Hi
As i am new on here i was just wondering if most of you stop riding in the colder months or are you all year round bikers ? I use mine 12 months a year,not daily but whenever i can (i just have to clean it more often).Do any of you do trips away in the winter using bunk houses etc or wait till the camping season is upon us ? As long as there is no snow or ice i enjoy a winter trip,wet as it usually is.
I try to continue riding and get out as often as possible during the winter too! Although definately not when salt on the road and preferably not in the rain although this summer Ive been drenched more than Ive ridden in the sunshine!!! Trouble is with Harleys though, for a short ride in bad weather you end up with hours of drying and cleaning with all that bling bling and it kinds of puts you off a bit lol!!!! I worry more for the bike than myself - typical uh lol!!
If you dont want to ride in the rain then i`m afraid your in the wrong country ! Coming from up North we dont really have an option.A lot of my mates put their pocket rockets away for winter and apart from a couple of Sundays up at Hartside pretending to be Valentino, the first trip of the year is usually over to Assen for the moto GP.Thats no good to me! Only a couple ride all year and as i unfortunatly work shifts it limits the time with my mates but better out on my own than not out at all.
ride most of the year ,heated grips made a difference saves puttin my gloves on the engine to warm up!! screen helps to keep cold off!but dont seem to suffer cold much only in my hands!down here winters are generally mild anyhow [part from last yr!] worst prob is salt on the allo'ys!
ride every day all year round as it's my only form of transport lol I only bailed out once last year but only cos it was impossible to stay upright in the snow
Poor babyharley! Luckily I have no chrome on my Nightster anymore (either replaced or fallen off.... ).
Ride all year round - thinner oil and ACF50 get me through! (plus a lot of thermals).
Was riding in -12°C earlier this year in just my leather jacket/trousers and had an inch of ice on my stomach when I stopped! (I now have a thermal TellyTubby suit which I have still to try...).
I actually enjoy the challenge of difficult conditions.
RustyKnight In: Newton Aycliffe
Posts: 2462
Karma:
TC, ponds calling you a big girls blouse look!
Off out to scrub me new tyres in in a mo. got them on this morning and was shittin mesell in case it rained so im off for a bimble now while it's dry. If i'm not back on here later i'm in a hedge somewhere lol
Soft??
Did I mention that I had my jacket UNZIPPED????
(Mind you, If I had ridden for much longer I would have been posting that story in the 'Vanishing Members' thread...)
I'm with TC and Pondy on this.
I dont have a car licence so I dont have any other option.
As for the "I'll take the car cos its rainin" brigade I do occasionally envy you, but on the whole I have been a 24/7 365 biker for the majority of my adult life.
I started ridin when I was 16 and had my 60th birthday this year.
It has been mainly through economic constraints that biking (and sidecars) have been my daily transport.
The odd three wheeler,
(some very odd like the Bond Ranger {with Hillman Imp engine} and a Berkley with 2stroke Villiers twin engine )
Has served as a "bulk carrier" but I have carried a 4 X 3 carpet and a passenger on a 150 cc MZ and a 6ft Christmas tree and a bow saw and felling axe + pillion on the same bike.
I firmly believe that the "experience" has made me a better rider and the exercise has kept me fit and healthy
This is just an opinion
................now lets put it this way.................lashing cold rain coming at you so hard, you have to raise your visor to see anything at all and even then it stings your face and hurts your eyes! Boots gradually filling up with cold water and you cant feel your hands or feet for the cold and wet and that was a few weeks back - our Summer! Motorway lethal, visibility almost zero with the spray being kicked up by large vehicles and artics scary and very dangerous for bikes (and I dont scare easily)- safer to stay out of their way but also more dangerous cos of the idiots that are still going like the clappers in the outside lane despite the conditions. Leathers appear to be holding the water out (use me Renapur see!!) but getting colder and heavier with the water nevertheless. As for my "baby" (thats the name of me little Sportster, cos she is!) well, I might as well have been off-road on her the state she was in and that means hours of cleaning, drying and then polishing again (cos Ive already had a new set of wheels under warranty due to corrosion)............that's after I get in a hot bath and de-frost enough to be able to do it of course! This is how I rode home from the Essex Coast (200 plus miles each way) recently and didnt complain once, not even when at Leics services emptying my boots and trying to wring my socks out before putting them on again to finish the ride home in ever worsening conditions - I'm definately not a woose but that is definately not nice despite my love of motorcycling, the open roads, freedom etc etc. Ive ridden all year round in all sorts of weather conditions so got nothing to prove to myself or anyone else, I know I can do it!! So, compare this to a nice quick, warm, dry car that I left sitting at home which I also love driving...........................mmmmm a difficult one NOT!!!! Come on guys, I am a very gutsy lady who can rise to the challenge and rough it like the rest of em but Ive got brains and common sense too (yes, and I am blonde lol!!!) No contest Im afraid.........but, if I was in the US with the heat and sun and the money of course................different story! (must remember to put my lottery in this week!!) End of, enough said lol!
Nah, not about proving anything to anyone else - I just do it cos I enjoy it. I too have the choice of a car or 4x4 but I actually get a kick out of testing myself in inclement weather... as long as I can have a nice hot shower afterwards!!
p.s. on my second set of wheels too... and petrol tank... and front top and bottom yokes... and suspension legs....and alarm... thank God for the excellent Harley warranty!!!
I ride all year round. The only time I don't go out is when there is salt on the roads. It ruins everything and is impossible to wash off completely. I too have heated grips. I use the ones that wrap round the bars. Much easier to change when you change bikes. Heated grips are great in cold weather. Once you've tried them you wont want to ride without.
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