winter Riding - flipping heck, chickened out today! 8-S

[marty400]

Hiya All,

Is this an age thing? Older wiser?!
Free afternoon today, I could have gone for a spin on bike. However, yesterday driving the car, out on the roads I would have rode on... CAR ABS came on 3 times and traction control once!

The Roads I would have rode on - untreated uk back country roads, black ice, bumpy, under trees etc...


Current tyre on NC29, awesome during summer, but iffy in the rain...
(Tyres on CBR600f better in bad conditions, but bit of a commuter bike... not much fun to just plod around...)


ABS bikes better in these conditions?! or just simply better to spend time doing up bike instead during bad days like this week!?!


How are you guys doing?!
I just don't fancy AF50, and constant washing regime as a past time!


Cheers
Martin

[Davez29]

Sadly I'm a bit of everything in your post. Last time out was last Friday, my fingers were nearly dropping off, worst I've felt in a long time but the roads were dry.

Since then I have left the bike at home, snow, ice etc not floating my boat. I'm also scared of dropping the bike, something I can't afford to do. Its covered in acf50 and I recoated it a couple of weeks ago, I went to work after coating it and two miles down the road I stopped at some lights and in the dark with red stop lights on it looked a bit odd as I was covered in a swirling red mist of burning acf50. Must have looked odd.

Main problem for me is I tend to ride out of hours when its colder and darker increasing the risk of ice covered roads and the amount of salt put down is amazing, feels like your riding on a sandy beach in some parts ( as it dissolves your bike). Still it will be summer soon, sort of.

[marty400]

Hiya Durka,

Oh right not just me knocking about with ACF50!

In the end I started using that scottoil 365 - or whaterver its called. THe ACF50 was a right bast*rd to get off in the spring.

Go easy there fella 8)

Regards
Martin

[Davez29]

A good flush with gunk, stiff brush and warm water normally gets any stubborn acf50 off. I do find it amazing that it does stop on although it looks dry dirt rub your finger over a dirty part it normally slides off still leaving a layer of the stuff attached. Mind you I do cover the bike, not just rub over with a soaked cloth as acf50 bods advise.

My tires are Pirelli Rosso2 they seem OK but Im so gentle on roundabouts in bad weather anyway. I think we need one of those Honda Groms for the winter I'm sure with the right tyres they would be brill.

Dave

[dunkenb]

Been riding my 29 to work and a few mornings the back wheel was spinning up on ice!!! Brown trouser time!
Very twitchy, im sure it wasnt this bad when i was younger and on a 125. Maybe i just didnt scare that easily.

[Davez29]

Yes I think your right on the age thing dunk. When I was younger riding my bikes in the snow seemed to be the norm, it never stopped me and can remember bombing down the local roads in between the six inch deep ruts in the snow without a care.

On Saturday I took my bike for its MoT and while wet greasy roads with piles of salt put me off, I took my time and it wasn't bad until I turned the corner to the bank with the MoT station at the top and noted the the white half frost hard ice puddles at the top, I nearly shat! A right sweat on for the last 50 yards. Then lo and behold a sixteener on his moped came bombing up the hill without a care in the world sliding across the ice with a 90degree flare and stopping with perfection and no hint of any worries of ice underneath him as he stepped off.