Winter Riding (Part 1)
Saturday, January 6th, 2007 at 9:19 am by rhino
I feel like a lone wolf when I’m riding these days. Primarily because other motorcyclists are virtually absent from the roads. Winter riding is pretty much a solitary activity, your pack is hibernating. There are a number of reasons riding this time of year is not desirable. The risk increases while comfort decreases as the temperature starts heading toward freezing mark. Traction can diminish or disappear entirely, cager awareness of motorcycles drops off sharply, hypothermia goes from possible to likely and daylight is in seriously short supply. So why would someone ride this time of year ?…….. because riding is always FUN, no matter what time of year. With a little preparation and common sense, winter riding risks can be mitigated. No, you won’t be able to ride everyday; snow and ice will guarantee that, but you can keep your steed away from the dreaded winter storage and your riding skills sharp for the spring days when daily riding becomes possible again.
The previous 5 miles were through 4 inch deep slush
A rather unfortunate incident forced me to become a winter rider again. A couple of weeks ago, my cage, a Chevy Express van, suspiciously burned in a parking lot while I was on vacation. While waiting for the investigations of the fire department and insurance company to finalize their bureaucratic machinations, I had to find alternate transportation. My insurance only covered about a week of rental vehicle (check your policy), so it was either ride the bike or pay out of my pocket about a $1000 to have a car for a month. I’m cheap, so you can guess which option I choose. The first two vehicles I owned and operated were motorcycles (that cheap thing again), which I rode year-round until I was able to afford a car several years later. Being forced to ride in all seasons and all kinds of weather is a test of your true enthusiasm for motorcycling. And while this circumstance may seem to be terribly inconvenient to the average fair weather rider, I saw it as a challenge to my passion and opportunity to improve riding skills and experience. With all the recent (last 10 years or so) advances in riding gear and equipment, hypothermia and other low temperature bodily challenges have pretty much been overcome. The only big concerns I have now are traction and wildlife related.
Arsonists Suck!
Winter riding was much more difficult in the early ’80s, mostly due to a lack of available cold weather gear. But between a $40 snowmobile suit, ski gloves and heavy hiking boots, a bearable compromise was achieved. One of the biggest differences was made by discovering a product called “Hippo Hands”. These were like 2 small tents that wrapped around the handlebars and allowed you to slide your hands into openings up to your elbows to keep them out of the wind. On the plus side, no wind whatsoever touched your hands, allowing you to use lighter weight gloves; the drawback was not being able to see your controls. It was quit difficult for a time (I still look at the keyboard when I type) but eventually I became quite adept at “feeling” the controls. Being forced to do something is the best way to learn it well and fast.
Now you know “why” I ride in the winter. In the next installment, I’ll give you some advice on “what” you should do to improve your odds and comfort.
Rhino
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Rhino, I’ve been riding in Winter for a long time now. It becomes addicting after awhile. When I switched to a scooter for my Winter commute last year, it attracted the attention of the local media, and Channel 4 news sent a camera man out to follow me on my ride to work.
It’s been nothing but fun ever since.
Check us out at “Rush Hour Rambling” on the Ride to Work site: www.ridetowork.org/blog
Ride well,
=gc=