Riding in the wind... help please.

[antiant]

Last Memorial weekend, I decided to take a small little ride out on the freeway. I did pretty good, but there were a few things that I definitely needed to practice on more. One of my major concerns, was coming back home. I was riding in the fast lane and the wind pushed me into the next lane. Thank goodness there was room for that, so I got sandwiched in between two cars, but I started thinking, "Oh ****, what if I wasn't that lucky and there was a car there?" It was not a windy day at all, just normal wind you would get with riding, I would imagine. Does anyone have any tips for this, so it doesn't happen again?

[csmith12]

Overall you have to be loose on the bars. But.... you have to be fast on the draw to do what is needed to keep yourself in your own lane when a strong gust comes out of nowhere. And tuck down if needed, it helps too. Be weary of semi's and other large vehicles.

Now... prediction. There are clues if you read the cars/trucks ahead of you. They blow in the wind just the same. The trees will also give you warning. Watch with a wide view and you will know and the surprises will be somewhat minimized.

[ninjamunky85]

If you're riding in a cross-wind, stick your leg out in the direction against the wind. It may look stupid but it helps.

Other than that just stay loose/relaxed, as you become more experienced wind will become less of an issue. On those really windy days you just gotta grin and bear it.

[rojoracing53]

Dude you have to read the waves.

Serious

[allanoue]

If the wind is blowing harder then 25 mph I think it stops being fun on the freeway. The 300 is much better in the wind then the 250 IMHO

Like has been said already tucking helps a lot stay loose and be quick to lean into the wind. Also be aware that big rigs will block the wind.

[bfpower]

Hold on with legs and stay loose on the bars is the biggest thing for me. Tucking helps a lot too. I live in a windy high desert area and it's a pain.

[tfkrocks]

Basically saying the same thing everyone else has said: tuck and try to relax. If the wind isn't constant, try to anticipate when the gusts blow to lean into it, but don't tense up. Definitely agree that the 300 handles wind a little better than the 250.

[fishdip]

Go faster after you hit about 150 the wind won't mater.

[antiant]

Ha, thanks all. I did tuck eventually and that was much better, but hmm. I felt I was pretty relaxed, until that happened, then I semi-panicked, but controlled it sort of by tapping on both brakes and pulling in the clutch a little (so I didn't fly into the shoulder).

[tfkrocks]

Its definitely something you need to get accustomed to. I know the first time I hit relatively mild winds, I was spooked but after riding there almost every day, it stopped being a problem.

[Aurodox]

Just react to the wind. On the 300, I'm constantly fighting the wind. The bike appears to be stable to others, but I can feel the way its being pushed in the wind. I've been riding in if I had to guess 25mph winds. Nothing major, but not just a little breeze. I had no issue staying in my lane. You just get used to it and make little adjustments with each wind blast. I actually recorded a video of the 300 on the highway, and it just so happens that that day was the windiest day I've ever been on the road. You'll get it with time.

[fishdip]

Originally Posted by Aurodox

Just react to the wind. On the 300, I'm constantly fighting the wind. The bike appears to be stable to others, but I can feel the way its being pushed in the wind. I've been riding in if I had to guess 25mph winds. Nothing major, but not just a little breeze. I had no issue staying in my lane. You just get used to it and make little adjustments with each wind blast. I actually recorded a video of the 300 on the highway, and it just so happens that that day was the windiest day I've ever been on the road. You'll get it with time.

You ever ride a 250 in the wind u will see why the 300 is more stable. Also op get a bigger bike like a zx-14 that will be even more stable.

[antiant]

@Aurodox - I actually saw your video awhile back and picked up a few things there for my own notes (I believe you're blipping the throttle? Etc). It was kind of funny because as soon as I got sandwiched in, I move over to the other lane and I'm like on the shoulder of the highway where the embankment meets. It felt like I was taming Bucephalus from Alexander...

Link to original page on YouTube.

I took video of my first maiden voyage, so here's me trying to tame my ninja 300 (sorry for the wind noise, I thought I had that under control). Starts at :05 seconds and the other one at :50.

