How cold is too cold?

speeddemon2588

speeddemon2588

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For all the Northern brethren. How cold is too cold to ride for you? Obviously common sense is a good rule of thumb but I have a trip to Elkhart Lake the 19th of October. I would very much enjoy cruising up on the FZ, but I'm a little unsure of the weather. From some reasearch it looks like average 60 degree highs and ~38 lows. I already have plenty of cold weather gear from some of my camping trips. Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated.
 
I think it depends on the length of the ride.. I've ridden for 4+ hours in 40 degree temps in perforated leathers and was miserable by the end of it... But in my insulated Teknic suit, I've ridden for 2 hours in temps from 7 degrees - 13 degrees, and when I got off of the bike, I was warm and toasty.

Lower than 20 degrees, I've had problems with traction because of tire temp / pavement temp... so the riding isn't exactly fun.....
 
For that week or two a year that it gets in the 40's here in Florida... I use the car. LOL

well, joking apart. I have a jacket that I bough a size too big. Once all the layer in (rain layer help a lot to keep the cold wind out) and add a sweater I can ride for a while. A 1/2 decent set of hand guard will help to keep your hand warmer too.

Other than that once you understand 60 MPH is warmer than 80 MPH... LOL Riding in day time will help too.

Stop by Siebkens for a nice cocktail to warm up!
 
va_rider said:
I think it depends on the length of the ride.. I've ridden for 4+ hours in 40 degree temps in perforated leathers and was miserable by the end of it... But in my insulated Teknic suit, I've ridden for 2 hours in temps from 7 degrees - 13 degrees, and when I got off of the bike, I was warm and toasty.

Lower than 20 degrees, I've had problems with traction because of tire temp / pavement temp... so the riding isn't exactly fun.....
Click to expand...

I'm looking at a 6hr ride with heated gloves and socks. I'm more concerned with traction and visibility. What tires are you running in those temps?
 
I've done those temps with Pilot Road 2's, and also with Bridgestone BT016's... The BT016's I think did a little better because they were softer and I could get some heat into them... with the "touring" tires, it's harder to get them heated up..


Then again... I got pulled over at 7AM on Deals Gap for dragging knee in 40 degree temps on wet roads on Pirelli Rosso's..... so... I guess it depends a lot on road surface as well as the tires...

But, that said, I had more brake lock-ups in cold weather with PR2's than any other tire in similar temps.
 
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Some of the things that concern me when temps plummet:
1. Ice.
2. Reduced grip.
3. Hypothermia.
4. Visibility (fogged up shield).

My solutions:
1. I will not ride if there's good chance of ice on roads (rain or snow and then freezing temps).
2. Minimize lean angles by slowing down more before curves and increase following distance to avoid having to get hard on the brakes.
3. Taller screen (deflects more wind off the core). Heated gloves (hands tend to freeze before anything else. Can't safely ride with frozen hands).
4. Use one of the many visor fog preventing solutions (polish, wipes, pinlock)

I've ridden threw few blizzards (huge flakes coming down and wind blowing them sideways).. luckily I was able to get to my destination before it started accumulating :D

This year I plan to get heated jacket liner, so I don't need to wear 74 layers and look (and feel) like a Michelin man!
 
Being in Manitoba my cut off limit is -2C which I think is about 28 F. I have heated grips which helps and I find it good practice to prepare my buddy for snowmobiling (frozen fingers).
My commute is about 35 miles each way and I really do not like riding below freezing as I have a couple of bridges to cross. Few years back I felt like Lorenzo going across one with the back end power sliding so now I back off.
And yes shield can fog when stopped if you do not lift but when moving I have never had a problem, my eyes water more but that is about it.
In this part of the country if you want to ride from April till late Oct you just have to suck it up.
 
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Thanks All for your input. I guess I'll play it by ear and see what the forecast is a week before. Sounds like I should be ok as long as the temps stay above 35.
 
I don't have the gear to ride much more than in the upper 40's-50. I just have perf'd leathers with a thin windbreaker type liner. For me its just not fun to ride below 50.
 
Back in the early 70s I only had a motorcycle for a while and rode it in the Chicago area throughout the winter unless there was snow or impending sleet.

I was dressed in a snowmobile suit with heavy gloves and a face bubble shield on my open face helmet. Under the helmet I wore a mask to prevent the shield from fogging. My boots were the moc type. It wasn't too bad even at 0 F. Most of the riding was the 15 miles from work to university classes at night and then home. All on the expressways on a 2 stroke 250 endro bike.

Sometimes you just have to make do with what you have.

PS: I looked like an astronaut painted black.
 
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My typical cut-off temperature is about 50 degrees. I have gear, including a heated vest, insulated riding coat and insulated gloves, but it just doesn't seem fun below 50 degrees to me. If I feel "cold", I don't seem to react as well to riding challenges.

