side winds... when is it not good to ride?

[BorderHooner]

been looking at forecasts at the bbc wether centre.

at thee mo we have 30mph winds in our area.

does anyone bother looking at wind forecasts?
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[Lawnie]

Not really. If the winds are ever going to be dangerous enough, it will be broadcast on the news/weather on TV or the radio.

If you are out, and the wind picks up to the extent where it is affecting your handling, then just slow down!

[veeeffarr]

I have temp, conditions, windspeed, gust speed, direction, visibility, and sunset time constantly updating in my browser toolbar.

Anything over 12mph with 20mph+ gusts is a bit worrying, but to be honest I've been fine taking it easy.

[dainesefreak]

I never really had a major problem in high winds. The worst part tends to be gusting winds/or the blast you get from passing other vehicles. I tend to keep the bike in a responsive gear with plenty of drive/torque on hand and keep the bike in the power.

[firefox]

just dont go riding in 60+ gusts i found that out the hard way on a 50cc, basically stoped me and nearly blew me off sidewards also

[BorderHooner]

[dainesefreak]

You can get a bolt on for Firefox called Forecastfox.

[firefox]

https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/398/

[veeeffarr]

[doggone]

We get a lot of high winds over the moors and it has to be very bad before you can't ride.
It's gusty winds that can cause problems, would be worse on a busy road.
Bigger bikes cope better as they have more mass wanting to go straight on.

[stinkwheel]

Agreed. A constant sidewind is ok, just need to watch as you pass large vehicles/buildings for it hitting you again on ther other side.

It's gusting winds that are a real pain. Sit well forwards on the bike, slow down and stick your elbows out (don't know why but this seems to help).
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[Finglonga]

Sidewinds ok unless you are riding a ZZR1100....A moderate draught nearly had me off one, they are like sails in the wind.
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[HermanTheShee...]

Winds were pretty bad on the M9 today. The gusts are the worst, one blast and you can be blown from the middle of your lane out to the white line. On a gentle right hander, I was leaning left and still going right!!

Also watch when your stopped, I got wobbled a little at a junction, gusts can catch you off guard.
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[Type_Mo]

I thought it was quite fun being blown around side to side today
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[bazza]

[colin1]

on the tt600 side winds are no problem

on the yp250 they can be at high speeds on elevated bits of motorway or dual carriageway

the rs125 is much lighter, so is seriously affected by side winds and sudden gusts can push me to the outside of my lane

so sometimes lighter isnt better

i have set up my forecastfox to only show wind speed if i move my pointer over that days icon, so i rarely look.
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[ginguar]

I don't mind it that much when it's windy although it's never really pleasant. What I hate is when you are pillion and it is really windy. Not having control of the bike and getting blown around is f-ing terrifying.

[quacker_boy]

This brings back one of my most hilarious memories

I was on a 6RR and my mate on his Duke ST2 , we're doing a fairly shifty pace (only about 200 kmh, just cruising ) and the sidewind we were experiencing was somewhere in the region of 30 knots, we were hanging off our bikes like f**king monkeys to keep going in a straight line!
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[Johnny GSX-R]

Try riding in Holland

As its soooo flat and open the wind howls across and whacks ya.
I took the Blackbird over 2 yrs ago, my new bike doesn't like side winds so i'll not be taking that

[Walloper]

I've even tried eating charcoal.
But still have problems with wind.
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[doggone]

Who thinks naked bikes are better in cross winds than faired bikes. Me

[innominate]

Teh FJR just seems to plough through side winds.

You can feel it hitting the bike, but it does not actually move that far across the road.

Probably cause its quite heavy.
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[natv4]

Don't forget that cross winds can provide unusual hazards too.

Coming back along the A40 yesterday was very windy. The signs came on for 40mph. Sure enough a bit further on, a lorry had blown over in the winds and was currently lying accross the central reservation. Its cargo, mostly metal looking somethings, was accross the carriageway. Our side went down to one lane, but as traffic was light, this wasn't too bad.

What made me write was the thought of what it would be like to be close to that kind of thing as it happened.

I had just covered 450 miles in 24 hours, and I can honestly say that there were long periods of time when I barely noticed if there was other traffic.

But it goes to show that there are other consequences of a danger than the obvious ones.

Would you be able to stop?
Would you be too busy controlling the bike?
Would you notice if it happened at your side?

Hope I never find out.
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[quacker_boy]

[Jack_Cheese]

I ride in nearly any condition, bar ice or snow on the gound. I've got used to the wind, but if you're riding a 50cc, add 20 mins for each 10 miles of travel for a headwind at least in strong wind. They're absobloodylutely useless!

Jack
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