I put new TAs on last July, they grip great compared to the tires I took off. They do get hard with age but I think most tires do. I have a buddy who complained his TAs were so hard they wouldn't even chirp when he matted it, but his were 19 years old. I quit riding with him until he put new ones on. They looked OK but who knows what the carcasses were like? 90 mph with those old tires made me nervous.