| Author | Message | ||
     Okc99 |
So this morning I had my first taste of sub-freezing weather and it was a re-awakening of the laws of physics on heat transfer. Although I am an engineer myself, I am guilty of underestimating the windchill factor by a MILE. All veterans can relate to this, the first time you had a wake-up call. So instead of giving advice to other riders, this thread is to share any of your own "ah-ha" moments in winter riding where you learned a valuable lesson. My lesson: It takes 8.5 miles to go from Gas-station warmed, toasty feet to ice cycles on the verge of numbness, when on the highway @75mph....when wearing tennis shoes. Take-away: Tennis shoes were designed to breathe, and breathing is bad in the winter.  | ||
| Ratbuell |
Always over-ankle boots when riding, especially in winter. My biggest 'ah-hah' winter moment was discovering - although I "knew about" it logically - how much pucker you can get out of cold tires, cold roads, and a dash of salt. Even though I'd been riding for a good 30 minutes at the time and the tires "should" have warmed up, the tires still didn't stick like I expected because of the cold ground and light coloring (not even gritty) of salt, and I ended up flat-tracking just a bit. <pucker> Whoops. Now I ride in the cold like I'm riding in the rain. Also - titanium leg bones make SERIOUS heat sinks. I've GOTTA get some more long-john's for under my jeans.... | ||
| Chadhargis |
I sat out to a CPR class one winter morning when it was 18 degrees. I was bundled up, heated vest on, heated grips on, and I was reasonably warm (as much as you can be in 18 degree temps). When I got to the Red Cross, where the class was being held, I was searching for a place to park and I spotted a place across the lot. I gassed it and the rear end stepped out and the RPMs shot up to the rev limiter. I pulled my front brake, and the ABS kicked in (I was riding a BMW GS at the time). No brakes....just ABS cycling. It was at that time that I had noticed the rather heavy dew fall we get here in Tennessee had frozen solid to become a very hard freeze. Finally I rolled to a portion of the parking lot that was sheilded from the frost and got stopped. Thanks to ABS, I didn't bust my fanny, and I learned a very valuable lesson...water freezes at 18 degrees. LOL!  | ||
| Johnboy777 |
I rode all winter last year, testing out my cold gear, breaking in the bike, and trying to get my fuel map right with ECMspy. But through it all, I learned one valuable lesson that will always be with me ... I friggin' hate riding in the cold. Now my BMW Winter Pro Gloves, 'stich WindStopper Fleece Jacket and First Gear HT Overpants are used for shoveling snow. . | ||
| Rotorhead |
My "Ah-ha you retard" was learning that Any exposed skin at below freezing temps will also freeze. While riding from NJ to AL last winter down I81 is stopped for gas and had to go in to pay. I was pissed that I had to go in but it helped in the long run. When I took off my helmet and went inside the attendant did the normal "isn't it cold out there to ride a motorcycle" Then he said "hey your chin is BLUE!" I had a neck gator on but guess I pulled it down to far along the way to keep the visor from fogging up. Lesson learned: If you stop feeling cold you might want to stop and check out why your not feeling cold. | ||
| Skinstains |
I am a "Rounder" in North Jersey, have been for 25 years. I plan on trying out the heated gloves this winter. My lesson, it is a whole lot colder at 75 than 55 mph's. It is almost unbelievable how much warmer it is if you ride slower. Granted you have to be quite vigilant to maintain a slow relaxed pace but if you try it you'll like it. | ||
| Tootal |
Well let's see, It was January 3rd and I was laying in my warm bed listening to the radio/alarm. During the weather report it was said to be 40 degrees this morning. 40 degrees! I'm riding to work since it had been a very cold December and I was having withdrawal symptoms! I jumped on the K100RS and headed down my street. Right before the stop sign there is a kink in the road. I touched the brakes and the bike was no longer under me. It slid across the road into a yard and I, being covered in leather from shoulders to toes, landed in the drainage curb which was like running a luge without anything under you! I went roughly 30 feet before I stopped. The ground being totally frozen still and 40 degree air had formed black ice and it is not visible. The bike suffered a small hole ground into the right side crank cover and a scratched up saddlebag. I had a few more scratches on my leathers but nothing else. Needless to say, I went home and got the car! Lesson learned. | ||
