Wind - Slow or Fast??

[sportrider]

I've found riding faster stabilizes things, keep in mind your tires and wheels act as a gyro the faster your speed the more centrifugal force the less the wind effects you. gusts can change your lean angle but with a little counter steering the bike will track straight.

 

[VEGASRIDER]

I definately agree riding faster helps. I think slowing down is making yourself more vulnerable to getting blown over a lane or two. Even though there could have been more choices on the poll, I choose the ride faster result. As far as knowing which direction the wind is blowing from, that can be very useful information, but you shouldn't rely on it 100%. Your travel direction can change from the road and the wind can also change direction. However, a useful tool that I use for gathering information regarding the current wind or direction of the road is by looking at the flags, or the leaves or branches of the trees. You can see how strong the winds are and the direction that they are blowing in relation to your current position.

 

[keira]

If i ride normal, things tend to be pretty close to normal...


The issues arise if I am riding in a way that may create discomfort for the local PD.

 

[nimzotech]

I'd like to stay within my comfort zone. Sometimes that means speeding up if I feel that I can cut through the wind and control my bike. On the other hand, the natural reaction is to ease up on the throttle and slow down.:thumbup:

 

[HavBlue]

correct, a bike by itself is stable as can be, it is the rider that makes it unstable. be smooth and in turn be fast.

Man is this ever true. The bike is pretty much perfect in terms of aerodynamics and it would much rather the imperfections of the human body weren't on it to screw things up. The more relaxed the rider is the greater that rider's abilities will be in terms of input and feedback. If you're all tensed up with a death grip on the bars either of these will be difficult to understand.

 

[mglowe]

Riding in strong winds can be intimidating to some. I do agree with others, this is best managed by relaxing.

We shouldn't be riding where trees are being uprooted and I don't want to get into the mathematics of time, speed and distance, but if it is severe and unstable you should slow it down a peg or two.

Ride for the conditions.

 

[JohnTex]

Here is a voice of inexperience... I used to slow down in bad winds, but am now trying to push against my survival instincts & hold the speed & RELAX. Hiding behind the Puig or rolling more power really hasn't helped me, but that could just be my lack of skill.

I have only been riding the motorcycle for 4 months. Crosswinds have been & continue to be the absolute hardest part about riding for me- I wanted to get rid of the bike in January! I use the bike primarily for a 50mi round trip to work. Here on the Gulf Coast, a 20+mph sea-breeze afternoon wind is the norm, and I must cross a 200ft tall (roadway height) bridge that sits right on the coast (link: Fred Hartman Bridge - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia). Crosswinds on this bridge in the past have been bad enough to lane-change my car, and despite its need as an evacuation route, it is the first stretch of road closed in a Tropical Storm/Hurricane).

After 3 months and 2500 miles of riding, it still scares me when the wind is over 20mph at the refinery, because I know it will be worse on the bridge. I am FINALLY relaxing a bit and making the ride, though. Relaxing is easier said than done! I used to slow down (speed limit is 60, most traffic does 75+ because you have good sight lines to watch for police- I regularly did 130 in the old vette...), but I was more worried about being nailed by a car/truck from behind when I was doing 50.

Hopefully this situation will continue to improve with more practice and saddle time.

 

[jamesfz6]

I ride in all weather and where i live the wind is pretty much constant. The roads around my town are really flat and straight with fields as far as you can see on either side of you. So, with nothing to stop the wind you get the full force all the time. I am sure that living a few miles from the coast doesnt help with the wind situation either.

One thing i have learned is dont tense up when riding in the wind, stay relaxed and dont let it scare you if it starts to get bad. Just pull over if it becomes too much because i would rather be late than never make it at all. You can not predict the wind, sometimes its constant and you feel like you are riding at a full lean, while other times it is calm with bursts of what seem like 100 mph winds. No matter the situation be calm and relax.


be safe and have fun!

 

[doc_simple]

out today in 30-40 mph winds and just relaxing the arms made the ride way smoother.

IN fact I read this thread yesterday and it helped my greatly today

 

[Doorag]

Thanks everyone. This thread has also helped my riding as well. There are too many good, valid points for me to respond to them all, but I think everyone has valid input on this issue and that's exactly what I was looking for.

I took a friend out for a ride early this evening and the crosswinds were blowing us around so the weight doesn't have too much to do with it, I reckon.

After having ridden in high winds a couple of times, I'm getting a bit more relaxed and confident, but I think it's only going to take time and experience to really work it out.

 

[VEGASRIDER]

The key here you MUST throttle the bike into the wind in order to maintain your line. Your normal instinct might be to slow down or let up the throttle when the crosswind hits, but actually thats the worst thing you can do, as it will blow you into the next lane. It's kind of like what the pilots are doing when they have to do a crosswind approach. They are contantly throttling their engines to maintain their line, which for them is an angle, than at the last second, wheels down.

[ame="http://youtube.com/watch?v=QX3S5y_SooM"]YouTube - Fantastic Video of Crosswind Landings[/ame]

 

[HavBlue]

After having ridden in high winds a couple of times, I'm getting a bit more relaxed and confident, but I think it's only going to take time and experience to really work it out.

It's just another skill to put in that Motorcycle Rolodex you put your helmet on each time you ride. The more you do it the easier it will be to find the right number to fix it. Glad to hear you are relaxing and before long you'll be playing with those same winds that once scared the crap out of you to the point you were freezing up....

Way to go,
Charlie

 

[sportrider]

The key here you MUST throttle the bike into the wind in order to maintain your line. Your normal instinct might be to slow down or let up the throttle when the crosswind hits, but actually thats the worst thing you can do, as it will blow you into the next lane. It's kind of like what the pilots are doing when they have to do a crosswind approach. They are contantly throttling their engines to maintain their line, which for them is an angle, than at the last second, wheels down.

YouTube - Fantastic Video of Crosswind Landings

awesome video!!!

 

[Nelly]

That is a great Video.
Is the plane more effective as it has greater thrust?
I will give it ago next yime on the bike, live and learn.

Neil

 

[VEGASRIDER]

awesome video!!!

That is a great Video.
Is the plane more effective as it has greater thrust?
I will give it ago next yime on the bike, live and learn.

Neil

There are a lot of videos like that on Youtube, just type crosswind landings under the search tab. I'm not a pilot so I really can't answer with accuracy. However, I placed the video in the thread to show that the bike has to utilize a similar corrective actiion when encountering crosswinds.

 

[HavBlue]

Hey Vegas, I guess this pilot forgot the throttle part.....

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVmRXAPeN-0&feature=related"]YouTube - plane crash caught on tape - 7[/ame]

 

[VEGASRIDER]

Yeah, I would say so, looks like he didn't have enough airspeed to make that turn, a bit shy on that throttle.

 

[craig007]

very interesting thread. Not sure that higher speed is better but I'm sure relaxing helps. Strong cross winds + big trucks = lots of fear

 

[HavBlue]

very interesting thread. Not sure that higher speed is better but I'm sure relaxing helps. Strong cross winds + big trucks = lots of fear

2004-2006 FZ6 in dirty air at 90mph and above sucks but it do get interesting. In clean air that sucker is on rails........

 

[sportrider]

Hey Vegas, I guess this pilot forgot the throttle part.....

YouTube - plane crash caught on tape - 7

I've seen that one before, they were practicing low level fly bys for an air show when the accident happened.