tips about riding in the rain

 

So,

    Recently I had to ride in the rain and now I am looking for tips  - I
kinda like the idea to live to ride another day :)

    These are the issues I had but please feel free to give tips unrelated
to these.

1) Keeping my helmet clear of fog
    My helmet would fog so I would lift the visor abit that would help. But
then I got water on the inside. So then I had to ride with it all the
way up . . . Not nice.

2) Keeping my helmet clear of rain
    This is a 2 part issue. Part 1 keeping the outside clear enough to see
well. Part 2 is when you get rain on the inside.

3) Not fishtailing
    I had the fun of fish tailing. I would fish tail a few times. It's a
pain, frustrating, nerve racking, and all around unpleasant. I would
slow down a bit but I was on a high way.

4) Turning
    I just can't trust leaning in the rain. Am I just paranoid or what?

5) Speed
    Well, with all the above I was slow. Being on a highway going 45 to 50
isn't great. A few times I was even slower. It's a trust thing since I'm
a new rider also a vision thing with the above issues not to mention
road spray, and the occasional blast from 18 wheelers (pressure
change/wind and massive road spray)


Ideally, I wouldn't go out in the rain but I got caught and waiting it
out would have meant waiting till the next day. Not an option cause
finding a hotel means spending money plus finding one would be as much
riding as getting home.


Anyway, any and all tips related to the above issues or other rain, or
other weather issues would be great. If it helps I'm in New England.

Thank you,

TC

 

Here goes:

1.Buy hyperoptics.They work guaranteed!Doesn't fog up in rain,below 32
degrees fahrenheit,doesn't fog up period!

2.Buy a glove with a wiper on thumb:) Not perfect,but better than
nothing.Also clean windshield is better than dirty one since droplets form
rather than a film which distorts everything:)

3.Not excactly sure what you mean there,but were you going fast as in
aqua-plaining,or just too much gas?Either has a self-explaining fix;)  If
you mean leant over,and powerslide it,that is fun but getting there is
scary;)

4.I think abit paranoid helps here,but not too much.If you watch
gp-racers:they can lean over something awesome in the rain.Not adviseable in
real world,but I think it's a trust-thing.I too never get comfortable
leaning over in rain,but if properly shod,the limit is usually way off from
where you are.Just remember that oilspill,gas/diesel spill is NOT fun in the
wet;)

5.I think it's better to keep up with traffic than being way slower than
fellow travellers.That way you don't get that turbulence-draft from those
juggernauts.Just remember to keep proper distance!Braking distance becomes
veeeeery longer than on dry (From personal experience).And remember:If you
lock-up,feel anything amiss from the front-end:pull clutch in,and let go off
the brake and pray;)

Oh,one last thing:Remember waterproofs!Rode 200 miles drenched for 5
hours:( Not fun I can tell you;)

Hope this helps:) Trygve.


----- Original Message -----
Newsgroups: alt.motorcycles
Sent: Sunday, May 20, 2007 6:13 AM
Subject: tips about riding in the rain

 

TC wrote:

If it's a Shoei or HJC get the pinlock visor and whatever color insert
suits your fancy.  http://www.pinlockusa.com/   There's also a kit to add
the pins to other visors, but you have to drill a couple of holes in the
visor.

If you have a Scorpion EXO you could try the dual pane conversion kit.
Don't know how well it works in rain, it's intended for snow, but should
be death on fog if it maintains a good top seal.

If that's not an option get a Fog City or Progrip insert.

http://www.modernworld.com/
http://www.progrip.com/

Fog City you can find at most motorcycle shops.

Given the choice I'd go with the Pinlock--the Fog City isn't optically
quite as clear as the bare visor but it's not something that you can
take off and put back on, the Pinlock is optically better and can be
easily removed and replaced.

A "foggy" mask http://www.respro.com/urbancommuting_motorcyclin.php  can
also help with fogging--the Scorpion conversion comes with something
similar.


With a good insert you don't have to open the visor very often, which
takes care of the inside.  The outside I've never found to be much of a
problem unless I'm going slow, but if you have a big fairing that keeps
the wind off I can see where it could be a problem.  Many brands of
glove have visor wipes on the back.


It can be disconcerting the first time it happens but in New England
it's generally due to an oily patch on the road and only happens for a
few feet.  One of those things you live with.


You don't want to go peg scraping but on most roads you can maintain
distinctly illegal speeds in the rain.  A group ride with an experienced
leader can be a real eye opener--if you had posted this last week you
could have gone on a good one yesterday.


How new?  If you haven't already done so you might want to take the MSF
Basic Rider Course.

18 wheelers aren't so bad after you get used to them.  But you don't
want to be behind them if you can help it, unless you're _way_ (like
several miles) behind.  Every once in a while they shed something, and
some of those somethings can total an SUV.  They also tend to blow you
around.


If you were out yesterday without good gear, my sympathies are with you.
Cold and wet are not fun together.


Spend the bucks for a decent waterproof riding suit, boots, and gloves.
Rain's not bad if you're geared up for it.


to email, dial "usenet" and validate
(was jclarke at eye bee em dot net)

 

Thank you for the information about fogging helmets. I'm going to take a
look the pinlock system since there is a dealer near me.

J. Clarke wrote:

I don't peg scrap anyway . . . You'll have to let me know for next time.


This is my first season. I took the MSF course last year. I am so glad I
did. I make mistakes but I know what they are and how to fix them. When
I can't I have just enough of a clue to deal. IE the fish tailing (then
again driving a car gave some of the basics).


I figured. Just like when learning to car. The only difference i don't
white knuckle unless I get a big blast.


Luckily, my rain gear is alright. The most I get is the bottom inch
maybe too of my pants and honestly I'm probably just being lazy make
sure things aren't totally covered.



I'm trying to upgrade gear slowly.

TC

 

When I first got my BMW I decided I was going to be an all-weather
rider. I got a very nice rainsuit and booties and everything.  In the
right gear it's not that bad.  I did that for about a year and then
decided it wasn't really that much fun riding in the rain.  It rains
here seldom enough, so I just take my car on those days.

I did find, though, that there are traction issues.  I don't normally
lean my bike way over, so that wasn't a problem. But I noticed that it
takes quite a bit longer to stop!  So it's good to leave more room in
front.  Also the middle of the lane, where all the oil falls, is more
slippery, and if you ride to one side you can follow in the track of
the car in front of you.

I read on an English MC website a thing about the 'two second rule',
meaning that you leave two seconds in front of you no matter how fast
you're going.  Of course I knew about this and I usually do it.  The
website suggests you recite 'Only a fool breaks the two second rule'
and that takes two seconds.  If it's raining you say 'Only a fool
breaks the three second rule when it's pouring down rain', and that
takes three seconds.