Link to original page on YouTube.

[Aurodox]

Originally Posted by antiant

I took video of my first maiden voyage, so here's me trying to tame my ninja 300 (sorry for the wind noise, I thought I had that under control). Starts at :05 seconds and the other one at :50.

Woah that one at :50 looks like it could have ended badly. Props to keeping it under control!

Also, Does that happen to be I-5? Also, also, nice bike.

Also x3, That was me attempting to blip the throttle, and it just so happens that I blipped it pretty flawlessly on video! I'm still working on it, and I have a success rate of probably 40%. The majority of the time I probably look like some guy who can't ride cause I try to blip but I give it a bit too much gas causing the bike to jerk forward. It's funny how with over a decade of riding I've never heard of blipping the throttle until I came to this site. Always learning something new!

[csmith12]

Originally Posted by Aurodox

Always learning something new!

Never stop learning.

[antiant]

Originally Posted by Aurodox

Woah that one at :50 looks like it could have ended badly. Props to keeping it under control!

Also, Does that happen to be I-5? Also, also, nice bike.

Also x3, That was me attempting to blip the throttle, and it just so happens that I blipped it pretty flawlessly on video! I'm still working on it, and I have a success rate of probably 40%. The majority of the time I probably look like some guy who can't ride cause I try to blip but I give it a bit too much gas causing the bike to jerk forward. It's funny how with over a decade of riding I've never heard of blipping the throttle until I came to this site. Always learning something new!

Yeah, when I got there @ :50, I almost shat myself. "Oh ****, oh ****... whew!" I'm a pretty calm person and good under pressure, so I think that helped me out a bit.

No, that's Hwy 168 (it takes you all the way up to Shaver Lake, Huntington Lake, etc). I picked this particular hwy because it's less crowded.

I thought the blipping was done pretty smoothly on the video, so I was like "Ohhh that's how it's done, I see." I'm more of a visual person, so seeing things works better for me. I still have a long way to go with making my shifts go smoothly, as it's not that great.

[NevadaWolf]

Out here, wind is a nightmare. I'm either riding into it or leaning deep into the crosswind.

To add to the rest of the good advice, I always keep an eye on the surrounding terrain. If no cars are around, the trees, bushes, grass, dirt etc will give you a heads up that a puff is coming or you should brace for something. (Comes from sailing a few times and learning to somewhat read the water to know if I have to hold on tighter to the lines so the jib or main sail wouldn't yank my arms off.)

If a headwind, tuck down tight and ride it out. If a cross wind, I always try riding on the upwind side of the lane so I have room to be pushed over without worrying about crossing the line. If its a semi, move away and tuck in for a bumpy ride.

It's interesting that the wind hit you from both sides. Was the wall causing the wind to come back and hit you from the left?

[Alex]

Riding in the wind

(from the sticky thread in our Riding Skills area)

[antiant]

Originally Posted by NevadaWolf

It's interesting that the wind hit you from both sides. Was the wall causing the wind to come back and hit you from the left?

I think it was a combination of the wall and then the particular patch of hwy I was at. Where I was at was on this curved raised incline with no barrier protection for wind (now that I think about it more), so I think there was a corridor of air around there and somehow, I got stuck in that. I'll have to be more aware of all of this in the future.

Originally Posted by Alex

Riding in the wind

(from the sticky thread in our Riding Skills area)

Thanks Alex. I did a search for exactly those words and nothing came up. The stickies must not be apart of the search function?

[allanoue]

Originally Posted by antiant

I did a search for exactly those words and nothing came up. The stickies must not be apart of the search function?

The regular search sucks
I use the "google site search" under the search drop down. It is an extra click but much better results.

[adouglas]

Don't underestimate the force that your body can generate when exposed to the wind. Tuck. It makes a HUGE difference... and not only in keeping the bike from wandering. It also gives you noticeably more available power for passing and boosts your fuel economy too.

Next time you're in your car stick your hand out the window, palm flat on to the wind. Imagine that force multiplied many times (difference in surface area between your hand and your torso, arms and head). Easy to see the rationale here....

