Help: The wind beat me up!

[Deleted member 9794]

Mother nature kicked my @ss yesterday with a constant flurry of left/right to right/left haymakers! I'm fine taking on blows from the front or back but yesterday she was kinda p!ssy and decided to take it out on me (or at least that's how it felt)!

Anybody got any tips for controlling the bike against lateral movement from strong wind gusts? I would kinda lean into the wind but then it would suddenly stop and I'd be heading toward the wall - hence I immediately got off the interstate after crossing the necessary bridge and stuck to side streets. But even on neighbor hood roads at 15~35 mph I was being blown around.

I felt like I was on ice or like a sailboat or something. I tried tucking in and it helped some (I have the bubble screen that does nothing against side wind of course) but it was so uncomfortable steering that way I just sat up and dealt with it. I started to worry that something was wrong with my tires but since it did it at low speed I'm thinking they are fine.

Is wind (along with heavy rain and snow) a force against motorcycle riding? Does some adjustment to tire pressure help? Is the effect so great because I make the bike top heavy and the FZ6R (470 lbs) is light (and an underlying excuse for me to skip the R6(417), R1(454), and go to a zx14(566), gsxr1300(573), or vfr(591)......no time soon of course, maybe 2 years or so )?



Any and all tips, hints, and cheats are appreciated!

 

[Roaddawg]

There's not much you can do when there is a strong, gusty crosswind, but to hold on and do the best to stay in your lane. I just make sure I'm not riding next to anyone. Don't change tire pressure based on wind speed...that's not gonna do anything good for you. And, I don't think that an extra 100 lbs (or 350) is gonna change much either.....You could give this a shot.

 

[dart1963]

Best advice I can offer, squeeze in your knees, stay on the ball of your feet (right behind your toes) and stay loose on your hands... you want to control the bike, but like you said, you also want to be ready when the wind shifts. By keeping your lower body more in control and leaving your upper body loose, you kind of get the best of both, you stay in control and can apply counter-forces when needed.

The worse is going across bridges... the wind will whirl in really uncontrolled ways as the wind goes over, under and all around. There's just those times when you can't control it, so stay in the middle of you lane away from other cars is really good advice!

Hope that helps a little

 

[Superzoom]

Having a heavier bike absolutely helps in cross winds. My Sportster, at about 600 lbs. wet, was pretty stable in cross winds. It's just the price you pay for a lightish bike.

 

[Sage]

Those gusts yesterday were horrible, almost got knocked over multiple times and saw someone almost fall over at a stoplight when one hit.

A heavier bike does help alot, I had a vstar and it did not move as much. But you just have to deal with it and be ready for any shifts.

 

[bigpish13]

@roadawg-LOL!

 

[Roaddawg]

Now, I'm asking this having not owned a cruiser before, but do you think a 600 lb fully faired sport bike is gonna handle the wind the same as a 600 lb cruiser? I wouldn't think that a 591 lb VFR would be much more stable than a 471 lb FZ6R in strong wind, due to the fact that they both have a lot of solid surface area for the wind to push on....mush more than the openness of a cruiser. I'm just asking because I'm curious, not arguing. I eventually want to step up to either an FJR or a bagger cruiser once I'm not commuting anymore.

 

[Deleted member 9794]

good knowledge

Thanks everyone! Roaddawg.....that's just wrong :spank: .....I wouldn't even photoshop a FZ6R under that much weight!

dart1963 I will try that; I know I already have a bad habit of not squeezing the tank because an instructor pointed it out to me a MSF course. I did notice that the cruisers out today didn't seem to budge at all in the wind, I haven't seen any of the bigger sportbikes out but i'll definitely look to see if they seem to waver or not. The only person I know in IL with a busa is a bit of a squid but if its windy the next time I go home (MS) I'll try a friends busa and see how it reacts.

 

[Deleted member 9794]

Those gusts yesterday were horrible, almost got knocked over multiple times and saw someone almost fall over at a stoplight when one hit.

A heavier bike does help alot, I had a vstar and it did not move as much. But you just have to deal with it and be ready for any shifts.

and thanks for the reality check Sage - I figured I was far enough from the windy city to avoid this but apparently I was really wrong. What makes it so bad is I looked out the window and saw the clouds weren't really moving so figured I'd be okay today.....apparently clouds lie. I'm having to use 2 feet down at all of my stops!

 

[creggur]

Now, I'm asking this having not owned a cruiser before, but do you think a 600 lb fully faired sport bike is gonna handle the wind the same as a 600 lb cruiser? I wouldn't think that a 591 lb VFR would be much more stable than a 471 lb FZ6R in strong wind, due to the fact that they both have a lot of solid surface area for the wind to push on....mush more than the openness of a cruiser. I'm just asking because I'm curious, not arguing. I eventually want to step up to either an FJR or a bagger cruiser once I'm not commuting anymore.

I can tell you from experience that the VFR and FZ6R are pretty similar in the wind. Actually the FZ6R seems to handle the gusts a little better - I don't know why. Maybe the wider bars require less input to counter the forces, maybe the fairing doesn't create the same 'sail area' as the VFR's fairing. Maybe the more upright seating position of the FZ6R makes a difference...

To the OP - all you can really do is stay loose on the bars and counter the forces. Stay more toward the center of the lane to give yourself a little more room and stay ready for changing conditions. Just like anything, the more you do it the more comfortable you will be with it. Nothing to be scared of, just new techniques to learn...

 

[JonKerr]

Just like anything, the more you do it the more comfortable you will be with it. Nothing to be scared of, just new techniques to learn...

This is key. When I first started riding, cross winds scared the hell out of me. Some of our high elevation mountain roads this time of year can get VERY windy from hot desert air meeting cold ocean air. Makes for some very unpredictable heavy winds. I mean 10º lean angles into the wind just to keep going straight. And trying to learn to ride in the twisties last summer in that was a bit unnerving. Now, a year later, I obviously still notice it and it is still annoying, but I've learned to deal with it and it's not that big of a deal now.

As for the heavier bikes, my Dad's FatBoy is a 750+lb tank in the wind. Even with his ape hangers on that thing the wind barely effects that bike. It doesn't hurt that the seat is only about 20" off the ground.

 

[Detrich]

Consider getting a race jacket with an aerodynamic hump on the back.

I've noticed it that it helps quite a bit at high speeds.... In my case my jacket has it, but my suit doesn't. On the freeway or windy conditions it's a very noticeable difference. My jacket channels air drag off my back considerably, but in my suit I feel the wind pulling on me. Hellas annoying... So much so- that I'm already looking to replace my suit with one that has a hump. Sigh.. Growing pains I guess