Okay, the ride home was my coldest ride thus far. -8 C (17.6 F) and that was without the wind. With the wind I was looking at -14 C (6.8 F). Needless to say, it was even colder once I was moving. Thing is, the only thing that got cold was my hands...and I mean cold. It took a dip in cold water to get them back to temperature and to hold off most of the pain. I may have to consider those Widder Lectrics...
Cold Weather
By now, everyone knows that I'm a cold weather rider. I will push the season as far as I possibly (and safely) can. I've always got my eye out for anything that would make my rides more comfortable and possibly safer.
Before I go into the more comfortable part of this post, I want to address the "safer" part of it. You see, I have a set route to work in the mornings. It gets me to work in a decent time, avoids most traffic and gives me the best chance at green lights (goggles fog up faster when you stop...go figure). Part of my regular route has suddenly become a life threatening situation. There is a section of the road on the opposite side of a rise that (I can only guess) has a broken water pipe under it. That means that it is always covered in water, day or night. Add to that the fact that morning temperatures are always around 0 C (32 F) and you have a situation that becomes deadly.
I didn't know about the water and I also couldn't see it in time as I approached the rise. By the time I saw it, it was too late to swerve or stop. As soon as I hit the water I knew it wasn't liquid anymore and any attempt to control Selene had gone out the window. The rear wheel broke loose immediately and the entire bike started to wobble. My only saving grace was the fact that the ice patch was only small. When rubber met actual pavement again, Selene straightened up and we were flying straight once more.
I tell ya...I was quite awake after that experience and I learned that motorcycles should not be taken on ice without some extra precautions. Like outriggers or spiked tires.
So now I have a different route for work until they fix that portion of the street.
On the issue of comfort... Recently I've been turned onto Mark's Work Wearhouse and the fantastic things they have. I purchased new jeans that were fully put to the test today. These jeans are painter style with thick jean material lined with felt. In zero degree weather my legs barely got cold. It was amazing and I may have to buy a couple more pairs. This place may actually be my new clothes store.
The only thing I'm having an issue with now is my gloves. The previous "cold weather" ones I purchased now equal crap. My hands are numb by the time I get to work and that is just unacceptable. Cold is one thing, but painful is another. Looks like I have some shopping to do.
Before I go into the more comfortable part of this post, I want to address the "safer" part of it. You see, I have a set route to work in the mornings. It gets me to work in a decent time, avoids most traffic and gives me the best chance at green lights (goggles fog up faster when you stop...go figure). Part of my regular route has suddenly become a life threatening situation. There is a section of the road on the opposite side of a rise that (I can only guess) has a broken water pipe under it. That means that it is always covered in water, day or night. Add to that the fact that morning temperatures are always around 0 C (32 F) and you have a situation that becomes deadly.
I didn't know about the water and I also couldn't see it in time as I approached the rise. By the time I saw it, it was too late to swerve or stop. As soon as I hit the water I knew it wasn't liquid anymore and any attempt to control Selene had gone out the window. The rear wheel broke loose immediately and the entire bike started to wobble. My only saving grace was the fact that the ice patch was only small. When rubber met actual pavement again, Selene straightened up and we were flying straight once more.
I tell ya...I was quite awake after that experience and I learned that motorcycles should not be taken on ice without some extra precautions. Like outriggers or spiked tires.
So now I have a different route for work until they fix that portion of the street.
On the issue of comfort... Recently I've been turned onto Mark's Work Wearhouse and the fantastic things they have. I purchased new jeans that were fully put to the test today. These jeans are painter style with thick jean material lined with felt. In zero degree weather my legs barely got cold. It was amazing and I may have to buy a couple more pairs. This place may actually be my new clothes store.
The only thing I'm having an issue with now is my gloves. The previous "cold weather" ones I purchased now equal crap. My hands are numb by the time I get to work and that is just unacceptable. Cold is one thing, but painful is another. Looks like I have some shopping to do.
Mother Nature...bully
I wake up this morning and go about my usual "get ready for work" routine. I check the weather network for the temperature and then look out the patio window. It's 7 C (44 F) outside, sunny and the wind is at 9 kph (5.5 mph). I figure it should be a good ride to work.
Not a half hour later the wind has ramped up to 37 kph (22.9 mph) gusts and leaves are flying everywhere.
I can handle rain, snow and cold...I've been on two wheels in all of it. The one thing that will put me in a bad mood while riding is strong gusty winds. It's like Mother Nature herself is trying to bully me off the road.
I guess it comes down to a loss of control. When you have the wind blowing you all over the place, it's really hard to the bike straight and there is not much you can do to stop it other then parking your butt. Oh, did I mention I was stubborn? If it's nice out, I'm not parking my butt for anything short of a tornado. So instead, I end up in a bad mood after cursing out Mother Nature for however long I'm out on two wheels.
Oh, before I forget...Happy Thanksgiving to all my fellow Canadians out there!
Not a half hour later the wind has ramped up to 37 kph (22.9 mph) gusts and leaves are flying everywhere.
I can handle rain, snow and cold...I've been on two wheels in all of it. The one thing that will put me in a bad mood while riding is strong gusty winds. It's like Mother Nature herself is trying to bully me off the road.
I guess it comes down to a loss of control. When you have the wind blowing you all over the place, it's really hard to the bike straight and there is not much you can do to stop it other then parking your butt. Oh, did I mention I was stubborn? If it's nice out, I'm not parking my butt for anything short of a tornado. So instead, I end up in a bad mood after cursing out Mother Nature for however long I'm out on two wheels.
Oh, before I forget...Happy Thanksgiving to all my fellow Canadians out there!
I need a new headlight
Want to know how I know that?
I'll start with the fact that I hardly ever turn off my high beam. I whole heartedly believe that it assists in my daytime, dusk and evening visibility.
I was pulling out of the garage at work and took note of my reflection in a window. I noticed that said reflection was missing some very vital light. Flipping the light switch to low beam showed that it was working, but I was SOL for my high beam.
I was not pleased. Not only do I use my high beam the most, but it was dark and I had to travel on some roads that do not have street lights and are very much surrounded by forest.
That was the first reason that popped up for needing a new headlight. The second reason involved a rather large furry animal on the above mentioned road with no street lights.
If my high beam had been working, I would have noticed the dog sized racoon that had stumbled onto the road. Unfortunately, the high beam was not working and I saw the racoon come to a stop about a whisker length away from my front wheel.
I'm still having visions of what could have happened had the furry little critter wandered just a little closer or not stopped at all. Gives me chills.
So there you go...I need a new head light...really really soon.
That's familiar
It's back to the routine of bundling up like some kid going out in a snow storm. It was 1 C (33.8 F) this morning so I was fully decked out in my usual "keep the cold at bay" gear. At least I wasn't the only one out there. I saw a dual sport and a Harley buzzing off to work as well. Let's see if they are still up to it when the temperature drops below the big doughnut.
