KymcoForum.com
General => General Discussion => Topic started by: streido on December 11, 2012, 10:09:01 AM
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Its officially winter here in Scotland, snow and ice is heading in fast. I wondered whats the coldest temperature you've riden in was? Todays ride to work for me was probably one of the coldest days ive riden on, was -7°c or around 19°f but adding in the windchill it prob felt like well over -10. Was fine all wrapped up in my big coat but i had left my overmitts at work yesterday so by the time i arrived this morning i thought my thumbs had frozen solid :D
Still be riding again tomorrow unless it snows good or its too icy on the roads. ;D
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Another hard core driver thats good.I drive all year when I can the smow dont bother me its the ice that does.
It gets below O* here in the states and Ill ride if the scoot starts and I know I can stay on the road.
Go slow and play it safe stay farther away from traffic..............
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It's not the temperature as much as the length of the ride. Usually low 20's
for 10 miles. (10 1/2 miles I'd freeze). No snow or Ice for me. I'm too old
for that stuff. Needs to be at least dry. My most treacherous point is I live
on a business 4 lane highway with Center turn lane (45 mph). I live up a gravel
lane, but there is a short concrete ramp at the end of the lane that the state put
in when they did the road expansion. If it's clear, everthing is OK.
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-11 C, no wind.
-8 C, very windy (40-50 mph)
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..18 F for 17 miles...
..ridden many times in the low 20's...
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-27°C (-17F) with bicycle 5km to school. Yepp, the old times...
-18°C (0F) with 50cc 60km to office. Already first signs of global warming! Wasn't comfortable though.
-2°C (28F) with 500cc 820km (still one way!) to hospital (just this November). But that was easy, could have gone further without undercooling.
My comfort zone is somewhere down to about -5°C (23F). I have made many 300-600km rides at this temperature.
A friend claims to have ridden in -60°C (-76F) blizzard and to refuse glooves in any (always hot or hotter) European weather. Ok, he is an Alaskian expatriate, but still I want to see this myself. I know several Russians and they like to keep warm although they can withstand low temperatures.
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My comfort zone is somewhere down to about -5°C (23F).
+1
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I was fine at -7°c apart from my fingers, mainly my thumbs, but if i had my overmitts on i'd have been fine. My ride is around a 1/2 hr commute each day each way, always in the dark in winter so always cold. Biggest annoyance is when the visor steams up and i have to leave it slightly cracked open to demist it, not good at 40mph.
Wont ride in the snow unless its an emergency or i have no choice, i'd sooner just call into work sick if it came to it and go boarding instead ;D
A friend claims to have ridden in -60°C (-76F) blizzard and to refuse glooves in any (always hot or hotter) European weath
Madness. My hands would freeze within 1 mile :o
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A friend claims to have ridden in -60°C (-76F) blizzard and to refuse glooves in any (always hot or hotter) European weather. Ok, he is an Alaskian expatriate, but still I want to see this myself. I know several Russians and they like to keep warm although they can withstand low temperatures.
I have doubts about -60 C and scooters. - 60 is exaggeration in itself because that's the lowest temperature ever recorded in Alaska and I doubt he was there with his scooter to witness it. ;D
However, a friend of mine drove his 50 cc 2stroke scooter at - 28 C in continental part of the country. Compared to that, my -11 C sounds like walking around the beach in sunny summer weather...
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I have doubts about -60 C and scooters. - 60 is exaggeration in itself because that's the lowest temperature ever recorded in Alaska and I doubt he was there with his scooter to witness it. ;D
I have doubts about the temperature too. Anyway he was riding a snowmobile. Maybe there are snowmobiles prepared for (ant)artic temperatures like dedicated aeroplanes are.
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I have doubts about the temperature too. Anyway he was riding a snowmobile. Maybe there are snowmobiles prepared for (ant)artic temperatures like dedicated aeroplanes are.
Or it hand shields and heated grips :)
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Rode a bicycle at 8. F in a snow storm, loved every minute of it, wore swim goggles to see.
So far with my scoot 31 f has been as cold as I've had oportunity, check back with you later.
