Winter Riding - Advice for A New Biker

[Bernard Smith]

Definitely take the car if you have one!

Seriously, it's all very well talking about rear brake use etc. but once it starts sliding it's a whole different world on a larger bike.

Or.

Buy a smaller bike for the winter and have a play.

When they slide it's so much easier........

[Gas_Up_Lets_Go]

I'm a new biker, having only passed Mod 2 in June this year, and I want to try and ride as much as possible through winter.

Good, and good.

You could seek some extra training, but at this time of the year you may well struggle. The IAM/RoSPA type training isn't really going to help much in bad conditions. Try reading Motorcycle Roadcraft, you'll see where the risks are and you'll pick up some tips.

I'm in the Lakes, I've been caught out once or twice with adverse weather, here's my advice:


[ul]
[li]slow down, read the road ahead and plan where you are going to be. So plan your route for the next 50, 60 meters (depending on conditions),[/li]
[li]remember your braking distance will double , triple or quadruple depending on the conditions,[/li]
[li]ABS is there to tell you you've run out of talent, learn to brake without it kicking in. Slow, steady and smooth[/li]
[li]leave a good gap, remember the 2 second rule, 4 in the wet and well over that in ice/snow. It's useful also to look behind, if the prat behind is too close then add the safety gap he should be leaving in front of you [/li]
[li]Dress up warm, in layers and have spare gloves with you, nothing worse than wet gloves![/li]
[li]Trust your instincts. If you don't feel comfortable, don't go[/li]
[li]Winter tyres help, something with M+S stamped on them (TKC80's for instance)[/li]
[/ul]

My final piece of wisdom - Great summer riders are born out of the winter, master the winter and the summer will be a breeze

[boristhebold]

You have half the battle won by thinking about it now and also asking for hints and tips. It shows forward planning/thinking
Don't just focus on the White stuff. Roundabouts are often lethal due to a mix of damp, grit residue (often mixed with alsorts including molasses!) as well as diesel splashes/spills. Look out for the telltale rainbows of oil. Watch out for drain covers right on your riding line. Shiny metal = slippy as hell. Carry a wipe and some visor cleaner for your lid, Nowt worse than struggling due to the crap thrown up in the form of "mist" that coats everything. Stay warm. Losing body temperature is lethal as your brain starts to shut parts of your body down to divert blood to your core to maintain life...meaning you have slower reflexes and cold extremities.
If the White stuff is likely, leave the bike at home. If you found you couldn't ride it home, halfway, what do you do ? Push it, leave it (it'll get hit by a gritter or nicked). Catch the bus or walk
Best of luck, I am fortunate enought to have a car as well as the bike but was in your position a few years back...well OK a few decades back when snow was snow blah blah..

[ysbytymike]

*Remember when riding rural that the lanes are often in shadow all day, so you can be riding a good surface one minute and the next bend has frost or ice on a road surface that's not seen the sunshine all day so is still there for the night before.
*Lots of rotting green stuff (leaves and so on), slippery as heck.
*Hedge cutting (blackthorn especially). Puncture a tyre no problem.
*Debris, Roadkill, Mud, livestock.
There's so much more of this on rural roads/lanes than normally found in built up area's or cities, which could help to explains why a large percentage of biking incidents on smaller lanes, are city dwellers out for a blast. I always approach a blind corner in my part of the world, as it there'e a slow moving tractor towing some sort of field equipment filling the road the other side of it. Saved my life more than once.

[Richard Simpson]

Trail riding is the best training for riding on winter roads.

Main things to concentrate upon are your view ahead (clean demisted visor is essential), and keeping your hands warm enough to work the controls.


Top tip: if you've been riding on salty roads give each brake caliper a kick to knock the piston back when you stop: otherwise they can seize on...which you may not notice until you tip into a corner and the front slides away because the brake is on.

[Richard Simpson]

Oh, and make doubly sure the brakes aren't dragging by turning both wheels before you ride the bike.

[RavenstoneGSA]

I learned to ride through the winter last year after a very long break. I bought an R1200GSA in late November 2013 and set out to stay on two wheels right through the winter months. Luckily weather in the East Midlands was pretty mild but I did experience quite a few sub zero morning rides.

I agree completely with the advice you've received so far, but here are a few more, (all the mistakes I made last year!!!)

1. Get up earlier, have a good breakfast and a hot drink and make sure you're awake.

2. Wear appropriate clothing and protection. Merino wool is great, as is a thermal balaclava and silk / merino wool glove liners. Alpinestars make some great long socks too. Staying as warm as possible is REALLY important!!!

3. Vision and visibility is really important so clean your visor, lights and indicators every day. My GSA lights are terrible at the best of times, so carry a couple cloths or a wet cloth in a plastic bag. Nikwax make an excellent anti rain product for your visor which is good for misting up too.

4. Leave home a good half hour / forty minutes earlier than normal if your commute is a reasonable length. This allows you to take your time during the ride. You need to ride much more slowly and smoothly.

5. Winter riding is great for developing your riding skills, plan well ahead and make early observations. Try to straight line the bends and islands so your not leaning over too much. Use your engine braking to decelerate slowly, if you can manage it don't use your brakes at all. Difficult but worth a try as any braking can cause a lock up in very slippy weather.

6. Take your ego out of riding and try to relax, its really hard to ride smoothly when you're frozen stiff so see point number 2 above. Leave plenty of space, don't try to filter or cut in or attempt aggressive overtaking, basically anything that might lead to harsh braking.

7. You might need to stop to clear your visor, particularly during foggy mornings so allowing extra time is really important. If you get too cold pull into McDonalds and get a hot drink for ten minutes. You really want to get to work / home again in one piece so don't stress about timekeeping. My manager is a superb guy who makes me a cup of tea on cold mornings! Talk to your employer and explain that you might be late, you can always make the time up later. This might sound odd but when the clock on your bike says 7:55 and you're 30 minutes from work your speed can creep up easily.

8. Don't worry about wimping out, I didn't take the car at all last year but I wouldn't hesitate, I'd rather walk to work than get killed.

9. If the worse happens try to stay relaxed. I agree that some off road riding is fantastic for coping with slippy roads. You can learn to anticipate the light feeling when your arse moves sideways, but it can be heart-stopping. It takes a few goes to resist rolling off quickly, or even worse grabbing the brakes. I remember one occasion when I drifted around an island speedway style on my GSA. It sound like fun but on an £8K bike it was the best laxative I've ever experienced!!!

10. Last one! Learn from your experiences and you will develop a very clean riding style. Then wait for spring / summer to see just how much your riding has improved. the skills you learn in the cold have a definite impact on your warm weather riding. Ride Safe.

[ysbytymike]

Good post.

[dubber68]

I agree with all of the above but would add that I carry a can of tyre grip in my topbox. If the return journey is going to be bad then a spray on the tyres gives massively improved grip on ice and snow and lasts for my 30 mile commute.

[scubabiker]

just had our first real ice over here on the west of norway, rode the bmw for the first time on the ice, karoo are nice with ice, im very impressed by them, nice all round tyre really. also part of my journey has like the road kinda scraped up if that makes sense? so its that wierd concrete scrapey stuff and ice, managed to keep good grip all the time. the front wandered around a little bit, but maybe i had a little too much air.