Best worst weather bike?

[mattian]

Like alot of you out there I rely on my bike as my only form of transport in all weathers. I am however, relatively new to bikes. Restricted licence.
The bike I currently ride is a cruiser style 250 Kymco Venox, an almost identical copy of the old Honda Magna 250.
I have found this bike very stable in high winds on the Harbour bridge. Low center of gravity and long wheel base. Tends to swing out a bit in corners though, especially in wet weather. (just me being extremely cautious)
With winter approaching again it got me thinking. What would be the kind of bike ya'll would consider a good all round commuter in the worst of winter conditions? Wet roads and high winds etc etc..... and, is there such a bike that would be superior in these conditions over others?
Would appreciate your thoughts on the topic :niceone:

[tri boy]

Id use a 78 Ducati with it's electric's exposed to the elements.:killingme
Or a early 70's Triumph with Lucas ignition.:rofl:
Or a Laverda Jota. They were fantastic in slow moving, built up traffic.:laugh:

No, seriously, what your riding is fine. Just get good warm wet weather gear, and a helmet that doesn't fog up. (when you find one of those, let us all know).:yes:

[Motu]

All bikes are good in the wet.My BMW is not much fun in the wet with no front mudguard - however,when I fit the mudguard it's one of the best bikes I've used in the wet.....

[MarkH]

The bike I currently ride is a cruiser style 250 Kymco Venox, an almost identical copy of the old Honda Magna 250.

That should be fine for the job, sounds like you just need to practise riding in the wet more. It is like riding in the dry except you try to do everything a bit more gently (everything = braking, accelerating & cornering).

[vifferman]

The best all-round communterer in all weather conditions is a 2000 Peugeot 306 XT. :shifty:


:dodge:


OOps! Sorry :o Obviously, I meant a 2001 VFR800. :yes:

[cheshirecat]

I'd quite like the raucus engine of the 1st gen VFR with the simplicity of the 4th gen, styling of the 6th and fancy braking of the next gen VFR

[Pwalo]

There are no good bad weather bikes. Just ride whatever you've got, and get some decent gear (especially boots - I can't stand wet socks).

[Mystic13]

Just get good warm wet weather gear, and a helmet that doesn't fog up. (when you find one of those, let us all know).:yes:

For a helmet that doesn't fog up get a pinlock. No more fogging and it keeps your face warmer.

Good tyres are your friend.

The bike will go around the corner much faster than you think in the wet.

Plastic wet weather gear is the only thing that keeps you dry.

Rain-off gloves are about the only thing that keep your gloves dry (and fingers warm) on a long ride. www.rain-off.com
They're based in Titirangi.

It never hurts to carry a spare pair of socks.

Most waterproof boots are not waterproof apparently. My rule is if it looks like water hitting the boot will get in, then it will. These boots that have an exposed zip but are meant to be waterproof seem like an oxymoron. (I'm sorry I have no idea what that word means and I think it's the first time I've used it in my life). Someone on TV used the word excision yesterday and I have no idea what that means either.... time to visit www.dictionary.com

[vifferman]

The bike will go around the corner much faster than you think in the wet.
That's something I have to tell myself when riding on wet roads, or to be precise, "There's more available grip than you think there is...". while picturing MotoGP or WSB riders doing a bazillion miles per hour on wet tracks.

[3umph]

forget the bike but check the tyres.... there are some posts on the forum which outlines what tyres are crap or good in the wet...

make sure your tyres are in good condition :niceone:

[ManDownUnder]

I'd be thinking of it in terms of


Fairings.
Great for keeping some or all the water off you at moderate speeds and higher depending on how big they are.

Big sail area which means you get blown around on the road more

Bike Weight - reduces the amount you are blown around

Tires - increase the amount of wet grip you have

Experience - you'll handle riding in the wet better with more miles under your belt

[Slyer]

Most waterproof boots are not waterproof apparently. My rule is if it looks like water hitting the boot will get in, then it will. These boots that have an exposed zip but are meant to be waterproof seem like an oxymoron.
Mine have exposed zips and water never gets in my boots because it's lined internally. They double as gumboots (I've stood in water that almost went over the top).

An oxymoron is a name or set of words where the words contradict each other.

[Pwalo]

That's something I have to tell myself when riding on wet roads, or to be precise, "There's more available grip than you think there is...". while picturing MotoGP or WSB riders doing a bazillion miles per hour on wet tracks.

