Wind - Slow or Fast??

[brad81987]

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

Good analogy, except planes have it much easier in cross winds than wheeled vehicles technically. The do what's called cross-controlling and literally make the plane fly sideways using a certain combination of aileron (controls roll) and rudder (controls yaw). The technical term is slipping the airplane. By doing so, the airplane is literally flying sideways relative to it's ground track. They then throttle the engines to maintain speed and fight the cross wind because there thrust line is now more parallel to the wind. Quite cool when you think about it, especially because if done right, the plane lands on one tire initially. When almost down, the pilot kicks the rudder back so the wheels are running parallel to the runway but keep the roll on to divert some lift forces against the wind. The upwind/lower rear wheel touches first, then the pilot rolls off the roll to set the downwind wheel down and finally the nose. The part with the 747 landing at about the 2:00 mark in that video shows it quite well. It really is quite amazing the way it works, and it takes a lot of practice to get it right.

Same way as in your car you have to turn the wheel into a strong cross wind or it will push you off the road. You have to have something that will overcome the net force acting on the vehicle because of the wind. If you have a true crosswind from the side, simply speeding up will not help you, you're not changing the forces on you from the side, which is why you end up turning your steering wheel into the wind a little bit, now you have a steering force to the side that's fighting the wind.

I don't have enough riding experience to comment on this as it relates to bikes though so I won't everstep myself. Only thing i can think of right now is that bikes are more stable at higher speeds...?

 

[HavBlue]

I don't have enough riding experience to comment on this as it relates to bikes though so I won't overstep myself. Only thing i can think of right now is that bikes are more stable at higher speeds...?

Yes, they are more stable the faster they go and they are even more stable as the weight of the wheel increases however, a solid wheel like that of the Harley Fatboy can take all this away too if you are in a strong true crosswind. This being the case, you can reduce the overall effects of that true crosswind by reducing your own cross section. In other words tuck it up and start hugging that tank because this will make things far more stable as the force generated by wind speed has less to push against.

Excellent thought Brad.....

 

[jimcisme]

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.

I too find counter steering to be very effective in windy conditions.

 

[JONAC]

I voted normal speed but take it easy ... however, if passing a large truck on the motorway I try and pass as quick as possible and prepare for the inevitable turbulence once clear ....

Wind is a pain in the a55 .... :surrender:

 

[lmarti001]

I ride up in ND and wind gets up to 35Kts on a normal day. Makes riding on light wind days feel like a million bucks!

 

[dankatz]

Well..I wish i saw this thread earlier! Excellent comments. I must say that the best advice that I got out of this is to just relax and not fight the bike. I would agree not changing speed too much, though even small mistakes are better corrected at slower speeds. On the other hand, you don't want to be so slow as to make cause a traffic hazard.
Dani

 

[Doorag]

With more experience in the wind, I've decided that the quick left/right buffeting happens when riding into the wind at high speeds i.e. >50mph.

 

[thulst]

I find it the most amazing feeling driving on a straight road leaning to the right or left as if you are driving trough a corner.
I keep up the gas except when passing a truck. They can give you a hard time driving either towards you or when your passing them on the highway. The turbulence or the sudden wind force when passing can force you to places you don't want to be at. I've been lucky a few times no car was there were I was blown to........

 

[Cloggy]

I find it the most amazing feeling driving on a straight road leaning to the right or left as if you are driving through a corner.
I keep up the gas except when passing a truck. They can give you a hard time driving either towards you or when your passing them on the highway. The turbulence or the sudden wind force when passing can force you to places you don't want to be at. I've been lucky a few times no car was there were I was blown to........

I know what you mean Ton, I've noticed that if the truck is between you and the strong wind, this not only causes more turbulance you also have to deal with extremes, as the wind is also cut off for a couple of seconds, then followed by excessive turbulance.

 

[Whirlygirl]

Nothing really useful to add.... but I just finished riding through the scariest gusty wind conditions I have ever experienced!!! PCH from San Luis Obospo to Santa Cruz... The last 40 miles or so were the first time I've ever felt truly scared due to wind! I drove through some crazy strong winds in Nevada (I'm sure you know all about those, Vegasrider!), but they were generally steady, and you just end up riding straight with a funky lean that must look hilarious to others...

Today though, the gusts were literally strong enough to feel like they were pushing the wheels right out from under me - I think I even dropped my knee down at some point, 'cause I thought it was going to touch!!! Haha - I can laugh now (since I'm halfway through a beer, and have finally stopped shaking...)

As others have said - tried my hardest to stay relaxed, but it's not easy! As someone mentioned earlier in the thread, I would much rather FLY in strong wind, than RIDE in it...

 

[hunterfz6]

I have been blown around in the wind before. Its not fun but its no problem either. Dont develop a death grip with your hands, but use your knees more. In really windy conditions I like to grip tight with my knees, bring my elbows inside as much as possible to limit drag and lay on the fuel tank. When you become one with your bike, you can move or lean to the wind. Relaxing is really really important when your are controlling your bike, that death grip will kill you if you dont learn to relax, please drive a cage. Its safer that way.

 

[HavBlue]

Nothing really useful to add.... but I just finished riding through the scariest gusty wind conditions I have ever experienced!!! PCH from San Luis Obospo to Santa Cruz...

That run can be interesting especially in the Big Sur area when you are riding right on the PCH bench cut. It can get real foggy there too. Glad you got to experience it.

 

[ausfarht]

I've found that you have to pay attention to the gear you wear. I was wearing a heavy fabric Joe Rocket jacket when I first started riding. Problem was it would ballon up with air (even with the back vent open!). Made the wind even more challenging! After I switched to a leather perforated riding jacket, the problem wasn't as bad. The leather was stiffer and more form fitting? Just my two cents!

 

[dankatz]

agree with ausfarht! With the wind liner in it was much better.

 

[HavBlue]

Came home last night to end a 140 mile run with winds pushing 38mph. I was cruising 75-80mph and could hardly tell there was a wind. If ya get above it things smooth out.

 

[CHEMIKER]

I think that gusts are far worse than constant winds. As whirlygirl noticed, we have had some nasty winds in No Cal this week so we have gotten the chance to get acquanited with such weather.

My strategy is to hug the tank and keep the RPMs up. No telling whether this is a real or percieved benefit but this strategy has kept me in my own lane for the past couple of crazy windy days. The lower profile/lower center of gravity may have something to do with it.

Also, I stay ready to swerve as if a car was coming into my lane. This helps me to respond to the unpredictable gusts.

 

[cv_rider]

I found that when I was getting blown around a bit by winds on a bridge that tucking behind the shield really helped a lot. I was still using the stock shield at the time, so my conclusion was that the wind was hitting my body and that was what was pushing me around. It mostly seemed pretty manageable if I lowered myself down.

 

[Doorag]

I imagine that my rear box has a lot to do with it as well. That thing catches the wind quite badly. I've been able to ride in without it a couple of times now and it's much smoother without it.

Great comments and suggestions by everyone, by the way.

 

[martinharris136]

i used to ride a ninja 500 and it almost self corrected to the wind if you were just riding loose. the fz6 does not seam to correct itself. that leads me to beleive that if you put full fairings on the fz6 it may also self correct also. I realy think that with proper aerodynamics wind is nearly a non factor. but thats just my 2 cents

 

[VEGASRIDER]

I realy think that with proper aerodynamics wind is nearly a non factor. but thats just my 2 cents

Obviously, you have never experienced riding in the winds of Southern California when those Santa Ana winds start kicking in during the fall. The winds are so strong that the damn windmills that produce windpower shuts down.