| Okc99 |
Johnboy, I think you may not be alone in your expensive snow shoveling gear this winter. I may get the $350 Gerbins heated coat and end up using it to amuse myself and keep my coffe warm while in my Honda if it doesn't do the trick. | ||
| Jammin_joules |
thousand words=picture  You don't really need a side stand in the Rocky Mtns in May. | ||
| Midnightrider |
Heated gear is like crack. You buy one piece and your hooked. Before you know it you've spent several hundred dollars for the whole set. | ||
| Cityxslicker |
Knobby tires work good in mud, ok on snow, not at all on ICE. DAMHIK Take away, there was a reason no other bikers were out that day in that neck of the woods. | ||
| 99savage |
Hey, Jammin_Joules what kind of tires do you run? Cold weather story! Never, ever, take off on a sunny, spring day wearing Marlboro man jacket & not wearing undershirt, the better to impress the co-eds w/ hairy chest. End up that nite trying to build fire in a phone booth & asking state police to take you in. - Hypothermia is real. | ||
| Jammin_joules |
I have run the Avon Distanzias with improved gravel and dirt performance without too noticeable degredation on pavement. The Distanzia rear is only a 160mm but it fit right on without difficult coaxing to seat. Mileage suffered thouugh, about 4,000 versus about 6,000 on Pirelli's. | ||
| Cityxslicker |
Jammin, the Rosies Brew Pub sticker is looking great and in fine form. Must have been before the sleeping pic. | ||
| Werewulf |
it has been my experience, that the further south you ride the warmer it gets! | ||
| Hooper |
Welcome to Washington, DC... It took me awhile to learn that some decent gear will carry you far, instead of just wearing two pairs of long johns under your jeans, tons of layers under a leather jacket, and a couple pairs of socks. Now, my coworkers ask if I wore "the space suit" to work on Fridays.  | ||
| Rotorhead |
Hey, I got the same space suit in Day Glow.  | ||
| Jlnance |
My second bike was a Cyclone I bought sight unseen from a dealer in PA. I checked the weather every day after that for a time warm enough to fly up and get it. Found a day with a high of 45, and flew up. Lesson #1 - Just because the high is 45, doesn't mean it's going to be 45 when you want it to. I got to the dealer at 4:45 PM, and of course it took forever to do all the paperwork. It was dark when we got done. They wheeled the bike out back and let it warm up next to a big pile of snow. I knew it was going to be cold, so I had layers. Lots of layers. It didn't matter. Lesson #2 - At least one of your layers needs to be windproof. I have never been so cold. I think it was 22F when I got to Washington, DC a few hours later. I know it was cold enough that the bike never completely warmed up. I stopped every 50 miles for coffee and would shiver violently while I returned to operating temperature. Proper gear is a wonderful thing. | ||
| Luftkoph |
the worst for me was in fla. of all places,16 years old over at a G.F.s house and me mammy calls and says son you better get home theres a big rain storm coming so I leave oldsmar for the short 12 15 mile ride home to dunedin on my H1 kaw and the weather hit, rain and a fast drop in temp down into the 60's and of course I have my 1973 16 year old riding gear t shirt and jeans it must have took a week for me to quit shivering | ||
| Ratbuell |
Yeah, the "Riders Dilemma" is very real: Do I go slower, and be not as cold, but for longer? Do I go faster, and be colder, but not as long? I saw a great ad on eBay yesterday. I'm looking around for some Gerbings glove *liners* (never knew they made those, now I can have armored gloves year round) and found an ad that said "Practically new, I bought them because my hands got cold on the steering wheel of my SUV but they're too bulky". Couldn't make that one up if I tried. | ||
| Hughlysses |
