I hate full face helmets but glad I cargo netted a flip up on the back. Came in hand a couple times on our 3500 round trip to Sturgis.

 

it hails there all the time thats one of the reasons i do not know why guys or gals go there

 

The ancient Greeks thought that Thor threw Lightening Bolts from Mount Olympus . . . just wondering who the folks in South Dakota have pissed off . . .

 

Thats gonna leave a mark

 

speaking of hail.... I got the chit beat out of me last year.. it was only dime to golf ball size.. I was no the bike. skid lid, tshirt and jeans and boots..thunderstorm popped up out of nowhere. I only rode in it about 1/4 mile till I could find shelter.. I looked like someone beat the chit out of me with a ball peen hammer. I had bruises all over my upper body. yup rain I can handle.. hail storms NO. From my experiance.. you get hit with one that big.. FF ain't gonna save you, best hope your life insurance is paid up.

 

Noname, you been in the bar again. Just kidding,WR.

 

I have a little experience with South Dakota hailstorms. I was stationed at Ellsworth AFB (East of Rapid City) back in the 80's and we had a hailstorm destroy both of our cars and break a few windows in the base housing we were living in. We could see the hailstorm coming across the prairie toward the house. Super black clouds, then a wall of white. Then all he@# broke loose. I don't think a full face helmet would make me feel too safe in a storm like that.

 

Little tip for you first timers...if you're riding along and it starts to sprinkle rain or looks likes it's gonna...and then, the temps plummet, seek shelter quickly because the hail ain't far behind.

A bud and I got caught in a hail storm crossing the summit at Flaming Gorge in Utah...in the middle of nowhere, with no shelter in sight. Luckily, we had befriended a family at a scenic pullout earlier that day...and, they happened by just after the hail started, as we were on the side of the road trying to dig out anything we could find in our saddlebags to shelter ourselves. They whipped their pickup in front of us, backed up real close to us...the dude jumped out with his jacket pulled over his head, opened the camper shell, and yelled for us to wait it out in the back. After it was over, we offered to stop at the first decent eatery and buy 'em all steaks for lunch, but they just wished us well and continued on their way.

 

Okay I relent, don't bring a full face helmet, just man up and take it on the head and see if you can make it to a safe shelter, if not, well, good luck. Maybe if you had on a helmet in a hail storm they would recognize your face even if the rest of your body was black and blue, dented and scratched. LOL No one could stand up to a horde of 2lb ice chucks raining down on you at __ mph. Regardless, I am leaving for Sturgis 1 August, hail or no hail, rain or no rain, heat or no heat.

 

TequilaJohn
"Little tip for you first timers...if you're riding along and it starts to sprinkle rain or looks likes it's gonna...and then, the temps plummet, seek shelter quickly because the hail ain't far behind. "

Another tip I got from my first wife (she was raised on a farm in southern MN) - If you see a thunderhead and if the lightning is cloud-to-cloud (long rumbling thunder rather than a quick bang), you better prepare for hail. I've followed that advice many times and gotten off the lake or off the road in a nick of time. (It didn't help me a couple weeks ago though when I got caught in a nasty hail storm on the bike. I kinda got beat up a bit. There was no warning except for the black sky and some wind that was ripping trees out by the roots.)