Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Signs indicating a possible tire failure were found on a 17-inch rear Dunlop slick used on the Brooklin Cycles Yamaha YZF-R1 Superbike of Frank Trombino during Saturday morning Canadian Superbike practice at Le Circuit Mont-Tremblant.

The tire, a 758-compound, or “medium,” with the manufacturing date code of 2204 (indicating manufacture in the 22nd week of 2004) and with approximately 20 laps on it, was found by Trombino’s crew to have a line of cuts diagonally across one section of the tread.

The first cut was approximately a half-inch long and at least a half-inch deep. The second cut, perfectly in line with the first, was also a half-inch long but slightly less deep. Two additional cuts, much shallower but in perfect alignment with the first two, were found on the other side of the tread.

Brooklin Cycles Yamaha Team Owner Rob Egan told Roadracingworld.com, “I’ve seen this before. It’s never caused a problem, but now everyone’s paranoid. We don’t want to take any chances. We knew this track would be punishing with all the high cornering loads.”

Egan said Trombino did not feel the tire doing anything out of the oridnary.

The concern over the unusual damage to the tire comes from three Dunlop 17-inch rear slicks failing within an eight-day period in July, causing Jamie Hacking to crash at Mid-Ohio July 25, and teammates Jeff Williams and Steve Crevier to crash during a Canadian Superbike event July 17-18 at Mosport. All three riders crashed at very high speed but escaped serious injury.

“I haven’t seen the tire yet,” Crevier said of Trombino’s Dunlop. “Hopefully, his is only chunking and not coming apart like mine, Jeff’s and Hacking’s.”

Crevier feels the problem may come from the Mont Tremblant track’s lack of grip and Trombino’s chassis set-up. “I think everyone is sprung pretty tight,” said Crevier. “The suspension is topping out over all these crests causing a lot of tire spin. I’m seeing a lot of spinning out there, and spinning is bad for any tire.”

Pascal Picotte also suffered damage to his rear Dunlop slick, a 950-compound “soft” with three laps on it, during the same session, but the single, three-quarter-inch-long cut on his tire was not believed to be a precursor of a tire failure, according to Picotte’s crew.

Almost all of the top Canadian Superbike riders use Dunlop tires, and no other unusual tire damage has been reported at Mont Tremblant.

Parts Canada Superbike series officials have notified every team of Trombino’s tire damage.