so, i'm packing up my things at work last night and i take a quick gander at the weather. the temperature kind of floored me, i hadn't expected it to drop so low. it was a balmy -7C ( 19.4F). that is my new record for cold weather riding. i was a little chilled when i got home, but all in all it wasn't too bad. the funny thing is, once you get going, you really don't notice the cold. i mean, you know it's there, but it doesn't bother you. if i was driving the cage, i'd be shivering and swearing at the heater in hopes it would warm up faster. i don't shiver when riding, i don't complain, i just enjoy it and i don't regret it. it's not much different then riding in the summer, just more layers :)
i still haven't started using the full face helmet though. i wear my shortie, my goggles, a hoodie (under the shortie to cover my ears), and a leather face mask. there are only a couple of places that skin are exposed and in the 15 minute ride, it's not that bad. the full face would actually leave more skin exposed with no way of covering it.
he's insane.
-3 C (26.6 F) -10 C (14 F) with the wind chill (that's not including bike speed)
the above title is most likely a caption from a cage driver's mind as i rode past him this morning. i was approaching an intersection and i noticed a car slowing down just ahead, getting ready for a left hand turn. as i passed by the car, i saw the driver shaking his head. that was the biggest compliment i could have gotten this morning. he recongnized that i was not willing to give up on this riding season quite yet, even though it's bloody freezing outside.
i thought it was just going to be another cold ride, but when i got outside i realized it was a bit windy. 28kph (17mph) winds to be exact. i was going to walk around the front of the building to see just how bad it was, but said screw it...i'm riding. i could feel the grass crunching under my feet the whole time i was outside. this also marks the first morning where Selene wouldn't stay going on the first start. the second start was fine, but i think this is her way of saying, "hey, shouldn't you be storing me sometime...like soon? oh, and that time you cleaned me? well, i'm dirty again, how about you get that bucket of warm water." demanding...sheesh.
i'm out of luck for storage areas though. the super of the building won't let me store her in the underground garage so my options are very limited. gotta find a place soon though.
the above title is most likely a caption from a cage driver's mind as i rode past him this morning. i was approaching an intersection and i noticed a car slowing down just ahead, getting ready for a left hand turn. as i passed by the car, i saw the driver shaking his head. that was the biggest compliment i could have gotten this morning. he recongnized that i was not willing to give up on this riding season quite yet, even though it's bloody freezing outside.
i thought it was just going to be another cold ride, but when i got outside i realized it was a bit windy. 28kph (17mph) winds to be exact. i was going to walk around the front of the building to see just how bad it was, but said screw it...i'm riding. i could feel the grass crunching under my feet the whole time i was outside. this also marks the first morning where Selene wouldn't stay going on the first start. the second start was fine, but i think this is her way of saying, "hey, shouldn't you be storing me sometime...like soon? oh, and that time you cleaned me? well, i'm dirty again, how about you get that bucket of warm water." demanding...sheesh.
i'm out of luck for storage areas though. the super of the building won't let me store her in the underground garage so my options are very limited. gotta find a place soon though.
review 2 & 3
so, i've put the gloves through their cold weather paces.
on saturday i was on a rather long term ride. we had to take the car in for it's annual inspection and we pretty much knew it wasn't going to pass, so i was the backup for transportation. that also meant that i was doing a lot of running around chasing joey while she tried to find a place to take the car in (not to mention me taking directions wrong and going to the opposite end of the city).
the temperatures hovered between 2 and 10 degrees celsius with light winds. i ended up being on bike from around 11am to 7pm (or so). mind you, this wasn't all straight riding, there were the occasional stops at stores and getting food (Wendy's spicy chicken burger with chili...mmm...warm).
before i say anything about the gloves, i'll say this: my hands are hardly ever warm. i have a problem with circulation and no matter what i do, i can't keep my hands warm when i'm outside (barring warm weather). back in my hometown i would spend a lot of time on ski-doo and there was nothing that would keep my hands warm. i tried every pair of winter gloves and nothing would work. i just gave in and suffered.
all that being said, i think the gloves worked pretty well. they did a fine job at keeping my hands from freezing for the entire day. after an hour or so, i did notice the tips of my fingers getting cold, but they weren't numb and they didn't get numb the whole day. this is a vast improvement over my winter gloves and my regular riding gloves.
the comfort is top notch as well. from the get-go they are very flexible and nothing pushes uncomfortably against your hands. i can easily grip the handle bars and reach the levers with no problems. they are a bulky glove though. if you are looking for something that you can easily pick a key out of your pocket...forget it. i can only do that if there is only one thing in my pocket...with luck. there is no way i can differentiate between objects in my pocket with three layers of material over my hands. that being said, i can use a key with no problems and i can zip up my jacket. I can't unbuckle my helmet though and it's kind of comical when i try.
review number three comes from this mornings ride to work. it takes me about 30 minutes to get to work with a quick stop at the local Java Moose outlet for my mocha-cino (yeah, i'm the big mean biker...lol). this mornings temperature was around -3 degrees celsius. in that cold my hands were numb in my regular gloves and with my winter gloves my fingers were numb. the new gloves performed great. i don't expect my hands to be toasty warm when i get to work, but i do expect to be able to use my hands and for them not to ache. these gloves did that for me. lets face it, in freezing temperatures, there isn't much that's going to keep you warm for extended periods of time. add to that the fact that i'm creating my own wind chill and i don't want it to look like my mom dressed me for a snowstorm.
so, in my books, the gloves were well worth the money spent. the last test i'll need to perform is a water proof test. that will most likely happen on my next few days off.
oh my
i have found a bike that i would quickly and willingly trade Selene for...shhh...don't tell her...
the Moto Guzzi 940 Custom.
this baby screams beauty and power. i can only imagine carving up the roads with this machine wailing away under me. brings a smile to face just thinking about it.