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I can handle it down to about 50, yup I'm a weather weenie! It's tough to keep
my face warm, if I close the visor it steams up and open my face freezes. Remember
the wind chill factor makes it feel like 30 degrees at 50 on the bike...
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Rode my snow machine at -28f when I lived in Colorado and got up to around 60 mph at 9000 ft. Rode my skateboard down a frozen road at -20f and nearly broke my hip. Did not have a scooter then or I would have given it a try.
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Rode my snow machine at -28f when I lived in Colorado and got up to around 60 mph at 9000 ft. Rode my skateboard down a frozen road at -20f and nearly broke my hip. Did not have a scooter then or I would have given it a try.
Your dads not called Zombie is he?
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Your dads not called Zombie is he?
(http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m7x5nuXn1S1r7lnowo1_500.gif)
(http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m81v758BKv1rcfputo1_500.gif)
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;D
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I can handle it down to about 50, yup I'm a weather weenie! It's tough to keep
my face warm, if I close the visor it steams up and open my face freezes. Remember
the wind chill factor makes it feel like 30 degrees at 50 on the bike...
My full face steams up too even though it has a "vent" to help prevent this. I used a peice of chewing gum one night to keep it open just a smidge and it worked great. I then put a peice of foam insulation on the helmet side of the opening and now the face sheild will close all the way except about 1/16th of an inch, just enough to keep air flowing and no steam build up, nice and warm.
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I remember one afternoon when a bad storm was rolling in here in Colorado, and the temp was dropping. It was one degree Fahrenheit at quitting time, and I decided to hang around because one degree, meh, I might as well wait for zero. So I waited half an hour, and it was zero, and I rode 6 miles home.
In low temps I have trouble keeping my visor clear. Anything below 20 F anything you can put on the inside surface will not keep ice from forming, especially 2 oval 1" flares where your nostrils sit. So, if you go any distance, count on having your face exposed. I chew gum when it's really cold, to keep my facial muscles moving to help keep my face warm. I think it works, have not read a dissertation about it though. I suppose I could get a full helmet, instead of my 3/4, but I love my 3/4.
I ride all year, and so I routinely ride in 5-15 F on winter mornings. This morning we woke up to some snow (we haven't had a lot yet this year) and I got my ride in to work on a very slick arrangement of road surfaces. Oh well, nothing I haven't seen before.
On slick surfaces, if I may give some advice, you can use the gyroscopic effect of the wheels to have good control of your bike. The bike will never fall over on its own, as long as the wheels are moving. So, as long as you are traveling in a straight line, keep that in mind. The bike just wants to stay upright, and it moves right along as you gently apply engine power, and it slows down when you gently apply the brakes. So, in traffic, as long as you are far enough behind the vehicle in front of you, and if hopefully there's not some fool behind you tailgating, you have nothing much to worry about. Obviously, there is always a chance that something unforeseen throws you off your path and knocks you down, but you are NOT constantly about to bite the dirt, it is much more stable than you think. If your back wheel starts to break out to the side, you may have too much throttle, so back off a little. All that is happening is that your back wheel is trying to overtake the front. Once you close the throttle (only as much as necessary) things will straighten out again.
Another thing, when you are on a multi-lane road, and your scooter has enough power, I strongly recommend not riding in the right lane. The right lane is dangerous for several reasons: 1. Obviously, a vehicle may come skidding into your path from a side street; 2. Vehicles coming from side streets are carrying large amounts of snow and slush with them from the neighborhood streets, and it is deposited in gnarly curved ruts that can really mess with you; and 3. the closer to the crown of the road, the more level the road surface. Between trying to resist slipping off the side of the road into the gutter, and storm drain covers, the right lane is bad news in the snow.
Hope this helps. Oh, and take turns very gently, hold the bike up much straighter than normally, and steer like you're on a 5-year old's bike with training wheels.
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OK I'm ready to go!
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Right behind you!
(http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mdwva11i111rl0dauo1_500.jpg)
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Nice advice KymcoBW
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Nice advice KymcoBW
+1
..and, yup...i always ride in the left-hand (U.S.) travel lane..
..too much stop and go in the right-hand lane...
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OK I'm ready to go!
Right behind you!
......lol...ya'll so crazy...lmao...