Bonneville America Forums Forums Off Topic Discussion Forums Lounge End of commuting season

With the time change this weekend, the commute to work will be in the car until next spring. As the years go by, tolerance for cold weather riding is waning. A few years ago it was 40 degrees, then 50. Now it's 60 plus for an hour long morning ride.

Perhaps if the new Trophy were in the garage, I could go back to the old riding habits.

Yup! I aint that old but when I hit the road at 545 and it's 55 degrees at the house and 44 degrees at work, that hour sure seems a bit longer. Plus I hate riding all bundled up, no freedom of movement, too restrictive.

Ya know I don’t like the cold weather and I aint that young anymore. The better part of my life is most likely in the rear view mirror but there is just something about being bundled up wearing the leathers, the cold chill whistling around your neck that gets the blood pumping.

Well that and my heated jacket liner and heated gloves.

Something to consider --- Batteries! Read, "Great for deer stands too".

That Longmens shirt looks like the ticket,,, but I need SOCKS and pants. My trunk always stays warm(but bulky)

Mines wrapped up and put to bed. Temps are below freezing and some snows have come. There will still be the odd warm day but ..... sigh..... until next spring....

My bikes are put away for the season. I found heated storage for free, so this winter there are no bikes in my living room or kitchen!

I really hate letting Black Beauty sit in the garage all winter & am prone to "running round the block" (a quick 5 mile jaunt) regardless of the temp just to keep her happy. (it's a zen thing ya know)

Yesterdays ambient temp outside for my 5a.m. ride into work was a brisk 38F & fired the girl up for the 35 minute commute. Today a bit warmer @ 40F. I don't mind gearing up for the ride.....BUT.....any colder than 38F and I'm driving the cage! Stopped by my local bike shop to get a new pair of gloves (couldn't find my 400 gram Thinsulate gauntlets & my finger tips got cold this morning. They were a pale when I pulled off the 200 gram thinsulate hunting gloves I wore for the ride).

There's a lot to be said for the brisk wind in your face that early in the a.m. and the endomorphine/adrenilin rush of pushing the envelope of tolerance. But when the cold rains & snow fly it's just not prudent to ride at all....so I hang out here and wait for Spring.

My wife is impervious to the weather. Me, with my numerous broken bones and shredded joints, not so much.

So, with some of you stuck at home... time for some music?

Would like a full fairing bike w/heated grips. The wind at at 70+ mph are rough on the fingers. My core remains warm but arms and legs don't.

Seven more months before my wife gets out of grad school. It's taking every penny made to keep my nose above water. When she starts earning money, it'll go towards much needed home improvement projects. A new bike is waaaay down the list.

Quite a few UK bikers put their steeds away for the winter but as I cant use my bike for work (I take two dogs) I ride whenever I get the chance. We just had a week of rainy damp evenings but today I was off and it was as a breezy, sunny and dry but fresh(38 deg), so it was too good to miss. It certainly put a glow in my cheeks and blew the cobwebs off! Even though the chill got through eventually, it still didnt take the smile off my face!

I've never 'winterized' a bike. Even when I lived in Colorado. As long as the roads aren't covered in ice and snow I can at least get them warmed up and the bearings moved a bit.

Eddie, it's hard to imagine that the winters are that harsh in Arkansas. I know you get ice storms and the like.

Winters aren't that harsh. The thrill of riding to work in 40 degree weather for the last seven years has gone. Also, getting bundled up every morning for work gets old. Still ride during the winter when weather permits.

Another contributing factor, dusk and the thick population of deer along hwy 70 exceed my comfort level.

We all have our limits. Mine is slippery roads. Temp is not usually a limiting factor. I can dress for cold but those tires suck in snow.

If it's dry, I ride. If it's wet and above freezing, I ride.

As long as the roads are dry and the temp is above freezing when I leave for work (~7:30) I ride, year round. Generally speaking its rare that I go more than a week to ten days without being able to ride to work - and wet, sandy/salty roads probably eliminate more days than low temps.

Admittedly it takes me awhile when the temps drop - mid-thirties still seem too cold right now, but by December I won't think anything of it. I am thinking of better, if not heated, gloves and a helmet with better ventilation to reduce fogging up.

This week I start pulling 28' wiggle wagons hub to hub for UPS package division until Christmas is over.

100 mile daily commute via 2.2 liter GMC = $83 per week for Fuel

100 mile daily commute via 865 cc Triumph = $50 per week fuel

Might have to dust off the crash bars and wire tie some plywood on the fronts to keep the breeze off my shin bones. Maybe some heat packs for the toes and fingers.

When I first moved to Kentucky I enjoyed the changing seasons. Now that winter is fast approaching, I wish I was back in So Cal. I'll take earthquakes over snowfall any day!