Winter riding

As I get older I can't be arsed with riding in winter, but I should. First salting of the roads is the signal for me to get the bikes ready for a winter in the garage. I then spend the next few months praying for a mild wet spell to wash away the salt, followed conveniently by some mild dry days to be able to get out again.

Does anyone keep riding through winter, and if so, on what and how has it been for rider and bike? Any recommendations, bike / gear etc?

I have not normally opted to ride through the winter and generally tuck the bikes away for a few months but this winter i am am considering buying a winter hack so i can stay out and about. Dont think i could bring myself to use the HP4 on the salt covered roads even if it was coated in ACF50.

soofsayer said:

Does anyone keep riding through winter, and if so, on what and how has it been for rider and bike? Any recommendations, bike / gear etc?

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I ride all year round, I do avoid riding in temps below 6c (risk of ice untreated roads). I usually ride my 2011 Tiger or every now n then if the temp is above 10c I take my S thou (no heated grips). The bikes gets hosed with loads of cold water through a pressure washer 1st then washed and rinsed twice with warm water before drying and putting away.

My winter gear is Gore tex and I carry waterproofs to put over the top if its really hammering down. When I ride my S thou I wear leathers with a jacket over the top and merino wool base layers, different weights of merino heavy is best for winter.
Any bike is good in the wet/winter, keep your tyre pressures as per book spec and remember to warm everything up before giving it some stick.
Go ride in the winter, it helps when the weather gets better.

The temptation to use lower tyre pressures than what's in the manual should be avoided in winter. It's counter productive, you think, 'increased contact patch' when actually you're reducing the water channel size and deforming the tyre too.
So as above stick to stock tyre pressures, any slack you want to add should come from the suspension.
I will ride all year, but avoid obviously wet conditions.... because I can! It just creates work (cleaning) and isn't much fun.

Ride all year, have done on my S thou for past 3 years, use bike daily no matter the weather.

This year I'm using Pilot Road 4's and they are amazingly good for this weather. Normally though I will ride with what ever tyre the summer has left me with.

Bike handles the salt roads fine, but I do spray the calipers after each ride with brake cleaner, the brembo pistons are shit. I also soften rebounds from 8 to 3.

No don't ride through winter as I don't have to, tuck bike away till spring, don't think HP4 would like salt wet roads, and I don't want to be cleaning it after every ride.

Great comments, thanks for posting everyone. All good advice, I hadn't thought that about tyres, makes sense, I thought that less pressure would get them up to temp quicker and stay warmer? Probably bollocks.

Ross - hello . Been a while?

I nearly rode over to Cheshire/Liverpool this morning for work but remembered the forecast was looking bad later on, and I didn't know when I'd be on my way home for sure, so it was the car. On the way back I passed a rider on a repsol rep Honda on the M62 near saddleworth moor. It was torrential. Poor guy. Inside lane, barely keeping up with the hgvs. That's the problem for me with riding every day, today would have been torture and misery for at least two hours. I'm firmly a fair weather rider otherwise it stops being fun and enjoyable.

So, 'best winter hack'? hmmm.

Explorer said:

No don't ride through winter as I don't have to, tuck bike away till spring, don't think HP4 would like salt wet roads, and I don't want to be cleaning it after every ride.

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That is a shame mate,I get where you are coming from but for me every ride is for fun :triumphant: I never commute on my Bike and I am fortunate to have the use of 2 cars, I can only get out on my Bike at weekends during the winter and miss the thrill if I leave it longer than a couple of weeks. I like riding in the wet, not as much as the dry but I still enjoy it.

Regards

Phil

Best winter hack? = 2010 S1000RR :smug:

soofsayer said:

Ross - hello . Been a while?

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Hi Soof, been a bit busy lately, my other hobby, unwell child, some legal issues new job and some ECU research.

RossHarper said:

Hi Soof, been a bit busy lately, my other hobby, unwell child, some legal issues new job and some ECU research.

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Ok mate, just a bit busy then! I hope the little'un is better, I have 2 myself, best wishes in any case.

my winter riding this year will be by the way of foreign track days Portimao next week followed by Cartagena in feb!! as mentioned by others it's a bit of a hassle cleaning salt off bike every ride! I don't mind cleaning bike in summer but in the winter with icey cold hands it's just not for me!!

Everyday 365. est 8k PY. Rukka or KLIM Gore-Tex gear if you can for winter / spring. Make sure you get your glove and neck attachments sorted so you're 100% dry. A weekend wash this time of year to rid the grit and then WD40 pretty much everything in sight. Don't miss driving a car at all... I find it really satisfying and fun to tackle the elements. Riding in the wet and cold is just like free training anyway... learning a lot about what the bike / tyres can do in different environments.

I have had a few very very scary moments (and one off) on the S1 in cold conditions, when the tyres are cold, so have given up using it regularly in the winter. Yes, I wouldn't want to ride it then have to spend ages cleaning it as soon as I get home either. Last winter I restricted myself to only taking it out every now and again (and only on really clear dry days) to make sure the battery got a workout (then I got one cleaning it).

I do have another bike though, so I still get my two-wheeled fix.. It's an F800 (heated grips wayyyy more powerful than the S1's, and a socket for powering heated jacket, not that I use it) and I use it in any condition (once did -8 in France). Happily, current work arrangements mean that I am not going to be using it regularly this winter, although that's more to do with cleaning than the cold, which doesn't bother me.

Having said that.....
..... I got a bloke round to clean and polish it (to showroom condition), and cover it in ACF50 a few weeks back. He told me that he knows a bloke with a Harley that gets used all winter, and never gets washed. The bloke covers every bit of it in ACF50 then just lets all the dirt accumulate on top of it, then gives it a proper clean come the spring. Apparently the bike is spotless, and you'd never know it spends the winter looking like s**t. Not sure I'd be brave enough to do this myself..what if you missed a bit?