Survival reactions - Tightening on the bars

[Eyegasm]

Well, The weather in Wellington was abyssmal yesterday and I had to ride home.

As I was coming along Aotea key I got hit with a hell of a crosswind 100 knots gusts.
Well I got a little tense and held to tight to the bars and put too much negative input into the bars. This resulted in me getting blown across 2 lanes of traffic.

Remebering what is in twist of the wrist 2 flapping your elbows is a good indicator that you are not too tight on the bars. Using this technique I was able to get the rest of the way home without another scare.

Has anyone else come across this or used this technique??

[p.dath]

I used to have a lot of problems with holding on too tight (still do ocassionally when I feel challenged).

I think I mostly fixed it with improving my posture on the bike (like learning to grip with the knees more).

[bogan]

holly shit dude, 2 lanes is a long way, best get that technique sorted asap!

I find the best way is to let the bike get blown under, ie, you stay in center of lane, and the bike leans into wind; never tried it in 100knot gusts though. There are times when the best option isn't riding, few and far between though they are.

[Hitcher]

Has anyone else come across this or used this technique?

One understands that the grip is the difference between pink and purple.

[Viking01]

Appreciate what you're saying about trying to keep relaxed in that situation. Found that leaning forward more and elbows out has helped slightly. On a tangent, that area of the motorway near the ferry terminal can be wicked. When winds are strong, I tend to use Tinakori Road - Old Hutt road route to avoid the worst of the wind.

[Urano]

tighten on the bar is a very common error in more than a situation.
and in any of those situations it could become the first of a chain of errors leading to very unpleasant results.

in strong lateral wind the simplest thing to do is pushing the upwind bar, so riding a little "tilted" in the wind.
and, even if it could seems stupid, remember that in cross wind the faster is the best. just think at the vector components... ;)

[Eyegasm]

I think I mostly fixed it with improving my posture on the bike (like learning to grip with the knees more).

I was gripping the bike with the legs as I normally do, it was more of a fright reaction to the wind that cause me to grab the bars.


When winds are strong, I tend to use Tinakori Road - Old Hutt road route to avoid the worst of the wind.

Hmmm might have to do that on the next windy as hell day.


tighten on the bar is a very common error in more than a situation.
and in any of those situations it could become the first of a chain of errors leading to very unpleasant results.


Thankfully I was able to realise my mistake and correct, but was extremely lucky to be the only one on the road at that time. As for pushing on the upwind bar, next time i'll give it a try.

Cheers all

[george formby]

It's a fecker when you suddenly get blasted like that. I used to do huge mileages in the UK, all weathers & found the only way to stay in lane when it was blowing a hoolie was to relax & lean into the wind when it gusted. Most unpleasant & potentially trouser staining. Doe's not work on snow.
When the gust drops you have to quickly pick the bike back up. If you are passing a van or lorry & leaning into the wind you end diving towards the vehicle when you get in the lee & the wind suddenly drops.
It can be catch 22 though, sometimes you gotta hang on to the bars like an ape to just stay in the saddle.
Take the bus.....

[SMOKEU]

What gets blown around more, naked bikes or fully faired?

[varminter]

What gets blown around more, naked bikes or fully faired?

Oooh, that will get the eggheads going. Cross sectional area, mass, coefficient of somethingortheother.:innocent:

[Rhys]

SMOKEU
What gets blown around more, naked bikes or fully faired?

not much difference

[steelestring]

Well, The weather in Wellington was abyssmal yesterday and I had to ride home.

As I was coming along Aotea key I got hit with a hell of a crosswind 100 knots gusts.
Well I got a little tense and held to tight to the bars and put too much negative input into the bars. This resulted in me getting blown across 2 lanes of traffic.

Remebering what is in twist of the wrist 2 flapping your elbows is a good indicator that you are not too tight on the bars. Using this technique I was able to get the rest of the way home without another scare.

Has anyone else come across this or used this technique??


Have had a few experiences.. 2 bad ones on the taka's.. game over nearly twice for me... It is kinda vital to keep your arms relaxed when ya lent over in a turn in those conditions.. dont let your speed drop too low or it will chuck you around even more. Stay on positive throttle. Get your body low to minimise what the wind can hit ya with, grip the tank with ya knees and relax ...relax... and if you win you may actually be able to stay in your lines when the wind stands you up mid turn cranked over.

