Just spent almost the last hour of my ride yesterday in a pretty heavy downpour. No raingear, soaked to the bone. My 2 biggest gripes were visibility and the sting of rain (I wear a 3/4). Ended up taking off my glasses and my visibility problems were solved. I don't have a FF but I can see the value in one. Slowed down, took corners easy and avoided tar snakes like the plague. Not the most enjoyable leg of the ride for sure. Glad you made it home safe.

 

I just gotta weigh in on this one. Here in southcentral Alaska, if we don't ride in below 50 degree weather, rain and/or high wind, we don't ride. It's just the way it is. And, the winds on Turnagain Arm - I live south of Anchorage in a ski resort - blow 60+ mph on an irregular basis. And yep, we occasionally get caught in an unexpected snow dusting. If you ride, riding in bad weather happens. As one commenter mentioned, "it's all about situational awareness." And, maintaining your motorcycle in tip top shape - tires, brakes and suspension. That is truely where the "rubber meets the road. Motors, exhausts and chrome are cool and fun; but tires, brakes and suspension keep you upright and on the road.

As far as tires go, I ride Dunlops. I ride all over Alaska on them. Last Fall, I put 9,600 miles on Dunlops riding down the Alcan to the lower 48 and back to Alaska. And, touring the northwest for a month. Lots of rain, varied road conditions, and stretches of extremely bad road on the Alcan. They perform well at high speed, cornering and braking - wet and dry weather. However, I keep LOTS of tread on them, and slightly underinflated for a better grip and more tread on the road. I've researched a number of tire manufacturers, even going so far as calling the company and service techs. Generally, IMHO it boils down to riding environment, riding experience and riding style. Clearly, some tires are not designed for riding on flooded surfaces. IMHO Dunlop performs very well in that application.

I ditto other's coments - take it slow, in wet conditions when possible ride pavement, not the flooded ruts or puddles, and be very situationally aware. Vehicle drivers have NO idea what the capabilities or limitations of motorcycle riders are - they are busy doing everything but paying attention to the road - work, cell phones children etc. It's all on the motorcycle rider - 3000+ lbs./4 wheels vs. 700 lbs./2 wheels.

Good luck!

 

Something I learned through a complete "oh ****" moment was that those arrows and lines painted on the pavement get VERY slippery when wet. Almost slid my bike onto its side at a stoplight once. Luckily my foot caught traction at the edge of the paint and could muscle the bike back balanced.

 

Hey GW, Glad you made it home safe. AZ is no fun on the road in the rain. Just like everyone said, slow down and keep your space. I hope you waited a good while first too. Since we don't get much rain out here, it does take longer for it to wash off the roads.

 

Well, I have [dual] stock brakes and the stock tire (Dunlop) kept locking up. So I got a better tire and now it's not locking up any more, not to mention huge grip increase in wet. I admit I'm hard on brakes.
Do you recommend switching back to stock Dunlop and removing one of rotors? If so, would a big hammer do? Will just hitting the rotor make it come off? What do you recommend I do with caliper, just shove some piece of rotor between pads and secure it with MacGyver tape?

 

just a question ...some of you guys mention riding the pavement , over here thats the sidewalk . so what is your pavement ?

 

how do you like that short "sportie fender"
put on a real fender , and rain is not a problem

 

Glad ya made it ok...now you've been baptized, nothin' to it...easy does it. Now a couple of comments. I've ridden in plenty of bad rains and never had a problem with the Dunlops, so I stick with 'em. As a matter of fact, I feel quite confident with 'em. As to locking up the brakes, I never have...I use both front and rear routinely. It's all about planning ahead, skill and control.

 

LoL!, you were complaining about the poor brakes HD puts on the bikes. If you've already got dual rotors, it may explain why it's so easy to lock your front, and in that case, performance tires would certainly help... but you already knew that.
If I had the money, I would buy new performance rubber every season. I can't afford that luxury, so I compromise by riding within the limitations of my skill and equipment. I will need to buy new tires this season, and the stock Dunlops won't be disqualified from my options, because I have found no reason to do so. They are almost 2 years old, with over 13k all-weather miles on them... the vast majority of that mileage put on last season.
Would I like dual rotors on my Sportster? When I was shopping for one, yes, that was an attractive feature. Do I feel the need for dual rotors today? No, in my opinion it is overkill for my style of riding, extra maintenance, and added expense. I've optimized my brakes by rebuilding the master cylinders, putting in fresh fluid, pads and tuning my forks for minimal dive.
It works for me.

Ride safe brother.

 

We ride anywhere we please. Roads, sidewalks, whatever.

Seriously, pavement to us in the US is a road that is not dirt. Could be concrete or asphalt. An asphalt road is also sometimes called "the blacktop".

As for the issue of riding a Sporty in the rain, I try to avoid it because of the behavior of cars, but the Sporty does fine.