Very true, modern tyres are brilliant. But they don't have buses and trucks dropping diesel (sidecars excepted), or potholes, pedestrians, etc.

[shafty]

The Orient Express (ST1300 Pan Euro) has electric front window (screen), heated grips, linked ABS brakes, waterproof hard luggage, and HISS for security when you park up - PERFECT!

[Horse]

Fairings.
Great for keeping some or all the water off you at moderate speeds and higher depending on how big they are.

Big sail area which means you get blown around on the road more

Bike Weight - reduces the amount you are blown around

You just described my bike. Except it gets blown around a lot less than you'd expect given the size of the fairing. See weight and surprisingly open cross-section.

[MarkH]

An oxymoron is a name or set of words where the words contradict each other.

Like:
Military Intelligence
Deafening silence
Honest lawyer
Microsoft Works
Pretty ugly
Christian scientists
Alone together
Silent scream
Virtual reality
Same difference
Good grief
etc

[Slyer]

Deafening silence...

[shafty]

Like:
Military Intelligence
Deafening silence
Honest lawyer
Microsoft Works
Pretty ugly
Christian scientists
Alone together
Silent scream
Virtual reality
Same difference
Good grief
etc

ONE beer...

[klingon]

forget the bike but check the tyres.... there are some posts on the forum which outlines what tyres are crap or good in the wet...

make sure your tyres are in good condition :niceone:

I absolutely agree with this. I had inadvertently let my tyre pressure get a bit low a couple of weeks ago and suddenly realised for the first time how vital the correct tyre pressure is for wet-weather handling. As a relative newbie I had heard people talking about it and read it in all the books - but it's only when you know your bike well that you suddenly go "OH! That's what they're talking about!"

So...
Check your tread depth
Check the general condition of your tyres
Check that the pressure is right

Then you can feel quite confident on a wet road. :niceone:

[klingon]

As for the best bike for "worst" weather, it depends on what you mean by "worst." Do you mean wind, rain or cold?

Rain:
The tyres and your wet weather gear will probably have more influence than the bike.
However my partner rides a scooter and gets remarkable rain-protection from the front bits that protect your legs (what are they called? :wacko:)

Wind:
Get a Volty! :2thumbsup
Or if you can't afford a Volty, get another naked bike that has spoked wheels and a good, solid, stable hold on the ground.
Also make sure you can put your feet down when you stop.

Cold:
Again, good gear is the vital ingredient.
A faired bike will stop the wind blasting straight into your head/chest, as will a bike with a screen at the correct height for you.
After that you're down to all those gadgets like electric this and heated that. In which case you might as well install a radio and a cup holder and call it a car. :girlfight:

(Said by someone who has never ridden south of Hamilton...:whistle:)

[MarkH]

ONE beer...

nah - they are not opposites. One beer is all you drink - as in drink one beer, then drink one beer, then drink one beer . . .

Just remember - there are two reasons to stop drinking beer:
1. Run out of beer (poor planning)
or
2. Lose consciousness

[MarkH]

(Said by someone who has never ridden south of Hamilton...:whistle:)

You should really do something about that. I only ride a scooter and I have ridden from Auckland to Christchurch in one day. You should take a week off and go to a motorcycle rally in the South Island. I went to the Magpie Madness rally last year (Winchester, near Timaru) and am thinking about going again this year. The weather was great until the last leg of my return trip, gale force wind and driving rain - I didn't find it all that bad riding in it though. The worst part was riding up a steep hill with a VERY strong headwind - talk about dropping my top speed down!

[Dealer]

you just have to work out the speed of falling water, and then ride around at that speed and you wont get wet, honest.:rolleyes:

[pritch]

You don't need a pin lock visor, AGV, Shark, HJC, and possibly others come with fog free visors now.

Fairings keep the rain off, but can be a liability in strong wind.

What you've got now is probably better than most. Just don't try to save money on tyres and look after whatever tyres you've got.

And stay off the shiny bits of road...

[Weta]

Busa, solid well planted behaves nicely as long as youre not too twitchy w the throttle. Re gear I found out that my boots/gloves were waterproof for about an hour on way to Kennedy Bay, Coro on Xmas Eve in absolute pissing down rain. Which was OK except that the trip took 3 hours, you do get cold real quick when youre wet on a bike, and then you begin to think slower and thats bad....