Commuting on sportsbikes.

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How do you guys who commute on sportsbikes get on in shite weather like we've been having in Wellington for the last few days?

I guess that's a bit of a shock to you Auckland riders, but yes we get rain down here as well.

I know that it's a bit of a pain on my GS which doesn't have a surplus of Hp, and a fairly relaxed riding position so I imagine that it can be a bit of a nightmare on a more powerful/peaky machine. I've seen a few Gixxers and R1s out in the traffic and just wondered if sports fairings work, and how you found riding positions etc?

I'd still fancy a GSXR 600 or R6 if I could afford one so this isn't a dig in any way at sportsbikes.

Just get on and go. The sooner I start, the sooner I get there...

[vifferman]

A 50cc scooter, trying his hardest to keep to the letter of the new law which states you must stay in the left of your lane. He was struggling to keep at 70km/hr and cars were going past in the same lane and giving him all sorts of shit...

Damn stupid new law that one.

It's not new - just newly enforced. The law has always been that you must keep as far left as practicable.

Talking about bike weight, fairings, etc: having now communtered over the D'Auckland Harbour Bridge on 5 different bikes, the weight doesn't seem to make so much difference in hte wind as the fairing size/shape (eh, Hitcher? )
I've ridden a nekkid 250, a half-faired VF500, a fully-faired VFR750, a slightly-more'n-half-faired VTR1000, and a VFR800 (full tupperware).

The 250 obviously had the least weather protection.

The VF was pretty good, but my legs got wettish. The bead around the fairing blade caused extra turbulence and helemt buffeting, so I ditched it. The vented front guard and 16" front wheel was better than any of the other bikes in a 3/4 crosswind, whereas the guard on the VFR750 acted like a rudder, and caught the wind gusts coming under the railing, making it weave when in the outside lane.
(Note: Usually, most of the swerving from side gusts of wind is from holding the 'bars too tight, so the wind hitting your arms makes you swerve. Otherwise, if you hold the bars loosely, the bike will lean when a gust hits it, but shouldn't move across the road much.)

The VTR had less weather protection than either of the VFRs, but only marginally, but made up for it by having a slimmer and more slippery fron profile, which meant less drag in a headwind (and conversely, less added thrust from a tailwind!). It also meant less buffeting around the shoulders, but more exposure to rain.

The fairings on the VFRs (especially the 800) and VTR also protected my hands very well, which meant that they received less cooling air in summer. The VTR's amputated rear guard made for a lot of extra water from the rear, something my pillion didn't appreciate when it hit the backpack and ran down the back of the seat underneath her. Oops...
The sporty front guard also meant little weather protection for the engine, which highlighted a slight crack in the front plug cap when it rained.

One final thought - fairing design can also help in removing water from (and in plastering bugs and crap on!) your helmet visor, with the VFR750 being the best for this, the VTR being slightly worse (windblast lower and narrower), and strangely the VFR800 providing almost no wind-assisted visor clearing. The fairing blade is slightly higher than the VTR's, but much wider, and with a vent at the front, so there is less of an accelerated airstream over it.

[NinjaBoy]

I commuted on a oldish ZX6R and currently a CBR600F4, 56km per day over the Akl Harbour bridge. I was initially worried about the peakiness of the ZX but with a bit mileage under the belt I was quite pleasantly surprised at the rideability of a 600 in heavy traffic. Where the lanes are not too narrow lanesplitting is not a problem. There are some sections on the Southern motorway I don't lanesplit and drop back into the traffic eg. Spag junction. Narrow lanes and too many people trying to change lanes.

The ride position didn't seem to be too bad but sometimes I would get sore palms/wrists. I just have to remind myself to relax my arms (at the elbow).

The fairings on the ZX were great. In light rain my legs didn't get wet at all. The CBR fairing/screen doesn't seem to provide any protection (or substantially less). Double bubble is on the shopping list.

Over the harbour bridge in a strong cross or head wind, I just ensured I was moving at a reasonable speed ( > 60kph) and tucked down low.

[Jantar]

My GS1200SS is a sports tourer rather than a true sports bike, but the riding position is similar. I commute 10 ks each way from home to work, and so far I have hardly ever had any weather related problems.

I will admit though that on winter mornings if the temperature is lower than -6 C, or if there is snow lying on the ground, then I take the 4x4 rather than the bike.

This morning there was a -2 frost for the ride home from work.

[Coldkiwi]

commuting on a sports bike is great. You get agility, a bit of rain protection, good brakes and a decent bit of poke to get out of trouble with. Only downer is the risk of theft and a bit of body cramp if you're otherwise inactive (not an issue if you get excercise that stretches and works back/shoulder/arm muscles)