I live in the midwest, in an urban area, where the weather can be anywhere from well below zero to over 100 degrees plus humidity. I have been riding for 30 years and have noticed that when the thermometer dips below 60 or rises above 90 the number of bikes on the road drops drastically. I mean down to maybe one or two other bikes, that's it. I won't ride below 35 as ice can form in shady areas on the road. I don't ride on ice as it can get pretty wild. I've never stopped riding even when the temperature is over 100. When it's cold more layers of clothing go on, when it's hot the layers come off. So why are people willing to give up something they enjoy when all they have to do is adjust what they wear? Are there other reasons? I don't get it.
Anonymous2006-11-29T06:34:03Z
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At least YOU are asking respectfully. Look at all your beechy answers! It's so funny to see all the posturing. "I'm a REAL biker and you're not!" "Oh yes I am, you can't say you're a real biker unless you're willing to risk frostbite!" Blah blah blah.
You know what, I'm a fair weather biker. The heat doesn't bother me, but I'm not interested in riding if it gets much below 50. You know why? Because it's COLD, and that kinda cuts down on the enjoyment factor for me.
I don't have heated clothing, nor do I like having to wear bulky layers. So when it's cold, I stay inside. Simple as that. My husband is much more tolerant of the cold temps - he claims it's all the hot sauce in his blood.
The most important thing - regardless of what any carper will say - is that you have the bike YOU want, that you ride when YOU want, and that you ENJOY yourself.
I'm lucky to live in Florida where the weather is always riding weather. I ride all year long, rain or shine. My Harley is my main mode of transporation and my way of life. I think some people look at their bike as a recreational vehicle like a boat or a snow mobile. They park their bike and boats during the winter months, and pull out the snow mobile. Then there are the people who only ride their bikes to the Harley Dealer on Saturday to buy more t-shirts and once a year will trailer them to an event so they can play the part. They don't fool anybody, we know who are the real deal and who are they yuppies and wanna bees.
I ride in these conditions mainly because I'm a long distance lone rider. I don't like riding with other people, even my wife (she thinks 300 miles is a long way, I think that's a morning ride :) ). Since I will be out for up to 3 weeks at a time, I want to be knowledgeable and experienced in fouler weather before I get to that point. When riding in the tail end of the hurricane back in June in Maine, I was confident and reasonably dry (you can't help some dampness but I wasn't soaked).
My wife will only ride in warmer temps because of a couple of reasons. One is the opposite as mine. She won't take longer rides if she can help it (she did a week on her Ninja 250 and a bit over two weeks on her Aprilia). So she doesn't see the need to be that experienced in riding in inclement weather. We'll just stop for the night if it starts raining and continue on in the morning. Second is that she's riding for a different reason. She's saving gas money (the 250 can get 75mph) and likes to ride with me in the area (day rides into the mountains).
So some people put their bikes away because they just don't see the need to be all that hard core. There are others who have show bikes and don't want to get rain or other crud on it. They've spent a bunch of bucks on chrome and paint. I wouldn't ride it in that weather either if I had a bike like that. Others aren't experienced in inclement riding, like rain or colder temps so don't know they can ride and ride safely.
My current range of riding temps is 8 degrees low (commuting) and 29 degrees low (touring). 113 degrees is my highest temp. I have to say though that riding in the midwest winds is probably the worst riding, even over high temps.
I ride my bike no matter what. i can take any kind of weather. The only part that I would worry about. Is if you ride in really cold weather your exhaust pipe might be at risk for some cracks. Let the bike warm up first! But anyway, i defiantely would not give up on that wonderful feeling of the motorcycle vibrating underneath my body. It give me such and adrenaline rush to speed down the highway with such a magnificient amount of power.
I ride year round but my neck of the woods is a little different than most of you. I live in south western Arizona and summer time brings temps of 125+ for months at a time and I still ride however we rarely see temps below 45 so I haven't ridden in the cold! Am I a "poser because my region dosen't see cold temps. I have three children and run my own business so I don't have time or money to tour the country!