Riding in rain

Does anybody ride very very slowly in it? I feel like i'm on ice and can't lean at all, so i go round corners almost upright(aka very slowly). I'm guessin people change their riding style for the rain but how far do people go to change for the rain?

I change my riding style a little in the rain, not that much mind, but it depends on various factors.

How hard the rain is, am I wearing fully waterproof gear or just resistant gear? Traffic volume, tyre tread levels etc.

As I said to Pete & Lissa last sunday, if you see me start to climb all over the bike, it's because I don't want to lean the bike over much as the front is starting to wear thin. In the end, I didn't climb all over the bike, and we were making healthy progress all morning, but then, the rain was only light really.

If you're not used to it, it can be daunting. Take it easy & ride how you feel comfortable.

[Lissa]

We slow down a little in the rain, but that's more because cage drivers tend to do stupid things in front of you and you need to give yourself more time to react.

It helps to have confidence in your tyres. Sunday was the first time we had ridden on very wet roads on our PR2's, and we were feeling our way with them to start with. By the end of the ride home we were in torrential rain but we were totally confident with their grip in the wet.

It also helps that we are two up all the time, which means we can use the rear brake quite hard without unsettling the bike.

I don't think anyone likes riding in the rain, and even with racing wets on we'd still be more cautious, far more so than other people might be.

[Lissa]

Originally Posted by Baph

As I said to Pete & Lissa last sunday, if you see me start to climb all over the bike, it's because I don't want to lean the bike over much as the front is starting to wear thin. In the end, I didn't climb all over the bike, and we were making healthy progress all morning, but then, the rain was only light really.

Healthy progress

Yup, gotta agree there, it was fun.....until we went down to one

I tend to be a bit smoother with throttle and breaking in the wet but other than that I ride the same.

If you feel like that about riding in the wet what tyres do you have and what pressures do you run ? I've had tyres before where I didn't feel particularly confident in the wet, but my new ct2's feel exactly the same wet or dry, very confidence inspiring

[mister c]

I ride every day, whatever the weather & know my limitations.
I ride with more caution in the wet (slower into bends thus keeping the bike more upright), but on the whole I think you need to be a lot smoother than riding on a nice clear dry day. If you are, should we say, "boistrous" with the throttle in the dry, you need to change your riding style to suit in the wet. So be a lot smoother on the throttle and make sure you are in the right gear for the bend doing the right speed. If that makes any sense
I always say that a good rider is a smooth rider

Avoid manhole covers like the plague (in any weather really, but in the rain they're v. nasty), and leave extra room for braking (due to cold unresponsive fingers as much as friction). Other than that, I find that simply being cold and wet puts a dampner (!) on my enthusiasm such that I'm not trying to scrape pegs on every corner anyway, just wanting to get inside warm and dry.

Relatively tame power and soft-ish suspendies on the SV suit wet weather riding quite well, whilst you need to be smooth, the angle of dangle obtainable is really not far from a relaxed dry run. Know what you mean about not being able to feel the grip available though, to be honest you just have to kind of trust it's there.

My road crashes in the wet (thankfully not on SV yet) have been down to either manhole covers or panic and under-cornering - you worry you can't lean it more round a corner, you start looking at the rapidly looming hedgerow at the side of the road, and just ride right into it.

The two easiest way to drop the bike in the wet is under power and under heavy braking (use both brakes in the wet). Perform both tasks smoothly and adjust your riding speed and distance to other road users accordingly.

Be aware also that and spilt fluids will be washed over a greater area during the rain. Lean angle will depend on the road surface and and the state of your tyres the same as in the dry byt the grip will be reduced. Feel your way around the bends and your confidence will improve.

Do not worry about going slow, better be late in this world rather than early in the next. The more you ride in the wet the better you will become.

Edit: As well as avoiding manhole covers, steer well clear of painted road markings, shiny road repairs and braking on pedestrian crossings. Anything thats slippy when wet.

Originally Posted by Beenz

The more you ride in the wet the wetter you will become.

Oh, and better too

I don't compensate when it's raining, just carry on as before - there's a lot more grip than you think, though riding over road paint/manhole covers or being too heavy on the brakes and throttle when leant over will have the bike sliding. I tend to slide more in the rain. Sliding isn't the end of the world - try an off road day and when the back end slides it's not as scary. If you start sliding the front go get a job in WSB.

Heavy rain cleans the road quite well and is better than light rain which tends to just make all the surface oil/diesel/dust extra slippery. Just takes getting used to.