So I'm off on a 400 mile (one way) road trip Wednesday and while it looks like no rain ... the weather man has lied to me before. So I'm looking for any tips you guys have about riding in the rain ... particularly regarding bike handling at highway speeds on wet roads. Or worse ... hitting a puddle at 65. BTW ... I ride a RKC with standard dunlops. Thanks for the help!

 

Well, I'd advise you to have a good set of rain gear. Nothing worse than being completely soaked.
Secondly, my experience has been that the bike will be a little squirrelly too. Interstates aren't usually a problem, but on two lanes it can be. Just slow down and pay attention!

 

Yeah what he said. Most important thing is to realize you can't go as fast and can't brake as fast. Rain gear is a must and don't forget the boots.

 

Tips:Slow down and Stay away from center of road the oil from cars gets like glass when first wet, so does most asphalt roads for a little while then they get somewhat better. Like others said, rain gear is a big plus, be sure the leg sections or gators are heat resistant or you will have a big mess on your pipes if you touch them. Eye protection, windshield wont stop water in your eye, keep cloth in pocket to wipe at stop light.

 

Get some good anti-fog for your glasses

 

Another tip, take along a muscle relaxer, to releve the butt clinching...



Seriously though, I've riden in the rain a lot when I had my 06 Ultra, it's spooky but no biggie...

Just watck the leans in the turns andgive yourself room to stop...

Abit of rainx on the sheild and your goggles will help too..


As far asthe gear. get yourself a top notch rain siut, reflective also... the ones LEO's wear is what I have.. Top Notch Proven Gear... and you can't go wrong..

And some waterproof gloves...

Good Luck...



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Riding in the rain just plain sucks. When you see it coming , just head off in another direction. You will end up somewhere.

 

Good tips so far especially that the road surfaces are most slippery at the start of the rain before they get washed off.

It's natural to tense up and white knuckle the grips and tighten the ham strings. Work on relaxing (at least your muscles) if you hit rain. You need fluid, smooth counter-steering and braking pressures. Being tense tends to cause just the opposite - quick, jerky reactions - which you need to avoid in wet conditions.

Worse than hitting a puddle at 65 is crossing painted surfaces.Avoid steering inputs when traveling across painted lines. Wide pedestrian crossingscan be tricky at intersections.

Cross railroad tracks as close as 90degrees aspossible.

Relax.

 

Along the lines that Woodchuck was mentioning, also be wary of those pesky turn arrows painted in the lane. Those can really ruin your day when they are wet. Try to stay off all painted lines if possible and when you cannot, traverse them carefully.

I've ridden in the rain many times with no problem. Good rain gear (not the PVC type, you want your body to breathe while you are wearing it), boot gaitors and gloves can go a long way to making it bearable. As for helmet/glasses, if you ride with a full face, make sure your gloves have a squeegee on the left forefinger. If you ride with a half-helmet and goggles, be prepared to drain the goggles from time to time. If you wear glasses, they will fog up and reduce your visibility. If you ride with a windshield and the edge is above your field of vision (you look through the lexan part of the shield), the windshield will reduce your visiblity as well.

Above all, look out for the maniac cagers that don't feel the need to slow down in adverse conditions. Best bet is to ride in the right lane and reduce your speed accordingly. If you pull off the road onto the shoulder, remember that they may be softer than you think and you can sink.

Oh, and watch out for thetrough between two hills. I've literally ridden through water deep enough to bury my pipes. If that happens to you, maintain a constant throttle position. If your pipes get covered by standing water and you let off the throttle, you can suck water into your cylinders.

 

The Dunlops handle rain just fine. Your bike will bitea wet roadroad a lot better than you think it will. No need to be afraid of the rain, just don't follow traffic too closely.