From your description you had a pucker-factor moment and stiffened up. Exactly the wrong thing to do, because you just turned yourself into a big kite.

[Alex]

Originally Posted by antiant

Thanks Alex. I did a search for exactly those words and nothing came up. The stickies must not be apart of the search function?

It comes up with all search methods, but the standard search sometimes brings back too much. This is mainly because it's looking through entire threads for some pretty common words. I tend to get better results by either using the Advanced Search choice, then choosing to search in Titles of threads only, rather than entire thread content. Searching for "Riding in the wind" in titles only comes up with a very small number of threads, that are all right on point. The Google option does a reasonable job most of the time as well. There are limitations to the Google search that it can't search any subforum area here that requires registration, so most of the Forum Info subforums aren't included in the Google search results, but would be included in the standard or advanced searches.

[Motofool]

Originally Posted by antiant

..........I was riding in the fast lane and the wind pushed me into the next lane. Thank goodness there was room for that..........

The most I have been pushed sideways by a cross-gust has been around one foot, and that was on wet pavement with both tires skidding at once in sustained wind velocity of around 25 mph.

As long as your contact patches are gripping, you have steering control to crab and compensate for that lateral force.

As others have explained above, you need to be expecting those gusts in cross-wind conditions and need to be quick to reacting with determined and precise counter-steering.

You need to be alert once you start seeing: "Large branches in motion. Whistling heard in overhead wires. Umbrella use becomes difficult. Empty plastic bins tip over."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beaufor...e#Modern_scale

[NevadaWolf]

Naw, Twain describes it better when one must be aware of the wind...

"Still, there were sights to be seen which were not wholly uninteresting to newcomers; for the vast dust-cloud was thickly freckled with things strange to the upper air - things living and dead, that flitted hither and thither, going and coming, appearing and disappearing among the rolling billows of dust - hats, chickens, and parasols sailing in the remote heavens; blankets, tin signs, sage-brush, and shingles a shade lower; door-mats and buffalo-robes lower still; shovels and coal-scuttles on the next grade; glass doors, cats, and little children on the next; disrupted lumber yards, light buggies, and wheelbarrows on the next; and down only thirty or forty feet above ground was a scurrying storm of emigrating roofs and vacant lots."

-- Roughing It, Mark Twain

[Jiggles]

Originally Posted by fishdip

You ever ride a 250 in the wind u will see why the 300 is more stable. Also op get a bigger bike like a zx-14 that will be even more stable.

I don't notice a difference but maybe it's because I have a big ass 140 tire on my 250

[ally99]

Originally Posted by csmith12

Never stop learning.

Permanoobs are cool!!

[fishdip]

Originally Posted by Jiggles

I don't notice a difference but maybe it's because I have a big ass 140 tire on my 250

Yep its all in the tire size

[allanoue]

Originally Posted by fishdip

Yep its all in the tire size

I disagree
I had 140s on my 250 also
Just an opinion

[Jiggles]

Originally Posted by allanoue

I disagree
I had 140s on my 250 also
Just an opinion

[allanoue]

[rojoracing53]

Try getting rid of your stock front tire and get a radial and you'll have more stability in the wind, corners, brakes and anywhere else you can think of. And if you decide to get rid of your OEM rear tire for something sportier I'd be more them willing to take it off you hands hell if you local ill even mount your new tire for free

[RJprod]

Originally Posted by antiant

Last Memorial weekend, I decided to take a small little ride out on the freeway. I did pretty good, but there were a few things that I definitely needed to practice on more. One of my major concerns, was coming back home. I was riding in the fast lane and the wind pushed me into the next lane. Thank goodness there was room for that, so I got sandwiched in between two cars, but I started thinking, "Oh ****, what if I wasn't that lucky and there was a car there?" It was not a windy day at all, just normal wind you would get with riding, I would imagine. Does anyone have any tips for this, so it doesn't happen again?

