A variety -
Hail: Riding my MT250 home in Rotorua in 1976, I got caught in a heavy hailstorm, with an open-face helmet and no gloves. I had to stop, put my head down so the peak on my helmet protected my face, and stick my hands under my armpits. Luckily I was nearly home, so getting soaked didn't matter. Plus I was young and indestructible...
Rain: I've ridden in some heavy rain, but the heaviest would've been at the end of 1996, when I was riding from Christchurch to Tauranga. Going up the western side of the Kaimais, the rain was so heavy it was running down the road about an inch deep, and overflowing the gutters. Riding was like being on a jetski.I wasn't wearing any wet-weather gear (thoughtfully packed into the shipping container by my wife), so the borrowed ski pants I was wearing were soaked through in seconds. My gloves took slightly longer, as did my boots.
When I arrived at the in-laws' house, I tipped half a cupful of water out of each boot, and rung slightly more than that out of each glove. Strangely, my leather jacket, though soaked, kept at least half of my upper body dry.
A week after I got my Teknic jacket in 2000, it absolutely pissed down in D'Auckland for about 30 minutes (of course, that was the time I chose to go home). I discovered several things:
Wind: I've had several exciting trips over the bridge, one of which was when they were advising motorcyclists to NOT use it, and my wife actually rang me to tell me to take the bus. It was actually OK. But I have had one trip where I was a little scared, when even the cars were slowed to 40km/h, and I chaged lanes several times to minimise the effects of wind gusts.
- The pockets weren't waterproof. Wet wallet.
- It's not a good idea to tuck the sleeves into the gloves (the same ones that filled up on the Kaimais!)
- When it's horrible weather, a bike is the easiest way to get around.
- The stormwater drains are inadequate for monsoon conditions. When I arrived at the bottom of Beaumont Street, the water was ponded about 100mm deep. I balanced as long as I could, then slowly and reluctantly lowered one (non-waterproof) boot toe into it.
Snow: I've ridden when it's been snowing twice, when I lived in Christchurch. The first time, it was on the way home, and everyone was creeping along. I just rode up the middle of the road in the slush. Once again, I was glad I was on the bike. The only problem was visibility: the visor got covered by snow when down, and when up, my helmet filled up and the snow stung my eyes.
Ice: I nearly rode one day, in the ice. It looked OK outside: cold, crisp but clear.
I set off, noticed the weird slidey feeling, put both feet down, gingerly did a U-turn outside my gate, and took the 4WD. Even that was sliding everywhere. Black ice. Nasty slippery stuff.
I may be crazy but I'm not stupid.
Ok. I may be stupid, but I'm not that stupid.
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