Long-distance rider? Read on. Everyone else, keep scrolling.

The ContiTrailAttack 3 is Continental’s adventure touring tyre for riders who live on the tarmac. We’re talking 90% bitumen and 10% gravel connecting roads and the track into the campground.

Continental describes it as sport-touring grip and mileage in an adventure-styled tyre, built for road performance over dirt capability. It’s the tyre for heavy adventure bikes that charge the Snowy Mountains, designed to solve the real problems of riding a tall, heavy, loaded-up bike on the black stuff.

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Six technologies, one outcome.

New tyres before the big trip? Frosty 6am starts?

TractionSkin gives the tread a micro-rough surface straight out of the mould, with no slippery release agents to scrub off. That means a dramatically shorter break-in and real grip from the very first kilometres. The ContiTrailAttack 3 also warms up fast, reaching optimal temperature within the first 1,500 metres. By the time you’re out of the 50 zone, the tyre is ready to work.

Centre wearing flat? Handling falling away?

MultiGrip uses a single, homogeneous compound with temperature-controlled curing to create different grip characteristics across the tyre. The shoulders stay softer for maximum cornering grip, while the centre is harder for wear resistance and mileage. Because it’s one compound rather than separate strips bonded together, the transition between the two is smooth and continuous. There’s no step you can feel as you tip in.

Performance Over Time is the combined effect of MultiGrip, carcass construction, tread pattern design and an evenly wearing compound. The aim is neutral, consistent handling for the whole life of the tyre, so it doesn’t change personality halfway through a trip. Continental says the combination keeps performance constant even after thousands of kilometres.

Afternoon storm on the Divide?

RainGrip uses an optimised, silica-activated compound engineered for wet-weather performance. It works at a microscopic level to keep the rubber keyed into the road surface, for confident traction and control when the bitumen turns greasy. When it comes to rider safety, that’s the grip you’ll be glad of.

Tight hairpins with full panniers?

EasyHandling is built for exactly that moment. At low speeds there’s very little gyroscopic force to keep a big bike stable, so the tyre profile has to do more of the work. A specially matched front and rear contour gives neutral steering, so the bike doesn’t fall in or stand up unexpectedly. Slow corners feel intuitive, stable and easy to control. You’ll notice it most on the switchbacks and twisties.

Loaded up with a pillion, top box and panniers?

ZeroDegree steel-belt construction uses a 0° belt design for strong structural integrity and high-speed stability. It keeps the tyre’s shape under load, which means precise handling and consistent behaviour when the bike is fully packed and the road ahead is long and straight.

Put them together and you get a tyre that behaves the same way on day one and day twenty of the trip, in the wet or the dry, at walking pace or at highway speed. On a bike that weighs as much as a small fridge, that predictability underpins rider safety and builds rider confidence.

The ContiTrailAttack 3 range comes in 22 sizes across 17, 18, 19 and 21-inch fitments, in radial and cross-ply construction. That covers everything from the litre-plus touring flagships down to the learner-legal tourers.

The price point:

For big-bore 19/17-inch tourers such as the BMW R 1250 GS and R 1300 GS, Ducati Multistrada V4 and KTM 1290 Super Adventure S running a 120/70-19 front and 170/60-17 rear; A set costs $749.90 in the V-rated sizes, or $689.90 in the W-rated ZR sizes.