A little note of thanks...

[magicmonkey]

to all the people on here who:

mentioned using pledge on their visors

adviced people to use a lower gear in the wind

said that gripping the bars too tight was a panic reaction and should be looked out for

blathered on about riding to the conditions :p

seriously, it's probably saved my life tonight but it definately saved me coming off! One shit scary ride home in winds so hard I actually saw a tree getting blown down; but I still managed to stay on and I'm pretty chuffed with that :D

[Genie]

Congrats on making it home....that was some vicious weather you rode home in.

[crazyhorse]

We give advice because we have all been through some of those things and experience gives us the opportunity to pass onto others what we know.

Good you made it home ok. Sounds like some others didn't. :niceone:

[Gone Burger]

Well done for the safe ride home. I felt for all riders on bikes tonight in Wellington, as I drove home in my car. Insane weather, most insane in years and I can almost gaurantee that if I was riding my 250 home in that, I would have ended up in hospital.

Safe and sound and incredibly relieved I bet. Well done.

[Eyegasm]

Oh man seriously, I had fun coming home in that.

Lost the back, and the front (different times) on the hailstones.

Hailstones hurt more than hitting bugs at 100kms.

Wainui hill was the worst, wind, hail, thunder, lightning...
Was considering having a smoke at the top and watch the fun.

All I can say was it push the limits of control for me, AND really made me hate riding Shitko Tyres...

Hope those that were out all made it home safe

Eyegasm

[Laxi]

hahaha i love early knock offs on a friday, I was already home and having a nana nap when all the crap hit

[Bren]

I made it to work 20 min before it startedd....and I was well pleased with that....Was sitting outside having a smoke when it hit....The smoke did not last for long!

[Trudes]

Good work!
Yes, there is some useful stuff here, the art is to sift out the shit along the way.
(Glad my bikes were nicely tucked up in my garage yesterday!)

[FROSTY]

MM I don't wanna rain on ya parade in any way but theres one last lesson. Sometimes its better to just not ride at all.

[howdamnhard]

to all the people on here who:

mentioned using pledge on their visors

adviced people to use a lower gear in the wind

said that gripping the bars too tight was a panic reaction and should be looked out for

blathered on about riding to the conditions :p

seriously, it's probably saved my life tonight but it definately saved me coming off! One shit scary ride home in winds so hard I actually saw a tree getting blown down; but I still managed to stay on and I'm pretty chuffed with that :D

Well done , I heard they had to cancel some flights last night it was so bad.

[Ratti]

MM I don't wanna rain on ya parade in any way but theres one last lesson. Sometimes its better to just not ride at all.

Not everyone has that choice Frosty. Back in the lunatic daze, I had no vehicle apart from the housebus so it was ride or miss work.

The wind was spectacular..thunder lightening. Lots of big trees and branches down in the HUtt.

[Little Miss Trouble]

Not everyone has that choice Frosty. Back in the lunatic daze, I had no vehicle apart from the housebus so it was ride or miss work.

The wind was spectacular..thunder lightening. Lots of big trees and branches down in the HUtt.

Sorry Ratti, I'm going to have to (respectfully) disagree, there is always be the option to leave the bike parked in a parking building or the like & get a ride home & back in to pick it up again the next day.

[FROSTY]

Nope I disagree there Ratti. Not riding at all is a choice that at times needs to be concidered.
Another option in a difficult situation is to stop. Sunstrike,hail stupidly heavy rain.
I'd be the last person to critique someone for making that potentially lifesaving desision.
I'm not saying its the right thing in every situation but it definitely is an option there to concider.
Id rather my staff arrive a bit late than not at all.

[Toaster]

Oh man seriously, I had fun coming home in that.

Lost the back, and the front

Found your bike since??

[Toaster]

Not everyone has that choice Frosty. Back in the lunatic daze, I had no vehicle apart from the housebus so it was ride or miss work.

The wind was spectacular..thunder lightening. Lots of big trees and branches down in the HUtt.

Given your level of riding skill is self confessed as basic, I would have considered a more prudent approach than to ride in that storm. Getting to work late (once the front passed) is better than risking your life and limb.

[Ratti]

my riding level these days is noob. But I rode from my childhood years until I was 25 in all weather. I literally had no other way to get around. There were times when I chose to not go out socially when the weather was rubbish, but would have got the sack had i not gone to work. Thats the way it was.

Here in Welly there is an option to park somewhere and get home another way, but I will disagree and repeat that sometimes there is NOT that option.

I wouldn't have ridden in that wind yesterday either. No way. Im really pleased that Clint got home safely.What will you do next time?

[CookMySock]

Look mate, if you don't think you should be on the road, then get off of it! There is no shame in chickening out and parking up if it doesn't feel right to you. Knowing when to quit is what will save you, not some mad skills picked up on some forum.

Steve

[Ratti]

Totally agree DB. As recent experience has taught me. ouch...

We weren't on the bikes, so all we have is opinion based on OUR expereince. And now I'be bet the riders concerned have an opinion based on THEIR experience. I wonder if they would do it differently next time?

[Eyegasm]

Found your bike since??

Funny Haha...

Yeah I never lost the whole thing at once, just parts.
I wasn't itntending on riding through that weather, just got caught in it.

If someone had of said "You know its meant to be thunderstorm and hail tonight"

I would have stayed at work!

[Toaster]

I would have stayed at work!

If that was my only option, I would have ridden in the storm!

[magicmonkey]

Look mate, if you don't think you should be on the road, then get off of it! There is no shame in chickening out and parking up if it doesn't feel right to you. Knowing when to quit is what will save you, not some mad skills picked up on some forum.

Steve

The weather came down during the ride rather than me shoosing to set out during it. It was sunny and nice one minute and ripping trees up the next. There were a couple of points where I thought the wind had got a bit too much for riding but they passed pretty quickly (you get good at handling wind pretty quickly in Wellington)

[CookMySock]

The weather came down during the ride rather than me shoosing to set out during it. It was sunny and nice one minute and ripping trees up the next. Well, you can be on the road one minute, and off it the next.


There were a couple of points where I thought the wind had got a bit too much for riding but they passed pretty quickly (you get good at handling wind pretty quickly in Wellington)You should trust your judgement. If you hear yourself think some safety warning, then heed it pronto! Give yourself some credit - you have an excellent in-built safety mechanism - use it!

"I have the training to cope with this seemingly heinious situation" is the type of bravado you post about on KB, but do not do on the road. Think of your family. Stop until it clears.

Steve

[Trudes]

Coulda, shoulda, woulda.

[Ratti]

totally agree Trudes.
It all adds up to experience and that is an hard earned thing. The ones who got caught in that brief flurry,now have experience that I don't. Valuable experience they can draw on in similar situations.
Anything else is just an opinion at the end of the day

[george formby]

Aah, the pleasures of being bike dependent. I guess many riders here who have had no choice but to use their bike all year round in all weathers know exactly were your coming from. I bet they have all become bloody good riders too, compared with fair weather hobbyists. Be prudent though, their is a point beyond which it is insane to keep riding. Water covers exhaust, snow too deep, wind blows you into oncoming traffic, frostbite etc.