeping the sport affordable. a 18" is going to set you back $250 plus and a 19" V rubber is about the same. The Kelpi block is $170. Its not $170 because it's not a quality product ,it's $170 because we want to give everyone the chance to try flat track racing. And to be able to afford to come back!!
Darcy Klaver