In fact, I usually put the bike away around the first week of November because good days to ride are getting scarce in Ohio by then. Not that good days don't happen in November, there just aren't too many to be concerned with. On those days, I light a fire in the fire pit and have a bourbon.
 
My cutoff is snow or black-ice. I have warm enough gear and heated grips so temp isn't a huge issue, but like Aaron said... how much seat time are we talking about?
 
I will ride until there is snow on the ground. I made the investment last year in a Powerlet heated jacket liner and now my concern has shifted from "Will I be cold?" to "What's the likelihood of encountering ice?" -- can't say enough good things about Powerlet as a company or their products. I'm sure that any heated jacket is great, but I'd buy another jacket from Powerlet in a heartbeat. Heated jacket or not, try to stay aware of your core temperature and be aware of the effects of hypothermia. Make sure you have a wind-proof outer layer.

I have a buff (sort of like a scarf) that I put on to keep my neck warm -- that helps a lot and I might not have thought about it on my own.

If it is around or below freezing, stay on the lookout for shaded areas of the road -- those like to hide the slippery spots. Don't forget that bridges freeze first. Control your speed (and your lean angle) in corners to maximize your contact patch.

Personally, I rode on Pilot Road 3's last Winter and they did fine -- I never realized any slipping attributed to the cold (other than that freezing rain I got caught in, but that's another story).

Keep your visor cracked if you can -- it will probably fog if you don't (especially at stops).

If rain or snow isn't in the forecast when you get closer to your trip, you should give it a shot. When you stop for fuel, move around a bit to get blood flowing and have a cup of cocoa if you need it.
 
I ride year round here in Vancouver because it rarely snows beyond a light dusting. Mainly, it's slush and sleet and temps are seldom below -10 c. The most important thing is to ensure your core is warm. A heated vest and layers do wonders, as does some wind protection.

You will be fine on your trip, I think.

When it starts to get cold, just be cognisant of the surface conditions. Leave larger gaps to traffic and reduce lean angles if you are not confident in the grip available. The rear brake becomes more important when it is slippery out, too.

I now have a scooter to get around with in winter, complete with badass snow tires ;)
 
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Erci said:
Some of the things that concern me when temps plummet:
1. Ice.
2. Reduced grip.
3. Hypothermia.
4. Visibility (fogged up shield).

My solutions:
1. I will not ride if there's good chance of ice on roads (rain or snow and then freezing temps).
2. Minimize lean angles by slowing down more before curves and increase following distance to avoid having to get hard on the brakes.
3. Taller screen (deflects more wind off the core). Heated gloves (hands tend to freeze before anything else. Can't safely ride with frozen hands).
4. Use one of the many visor fog preventing solutions (polish, wipes, pinlock)

I've ridden threw few blizzards (huge flakes coming down and wind blowing them sideways).. luckily I was able to get to my destination before it started accumulating :D

This year I plan to get heated jacket liner, so I don't need to wear 74 layers and look (and feel) like a Michelin man!
Click to expand...

Little trick for the fogging visor. A 2" strip of duct tape roll like a joint with the sticky side out. Stick it on the bottom opening edge of the helmet then close the visor on it. The little gap will keep the visor clean. Open wheel racing thing... work good.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk 2
 
Marthy said:
Little trick for the fogging visor. A 2" strip of duct tape roll like a joint with the sticky side out. Stick it on the bottom opening edge of the helmet then close the visor on it. The little gap will keep the visor clean. Open wheel racing thing... work good.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...

My Shoei actually has a vent feature to do just that. The same mechanism that locks the visor for racing, flipped in the opposite direction leaves a gap.
However, I don't want any gaps when it's seriously cold out... brrr!!

Some helmets are better than others too. Never had fogging issues with Scorpion. Shoei.. major fogging.
 
Erci said:
My Shoei actually has a vent feature to do just that. The same mechanism that locks the visor for racing, flipped in the opposite direction leaves a gap.
However, I don't want any gaps when it's seriously cold out... brrr!!

Some helmets are better than others too. Never had fogging issues with Scorpion. Shoei.. major fogging.
Click to expand...

I had fogging issues with my Shoei until I bought the nose guard for it, after that very little fogging at all. It directs your breath down away from the visor preventing the moisture from condensing on it.
 
Dicko said:
I had fogging issues with my Shoei until I bought the nose guard for it, after that very little fogging at all. It directs your breath down away from the visor preventing the moisture from condensing on it.
Click to expand...

Mine has the guard (came with it). Not helping. I'm not complaining at all.. it's a fantastic helmet on all counts, just fogs up more than Scorpion (they're known to have very good anti-fog screens).
 
Dustin said:
I believe that Pinlock makes inserts for most models of Shoei, if not all. If you want no fog, that's the ticket
Click to expand...

My Shoei (TZ) has the pins to install the antifog insert, but where I live It never gets too cold to crack the visor and clear it off. Some of the older Shoei hemlets (ie my x1000) don't have the pins on the visor.
 
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