Riding in strong winds

[sunhuntin]

i tend to go a little insane when im struck by wind thats stronger than anticipated.
when heading home from invercargil... i went by a windsock sign that means wind gusts....was along a sort of ridgey thing, so the wind was being funneled right onto the road. i very nearly had a relationship with a ditch. felt like i was gonna be literally picked up and dropped. was thrown hard left, but dragged us back to the right.
but im of the opinion it cant happen. once i regained my footing, i laughed my way out of it, cursing and yelling at the bike. hell it was funny.
i let the bike do what it needs...she knows the road surface and how to go about safely. all i do is keep her in the same lane, and make sure we both get home in one piece.
heading south from dunedin, i had to ride at 110k, simply cos at anything slower i was all over the lane due to the wind.

if im in wind that im unsure of [ie, the direction keeps changing] i keep closer to the middle of the lane, so ive got a bit of leeway on both sides. i have tried the knee out in the wind trick, but it didnt seem to do much. so i just tuck in as close as i can and keep the speed up

[kadams]

Talking about wind, on my way home from the city tonight was going round a right hand corner on the motorway just south of the Terrace tunnel there was a real strong cross wind. Anyway leaning into the corner and the wind in the right hand land all of a sudden I got caught by a strong gust which managed to push/blow me into the middle lane halfway through the corner. Talk about crap myself just glad there was no one else beside me at the time could've been quite messy.

[bluninja]

Obviously if there's too much wind when riding there's a risk of follow through

[XP@]

As the others say "Relax"
Also stick your upwind knee out at 90 degrees. Kinda strange but it does have a stabilising effect.
Also did we say relax?
If things are getting tricky I usualy knock down one gear to give better throttle response because it seems to be the accelleration or decelleration that helps stabilise rather than the actual speed. So don't hold one speed, keep changing it.
Finally did we mention you should relax?

[Falconer]

With my old van going accross Canterbury plains I detected a bit more stability by placing my canoe paddles verticle out the rear on the roof rack. My BMW R80 feels more stable with the top box. Try more things on the back to creat a rudder effect so when you get a side wind it faces you into the wind negating the effect.

[M1CRO:Me]

Although the Busa tends to stampede through the wind and is extremely stable, on the odd occasion she needs correcting.. My 2c worth? The fastest and most efficient method of steering is counter-steering. So when the wind gusts and starts to unsettle the bike, relax and counter-steer into it. I dont bother with the adjustment of weight thing.. Shifting your weight around in those types of conditions is too slow

[bluninja]

With my old van going accross Canterbury plains I detected a bit more stability by placing my canoe paddles verticle out the rear on the roof rack. My BMW R80 feels more stable with the top box. Try more things on the back to creat a rudder effect so when you get a side wind it faces you into the wind negating the effect.

LOL....I arrived home the other night and found my waterproof cover had come off my rucksack and was flapping behind me like a drag chute. Other than wondering why the wind seemed to be 'pushing' me back really hard it made no difference to the side stability. Not sure I want the bike acting like a weather vane.

[bluninja]

As the others say "Relax"
Also stick your upwind knee out at 90 degrees. Kinda strange but it does have a stabilising effect.
Also did we say relax?
If things are getting tricky I usualy knock down one gear to give better throttle response because it seems to be the accelleration or decelleration that helps stabilise rather than the actual speed. So don't hold one speed, keep changing it.
Finally did we mention you should relax?

Breathe in....and out....iiiiiinnnnnn......and....ouuuuuut....Relaaa aaax

Knocking down a gear is sometimes good, increases engine revs and stabilising gyroscopic effect. Downside is when it's wet as well, then you want a higher gear to prevent the back wheel spinning up (slipper clutch deals with potential lock ups).

Don't agree with the speed up slow down thing. It's just another destabilising force.

Did you say relax? I'm so relaxed I'm almost horizontal on the tank.