Sometimes you can anticipate the gusts... surrounding bushes on the corners.. debris.. noise..
I have had to push it down 3 times to try and get back on my side of the road.. new undies and felt very lucky

[aprilia_RS250]

I was told by a dude who rode the world on a motorbike when he got divorced the best way to deal with cross winds is lean forward because your body and helmet act like a sail, and most importantly look straight ahead. Your body will do the rest naturally.

[nutjob]

2 whole lanes? Fark! I imagine that your arse tightened a fair bit too :blink:

[jack_hamma]

If I was riding a slow bike I may flap my elbows in hoping of going faster...... otherwise, no haven't yet to use the flap technique :)

[NordieBoy]

What gets blown around more, naked bikes or fully faired?

In a side wind?

Fully faired. They're streamlined from the front not the side.
They're a wall from the side.

My Savage 400 was no problems at all in a side wind whereas my VT250 was a bugger.

[Urano]

it's not so "streamlined"...:D
;)

[george formby]

In a side wind?

Fully faired. They're streamlined from the front not the side.
They're a wall from the side.

My Savage 400 was no problems at all in a side wind whereas my VT250 was a bugger.

I'm not convinced. Used to ride a Pan European which was very stable in side winds. That could have been due to it's tonnage though.

[scumdog]

holly shit dude, 2 lanes is a long way, best get that technique sorted asap!

I find the best way is to let the bike get blown under, ie, you stay in center of lane, and the bike leans into wind; never tried it in 100knot gusts though. There are times when the best option isn't riding, few and far between though they are.

If the wind is relatively steady I find sticking out the knee on the up-wind side helps with stability, learned that trick from another KBer years ago and it works:yes:

[st00ji]

yep the steady winds are not too bad to deal with, its the gusts that scare ya. keeping the knees tight to the bike and hands relaxed has always worked well for me, but easier said than done sometimes as you discovered :D

[MarkH]

yep the steady winds are not too bad to deal with, its the gusts that scare ya.

True - in a strong steady side wind I just ride along leaned over into the wind, no real problem.

With gusts I ride in the middle of the lane, relax my arms and vary my lean as the gusts hit - I've never moved to either side far enough to go out of my lane.

[PrincessBandit]

True - in a strong steady side wind I just ride along leaned over into the wind, no real problem.

With gusts I ride in the middle of the lane, relax my arms and vary my lean as the gusts hit - I've never moved to either side far enough to go out of my lane.

I'm with Mark on this one - staying in the middle during swirling gusts gives you more options when you can't tell which side the next one is going to come from; and leaning against a strong steady wind might look weird but keeps you balanced. I hate strong swirling unpredictable gusts especially when there is the distinct possibility of flirting with the edge of a drop, but I even dislike it on long straight stretches like the Hauraki plains. Only ever got pushed over into another lane on the motorway once (on my ginny) and got a hell of a fright - took the nearest offramp and travelled home along the Great South Road for the rest of the way!! Hasn't happened since I've had the bandit (weight I suppose) but have always had the experience in the back of my mind as something to be aware of.

[Robtharalson]

Cross winds can be a real bitch if you're not ready for them, but after 50+ years of riding it has become second nature to compensate with body position, steering input, and generally paying attention to the foliage by the road to give some warning. The worst part is when passing pretty much any other car / truck on the downwind side -- the sudden changes in wind velocity and direction plus the wall of air you meet when abreast of their front bumper can be very unsettling until you know it's going to happen and proactively deal with it. And, yes, lightening up on the controls really does help even when your brain is screaming at you to hold on for all you're worth. Road racing and especially endurance racing are great ways to teach control minimalism, but it's also possible to learn it on the street, though the learning curve can be a bit steep when surrounded by cages.

There is little correlation between body style (naked VS. fully faired) when the winds are bad, but the lighter the bike the worse it will be affected. As an example I rode to a friends house in 80 MPH crosswinds on an unfaired XT500 cafe racer that weighed 110 KG dripping wet and it was all I could do to stay on the road, but when returning on his 410 KG Gold (lead) Wing touring bike on the same road and wind condidions I barely noticed the wind at all.

Rob

[NordieBoy]

There is little correlation between body style (naked VS. fully faired) when the winds are bad, but the lighter the bike the worse it will be affected. As an example I rode to a friends house in 80 MPH crosswinds on an unfaired XT500 cafe racer that weighed 110 KG dripping wet and it was all I could do to stay on the road, but when returning on his 410 KG Gold (lead) Wing touring bike on the same road and wind condidions I barely noticed the wind at all.

Rob

If the bikes are similar weight then there is a big difference.
VT250 vs LS400 the fully faired bike got pushed around a lot more.