Coldest ride?
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Senior Member
Superstock
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 281
From: Denver, CO
Coldest ride?
What's the coldest (not including wind chill) you've ridden your SHawk?
I was stuck once at 14 deg. F. and had no choice. Barely started. Stalled 4 times before staying lit. Rode 22 miles. Engine would never get above 138 deg. F. Sucked.
Luckilly I had velcro-heated grips by Oxford. Cheap but effective. I find below 20 deg. F. my fingertips freeze, despite thin cotton gloves under riding gloves. Heated grips help somewhat but it burns the palms without a heat-discipating second glove. Scorpion EXO-700 helmet didn't frost or fog-up (my winter helmet.. too loud and poor circulation for summer). Also I was wearing mesh (yep) overpants by FirstGear (without the annoying waterproof lining) and Thinsulated FirstRacing jacket.
I was stuck once at 14 deg. F. and had no choice. Barely started. Stalled 4 times before staying lit. Rode 22 miles. Engine would never get above 138 deg. F. Sucked.
Luckilly I had velcro-heated grips by Oxford. Cheap but effective. I find below 20 deg. F. my fingertips freeze, despite thin cotton gloves under riding gloves. Heated grips help somewhat but it burns the palms without a heat-discipating second glove. Scorpion EXO-700 helmet didn't frost or fog-up (my winter helmet.. too loud and poor circulation for summer). Also I was wearing mesh (yep) overpants by FirstGear (without the annoying waterproof lining) and Thinsulated FirstRacing jacket.
Senior Member
Superstock
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 474
From: Merritt,MI.
Re: Coldest ride?
A couple of times on my way to work at 4:00 in the morning the temps were around the 30 degree mark it was cold but not to bad. if I stayed tucked in only my throttle hand got cold.
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Back Marker
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 116
From: Springpatch, Flatland, Illinois
Re: Coldest ride?
I have been caught out many times, where I went somewhere, stayed too long, and it got cold on me for the ride home. The worst was earlier this year when I had to keep stopping to clean the freezing fog off of my visor. No idea what the temp was, but it FELT damn cold... Remember, Windchill counts! 20 degrees at 80 mph is like -8 degrees
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/windchill/
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/windchill/
Member
Squid
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 62
From: Burton, Michigan
Coldest ride? about 26 degrees, but it was a short one, 2-3 miles.
Worst ride in the cold? probably mid to high 30's but with no real weather gear, (thin gloves and a sweatshirt over a t-shirt) for about 100 miles. The coldest I've ever been in my life. Had to stop 5-6 times to warm up enough to operate the controls. 5 hours after I got home, the skin on my legs was still cold to the touch.
Worst ride in the cold? probably mid to high 30's but with no real weather gear, (thin gloves and a sweatshirt over a t-shirt) for about 100 miles. The coldest I've ever been in my life. Had to stop 5-6 times to warm up enough to operate the controls. 5 hours after I got home, the skin on my legs was still cold to the touch.
Member
Squid
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 60
From: Morrison Colorado
Re: Coldest ride?
11 degrees I installed grip heater because I ride year round when its clear and no signs of snow and it is much better but when its really cold my head gets numb through my helmet and thats no fun. I must be tortureing my self because I have a 30min commute on the highway one way to work.
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MotoGP
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 3,844
From: Gainesville FLA.
You guys are ALL nuts! I got caught out too late in Connecticut once when it was 32f and my hands felt like they would shatter if I made a fist. When I was a kid, I'd ride my dirt bike in the snow but you didn't go that fast. When I lived in CT. I had a 50f or above limit, now in Fla. it's 55 or higher. I think the moister in the air makes it "feel" coolder. So I think I couldn't ride emmm.....5 times this year because of the cold. 
Moderator
MotoGP
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 2,553
From: South Texas
Re: Coldest ride?
Well since my kids have been playing in a wading pool all this week, I don't think I can win this contest. :P
OK, I'll try. Back when I wuz young, dumb, and full of c**, I rode home during the college winter break. It was particularly cold and was in the low 40's but I didn't have anything close to winter gear for the 60 miles home. Every stop I would lay down on the tank and hug the motor of my cb750f until I would start feeling something, anything in my arms and hands or until the car behind me honked. When I finally got home, I sat in front of the heater and began shaking uncontrollably for the next thirty minutes although I tried my hardest not to since I had convince everyone that it wasn't too cold to ride home.
OK, I'll try. Back when I wuz young, dumb, and full of c**, I rode home during the college winter break. It was particularly cold and was in the low 40's but I didn't have anything close to winter gear for the 60 miles home. Every stop I would lay down on the tank and hug the motor of my cb750f until I would start feeling something, anything in my arms and hands or until the car behind me honked. When I finally got home, I sat in front of the heater and began shaking uncontrollably for the next thirty minutes although I tried my hardest not to since I had convince everyone that it wasn't too cold to ride home.
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Back Marker
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 140
From: Richmond Virginia
Re: Coldest ride?
Well in New York it was 32 degrees with snow falling, the roads were icey and slushy, that was my coldest ride with the elements. Coldest day overall up there was 17 degrees and thank god for snowmobile gear and it was freaking cold. I got the frostbite to prove it. But now that i am in miami the coldest was 65 and the hottest was about 99. But its the hurricanes you need to watch out for.
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Back Marker
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 152
From: Phoenix
My Dad and his friends rode with me to deals gap this last fall (or so we thought). When we got up in the morning at the deals gap motorcycle inn right at the end of the gap. So when we got up to ride the parkway in the morning the outside temp gauge on my dads goldwing was reading 18F. We left at 6:30am and we didn't break the 32F mark until about 10:30. I think my feet are still frozen.
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Squid
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 90
Re: Coldest ride?
I rode 200 miles home from Sears point to Tahoe in pouring rain. Had a cheap rain suit on over a leather jacket and jeans. Crossing Donner Pass at 7200 feet it was almost turning to snow. My hands were so painful by then I stopped to warm them with the exhaust gas from my CBR for a couple of minutes. A CHP stopped and thought about giving me a hard time for stopping on the side of the freeway but took a look at my soggy, miserable self and told me don't stay there too long and left. He could've at least offered me a doughnut.
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