Try to stay as relax as possible on the handle bar.. another thing I've come across ( haven't tested on heavy wind yet but I assume it might work) is if the wind is moving you around a lot you can weigh one of the foot pegs in the direction you want the bike to go.. Let's say you want to stay on the left but the wind is pushing you farther right, you can lift the pressure off the right peg and weigh the left one and you'll c the bike changing direction to weighted peg... try it and c..

[antiant]

Originally Posted by Motofool

The most I have been pushed sideways by a cross-gust has been around one foot, and that was on wet pavement with both tires skidding at once in sustained wind velocity of around 25 mph.

As long as your contact patches are gripping, you have steering control to crab and compensate for that lateral force.

As others have explained above, you need to be expecting those gusts in cross-wind conditions and need to be quick to reacting with determined and precise counter-steering.

You need to be alert once you start seeing: "Large branches in motion. Whistling heard in overhead wires. Umbrella use becomes difficult. Empty plastic bins tip over."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beaufor...e#Modern_scale

Interesting read there Hernan, thanks for that. You're always full of good info.

Originally Posted by rojoracing53

Try getting rid of your stock front tire and get a radial and you'll have more stability in the wind, corners, brakes and anywhere else you can think of. And if you decide to get rid of your OEM rear tire for something sportier I'd be more them willing to take it off you hands hell if you local ill even mount your new tire for free

That offer is tempting, but unfortunately I'm not that local. I live 2 and a half hours away from you. I already have a mod list of things I want to do and yes, one of those things is getting rid of these tires.

Originally Posted by RJprod

Try to stay as relax as possible on the handle bar.. another thing I've come across ( haven't tested on heavy wind yet but I assume it might work) is if the wind is moving you around a lot you can weigh one of the foot pegs in the direction you want the bike to go.. Let's say you want to stay on the left but the wind is pushing you farther right, you can lift the pressure off the right peg and weigh the left one and you'll c the bike changing direction to weighted peg... try it and c..

I didn't really think about this, I'll have to play around with that.

[Aurodox]

Originally Posted by RJprod

Try to stay as relax as possible on the handle bar.. another thing I've come across ( haven't tested on heavy wind yet but I assume it might work) is if the wind is moving you around a lot you can weigh one of the foot pegs in the direction you want the bike to go.. Let's say you want to stay on the left but the wind is pushing you farther right, you can lift the pressure off the right peg and weigh the left one and you'll c the bike changing direction to weighted peg... try it and c..

I'd argue that if you have time to think and react, the easiest solution would be to counter-steer instead of shifting weight to different pegs. At high speeds, shifting weight to different pegs doesn't really do much (at least that's what Twist of the Wrist II taught me). But if it works for you, then great!

[RJprod]

Originally Posted by Aurodox

I'd argue that if you have time to think and react, the easiest solution would be to counter-steer instead of shifting weight to different pegs. At high speeds, shifting weight to different pegs doesn't really do much (at least that's what Twist of the Wrist II taught me). But if it works for you, then great!

Well I've tried it at around 65 and the bike seems to change direction...But the point I was making was instead of having to try to steer the bike to keep it straight and add unnecessary pressure on the bars, y not just weigh one of the pegs. It's effortless..when it's time to counter-steer, by all means he should do it..

[allanoue]

Originally Posted by RJprod

Well I've tried it at around 65 and the bike seems to change direction...But the point I was making was instead of having to try to steer the bike to keep it straight and add unnecessary pressure on the bars, y not just weigh one of the pegs. It's effortless..when it's time to counter-steer, by all means he should do it..

If she is pushed by anything in a direction she does not want to go she will need to push back, Newton said so. Counter-steering is the quickest least effort way to get that done.

[Panda]

Is there any disadvantage to just putting pressure on the bars to crab into the wind? I suppose you can play around with weighting pegs or trying to body english the bike to lean into the wind but what is the advantage of that over simple, direct, and straightforward advice of just countersteering?

[Alex]

No, bar input is always going to be a part of it. Using the additional techniques, it feels to the rider that less bar input is necessary to keep the bike pointed where desired.