chilly riding weather

[mikeyd3]

 Its 35 degrees here in Maryland but with the wind chill its below freezing. This is not good riding weather to say the least. These are the days which  I become jealous of the West coasters, Arizonians, Southern Californians or the Aussis and New Zealanders. I imagine all you guys and gals riding around in Tee shirts and sunglasses.
 My Triumph Trident carries 50 weight oil, so its nearly impossible to kick start colder than 45 degrees. I might get it started in the garage but if it cooled down in a parking lot somewhere, Id be SOL. I could start the beemer on the top of Everest if I had to, why endure  such hardships just for the sake of riding?
 I must sound like a crybaby to all those northern folks. Wisconsiners, Illinoisians.....Canadians.
Im gonna go ride a few miles for you kids. Dedicate a freeezing ride to the the Great White North. Even though im a mid-atlantic whiner!

[Bob_Roller]

It was 33 F. this morning when I left for work at 5:20 am ( heated grips on the oilhead are nice in these temps!), so it does get cold here in Phoenix, it's not 100 F. all year long !

[Dieselgreg]

The cold I can take, it's the snow, salt and ICE that brings riding to a halt this time of year. A sunny day at 28 degrees is heaven with the right gear, but once they lay out that layer of calcium chloride it stays until the spring rains wash it away... anyone out there ride year around in the north? How do you handle the conditions? How do you protect the bike from the corrosive conditions?

wishin' (sometimes) we lived further south.

Dieselgreg

[Semper Gumby]

Road home in between bands of rain in Atlanta this evening - 42'f on the handlebar.  Roasty toasty with the Gerbing vest and gloves going.  A pleasant evening ride - cool low clouds hanging just above the trees and highway.  

A beautiful night for a ride!!!!  

[Ed Miller]

Windjammer.

They don't salt the roads in Oregon, though they use some kind of liquid de-icer that always panics me as it looks like some maniac sprayed water on the roads.  When it's really icy I take the car or, if I don't have to go to work, don't go anywhere.  

[thrang]

Its been f***ing cold here all week, and riding my beemer has been to say the least entertaining and undera BMW riding suit and the RT barn door its not felt that cold given that the air temps has been about minus 2C during the day and about -6 of a night.... Brrrrrr
Tony.

[suecanada]

I agree that it is the salt and possible ice patches that keeps my bikes inside. The thread on anti-corrosion spray is interesting but it sure would have to be tested and found to work really well. There are so many crevasses that the salt could sneak into and lie in there chewing away in silence!

However, it is also almost torture to have to sit around and wait for spring and AFTER rains wash away salt to boot.  So, maybe get a beater bike. One which it doesn't bug ya if it gets spotty and is almost a 20 year throw-away item!! What a riot to not have to worry about what the bike looks like!

I would only hope I could transfer the insurance over to the rotten bike for winter...FAT chance of that!

[Semper Gumby]

3'C and I'm riding the Thunderbolt about Atlanta in a full moon just before Christmas. No fairing, no electrics (other than headlight/tail light), just layers and layers and a balaclava. Just two short 20 minute hops to and from St. Barts on the green BSA. I wonder if I could a longer ride this way. Hmmmm....

I did a ride like this last year on the CB350 up to North Georgia.  I think I had more layers on tonight.

I think its raining up in Sue-land tonight.  So much for all that early snow.....

[Ed Miller]

Hey Bill, put heated grips on that bike!  Of course, it will die when you turn them on.  

I have a pair of atv hand warm things, (cheapo hippo hand types) but I haven't taken the time to butcher them properly to fit the bar end mirrors on my Triumph.  Besides, the R65 is comfy in cold weather.  

[Tim_McGee]

I have heated grips on my 82. Used them Saturday. They work great and don't seem to pull the battery down. Of course that's all I'm running. Headlight, Tail Light, and heated grips.

[Semper Gumby]

Merry Christmas Tim.  Sorry I'm going to miss the Stagecoach Ride in this year.  It was a nice ride last year.   About the bike dying...I think he means the BSA which has an annemic Lucas Alternator.  Of course if I put a 220 watt sparkx on it will do just fine.  Other things to do first...

Christmas Card Follows:



HO HO HO!!!

[Ed Miller]

I never noticed the BSA was a dual sport, cool!  Yeah, I was talking about the stock 120 watt alternator on that.  My '81 R65 could do heated grips too if I needed them (don't, with a Windjammer), but my Triumph would die.  That's it.  Those bikes were made back when men were men, and usually lacked an entire complement of fingers.

[Semper Gumby]

Hi Ed,

The single carb Green one on the right (Thunderbolt) is actually quite civilized.  The Red Firebird however is a firebreathing rip snorting vibaratin' monster.  I am contemplating some mods that would keep it's spirted performance but make it more easy to hang on to. (90/270 degree crank)  

TTFN,