I feel like I've just been through a sheep dip

Horrendous weather. I'm glad I made the sensible choice to wear my textiles last night to get into work, coming home just now was horrid. Major traffic along Hampton Court to which I could have taken a detour but I was feeling all smug about going past the traffic until I saw the reason why. The road was beyond footpeg deep in water. Rightly or wrongly I revved my way through it.

So as a noob on the bike..

a) is it normal when you put your bike on the side stand after riding in the rain for water to stream off the radiator?
b) is it normal for steam to come off the front end of your bike when you've pulled up after riding in the rain?
c) will I have gotten away with riding through deep water or will my bike never start again?
d) to what degree should I be cautious riding in the rain? i.e. what percentage of grip will I have lost? I felt like I was being a bit too cautious at times however it was a bit scary when the back end slid out going over a manhole cover on a bend!

[dizzyblonde]

Originally Posted by Stenno

Horrendous weather. I'm glad I made the sensible choice to wear my textiles last night to get into work, coming home just now was horrid. Major traffic along Hampton Court to which I could have taken a detour but I was feeling all smug about going past the traffic until I saw the reason why. The road was beyond footpeg deep in water. Rightly or wrongly I revved my way through it.

So as a noob on the bike..

a) is it normal when you put your bike on the side stand after riding in the rain for water to stream off the radiator? yes, it hits it head on, gotta go somewhere after
b) is it normal for steam to come off the front end of your bike when you've pulled up after riding in the rain?Yes, its hot!
c) will I have gotten away with riding through deep water or will my bike never start again?Don't go trying it
d) to what degree should I be cautious riding in the rain? i.e. what percentage of grip will I have lost? I felt like I was being a bit too cautious at times however it was a bit scary when the back end slid out going over a manhole cover on a bend! Learn to adapt to conditions, you'll soon get used to your own personal style in rain. Always be cautious, but not so you are more dangerous than the weather!

Oh, and you may look stupid, but lifting your feet off the pegs and up in the air stops you getting drenched legs and feet. Myself and AndyBrad did on the AR recce through a humonguous puddle. I was a bit dubious if my raptor would cough onto one cylinder it was that big.
A lot of SVs are fitted with a fender extender to stop water entering the front spark plug and cutting it onto one cylinder in the rain. It helps enormously, but theres nowhere to fit it on a Raptor, as the mudguard is very close to the tyre, it might eat it

[andrewsmith]

As DB

I've ridden a YBR125 through 2ft standing water (Just about kissing the airbox) and I looked like a mobile sauna

Hot metal + water=steam,be it radiator, exhaust, brakes even warm tyres.
In EXTREME conditions my windscreen even mists up due to the amount of steam generated by the hot engine.
Sheep dip is different you can tell by the smell and I doubt if they have many in Kingston or Hammersniff

c) will I have gotten away with riding through deep water or will my bike never start again?


I would imagine that if the bike kept going through the puddle, didnt conk out and then got you to your destination it's fine. Thats the theory I work on anyway. Not that I've ever ridden through a giant puddle.

If your keep the water level below your nuts then you'll be fine.
Keep water out of the air intake/fuel and off of the battery/fuses and you're laughing.
Steam is normal - this has been covered by dizzy+dicky

One point I will add is be careful after your brakes have had a good soaking --a gentle application to dry them off is a good idea.

[jonny.boyd]

Correct me if i'm wrong but I would have thought riding through a large / deep puddle wouldn't be the best for the engine....

Hot engine suddenly hits cold water, metal compresses, more chance of it warping or whatever??

Surely this follows the same principle as the advice not to wash your bike straight after you've ridden it?
Could be wrong, correct me if I am.

Unfortunately you can't always avoid riding in the rain

Thanks for the advice all!