Wind speed and riding

[jmk865]

Kind of curious. How high a wind will you ride in? Especially cross winds with gusts.
Any particular tips or tricks?

[DakotaTG]

Sometimes you don't have a choice. Have taken trips out to Nampa, ID (outside of Boise) from ND and run into 35 to 40 mph crosswinds in the Big Timber to Livingston, MT area. Just hang on and maybe slow down a bit. Have gone out on an afternoon ride and ended up having a front come in and strong sidewinds. The only time I may not ride with strong winds is if I'm still home and only thinking of going out on a ride for no particular reason other than doing a ride.

2011 Merlot and Black TG.

[irmagoo]

I find anything over about 10 mph. is not much fun to ride in...as others have said sometimes you have no choice, I have rode in 20-25 mph gusty cross winds for most of a day to get home ..that's about my limit in fact it may be over my limit now...I'm retired I can wait.
magoo

[skuuter]

35+ mph is fine....above 50 (been in 60+ once), not really comfortable, especially for extended periods....have to do a lot of it though because of Our zipcode.....

[Ozarkryder]

A few years ago on the way to Minnesota we ran north up I-35 from Kansas City to the Minnesota border in 40 - 45 mph crosswinds from the west. The worst part was going behind windbreaks on the west side of the road - all of a sudden the trike would want to swerve left, then be pushed back to the right when the wind hit again when the windbreak ended. All there was to do is try to anticipate the wind and try to counteract the effect. As long as the wind was relatively steady it wasn't' too bad. Mostly I was glad I wasn't on the 2 wheeler. Crosswinds on 2 wheels can be a real bear.

[Bikerbozo]

Seeing as I have crisscrossed the US on 2-wheels in everything including hurricanes. And have ridden from NY to FL with a custom surfboard rack with an 8 ft board taking all that wind.
I don't even notice wind now that I am on 3.
Some of the worst winds were in OR along the Columbia river. Wind gusts would hit the cliff to my left and smack right into me. No way to predict when. That really slowed me down (on 2-wheels).

[rwhgme]

For whatever the reason, cross and headwinds don't bother me. We ride across I-35 frequently. The winds blow to 50 mph across the bridge we cross. I never really pay attention to it..I just turn around and pick my wife up off the pavement and restrap her in!

[rmrc51]

I think riding and experiencing the cross-winds is all part of the adventure and fun. The very first time I was hit with a strong cross-wind (I have no idea now strong but it was a pip!) I just held on and instinctively let out a "YEEEHAAA" yell, lol.

Then again,,, I also love extreme roller coaster rides so it figures I'd like the cross-wind experience, lol

[mhgoldwing]

Depends on terrain and location. If I'm on Interstate (rare) and fighting the big rigs I will avoid anything over 30 if possible because of the extreme drafts created. I was nearly sucked under an 18 wheeler once and that pucker factor was extreme.

If I'm on back roads with trees and slower speeds then wind not usually a factor.

[Mick]

One year the Missus and I ran into sustained thirty to fortyfive mph winds going from Denver to Spearfish SD. My trike has aquashields on it also. Found out that if you have the comfort feature and aquashields its a good thing to open the vents on the lower cowls and to open the windshield vent and if youre really desperate to open the baker wings. Its like relieving the airpressure built up on the lower section of the trike from the wind catching the aquashields. Opening the baker wings act like an additional rudder. Ive never seen wind like that. It was so bad we had to back off the speed and run about 10 under the speed limit. We did have a good laugh a long the way though. There were 2 vtwin riders that were behind us and we were in a long stretch where we were below the hills so we all werent catching much wind. Me and the missus were enjoying the break from riding in the wind all day. So they catch and pass us and we watch as they get about a 1/4 mile ahead and then they caught the wind. All of a sudden the bikes are tipped at fortyfive(my number five key died yesterday) degrees and the next thing theyre less than an 1/8 mile ahead of us because they backed off the hammer too. Funny how wind will do that to you.

[skuuter]

We sometimes ride Hwy 111....one of the most Scenic 4-Lanes around if we are trying to make time (65 mph speed limit on most of it)...it runs from Soddy Daisy, Tn outside Chattanooga to close to the Kentucky State Line.....the section from Dunlap, Tn to Chattanooga is notorious for very strong cross winds....I used it for "Mitzie's Windy Training Camp" when She started riding. It was always tougher on my Gold Wing 1800 Trike because of it's total mass, than while on smaller, lighter Motorcycles and Scooters.....Sport Bikes and 250cc-up Scooters seem to do best in these conditions because of Their aerodynamic body work, and small mass.....with Trikes, just keep accelerating and use it's extra "planted to the road traction" to Your advantage.....

[Walt M]

I'm good until the wind gust's makes me change lanes, Had that done a couple times on I-4 in Florida (2 wheels though). I'll let you know about the trike once it gets completed.
The wind is fine it's the gust that will wake you up.

[skuuter]

In this area if I worried about wind I wouldn't be riding much. Just slow down enough to maintain control and keep smiling!

A better "system" is accelerate, until You reach the speed to slice through the speed of the wind wall....kind of like the process Race Cars use to break a draft........speeding up goes completely against a Person's natural instincts, and has to be learned, but it works.....

[rhino 2]

A better "system" is accelerate, until You reach the speed to slice through the speed of the wind wall....kind of like the process Race Cars use to break a draft........speeding up goes completely against a Person's natural instincts, and has to be learned, but it works.....

I agree, The worst thing to do in high winds is to ''Chop your throttle'', That will put you at the mercy of the wind..