The coldest I've ever been was actually in August in North Carolina on my first trip to Deal's Gap (the Dragon). This was 6 years ago and I was on my 1983 Honda VT500FT Ascot. I rode up from near Charleston, SC with a friend on a Honda RC-51. I was wearing a full face helmet, mesh jacket, jeans, and hiking boots. We stopped in Franklin, NC to meet a friend from Atlanta who was going up with us. Temps had been in the 80's all day, but by the time we got to Franklin, it was starting to drop and the sky was clouding up. It took us a while to find our buddy, then I wanted to try to go up via a road I'd seen on the Tail of the Dragon website (Bicycle Route #4 IIRC) and we rode around for ~30 minutes trying to find it. Finally, by about 6:30 PM we gave up looking for the alternate route and headed back to highway 28. Just as we were leaving Franklin, the rain started. I had rain gear, but my friends didn't so I figured I'd tough it out since they had to. It poured buckets. By the time we were ~10 miles north of Franklin, we were soaked to the bone and the temperature started dropping. 28 has some great twisties north of Franklin, and here I am riding real twisties for the first time in my life in the dark, soaking wet and cold. I guess concentrating on the curves took my mind off of how cold I was. I'd guess it only got into the mid-50's, but by the time we got to Robbinsville to the hotel I was shivering violently. My two friends (both of whom are ~20 years younger than me), were similarly miserable. I could hardly sign the check-in form at the hotel I was shaking so badly. I got to the room as fast as I could, stripped down and jumped in the shower. I gradually brought the water temp up and got warmed back up. That was undoubtedly the best shower I've ever had. Lesson learned- It doesn't have to be "cold" for you to freeze your A**! | ||
| M2nc |
Cold tires and frost covered sand means the front end tucks without warning. | ||
| Reepicheep |
A KLR-250 with knobbies will blow through 5 foot drifts of soft snow pretty easily, and in snow you can do a rolling 360 degree spin and never put your feet down or change your direction of movement (you just have to stay hard on the throttle). Lesson learned? Bikes that you are not at all afraid to drop are a lot of fun in a lot of places. Those twisties on 28 outside Franklin would not be fun in the rain in the dark for a new rider. Lots of blind corners and diminishing radius turns, and slimed out runoff spots. That would not have been fun... | ||
| Fast_eddie_1956 |
It was a nice morning, around 40 degrees and I decided to ride out to our local shop, about 30 miles away. The weather report called for snow around 3 pm and my wife told me not to go. I told her that I would be back before the snow started and she said not to call if I got stuck. I rode out to the shop and started to leave around 1. Just as I was suiting up an old friend of mine showed up and we ended up talking for about an hour. Finally I saw the clouds coming and the thought was that our weather usually comes from the west and I live east of the shop. So I would be ahead of the snow. I took the highway and after 5 miles the snow started. After 10 miles the road started to get covered. At this point I was staying in grooves the cars were making in the snow. I made it to my ramp which was downhill. I started sucking up seat but made it OK. The road then goes up and I made it up to the 4 lane road I had to turn left on. The 4 lane had so much traffic that it had turned to ice. I made the turn, sliding around. The 4 lane was busy and it crests a hill, then goes down hill and my street goes up hill again. I'm thinking to myself, even if I can slow down to turn on my street, the cars behind won't. I actually slid up against the curb which kept me from going down and walked the bike into a gynecologist's lot (go figure). I walked home from there and had to listen to the I told you so's for the rest of the day. Of course I was toasty on the bike with my Widder vest and gloves. That's my story and I'm sticking with it. | ||
| Alchemy |
Speaking of cold. Years ago before I had full face helmet a buddy and I would ride in cold weather for short periods. It was very cold on the face. Later (not immediately after) noticed thin cracks in our front teeth and sort of connected it with riding in such cold weather. Now it could have been related to some other outdoor activity or who knows what else... Anyone else ever notice any tooth damage from riding in the cold? |
