[greywolf]

I'll check weather forecasts and do some adjustments for big storms. Heavy rain doesn't bother me but winds that bring down trees and major lightning could make me reconsider.

 

[superslomo]

I avoid it if I can, but I wouldn't necessarily sit idle waiting for it to clear up to keep going if I were already on the go.

 

[Buddugly]

I watch forecast and adjust trip plans accordingly. Generally, I try and avoid any rain whenever possible. Guess I just don't trust my reflexes and judgement when the pavements wet. Good question and look forward to others responses.

 

[seuadr]

I don't go out of my way to avoid rain, but like greywolf, i check for storms and try to avoid them.

 

[Ditmo]

Rain doesn't bother me. I always have rain gear with me on the bike. Wind is a whole other matter. Those 50-60mph gusts induce too much pucker factor for me.

 

[V-Tom]

Not me!

Stroms fear me!

..Tom

 

[Scott E. Bonds]

To me, the strom or any motorcycle is purely for recreational usage. Yes, I ride to work occassionally to remind my office drone mates that some people have a life outside of work....poor souls they are. But to commute I wear 2 tons of armor in the form of a tacoma truck, with windows and a roof.

I dispise rain because when its raining, 2 wheel motorcycling becomes an exercise in punishment at best and is bordering on unsafe at worst. And by unsafe I mean your visibilty of the road as well as others visibility of your bike. So, if its raining and I am only thinking of a day ride...I do something else.

But on a road trip, I assume it will rain sometime, bring the gear, and use the rain as an excuse to pull over and get some needed rest. If it's a soaker and I don't want to lose the time, I will ride in it. But my face shield keeps fogging up from my bitching to the weather gods from inside my helmet.

 

[larry0071]

I have rain gear at all times. I really don't look at weather, so I ride rain or shine. Snow will put me in the Powerjoke, but other than that I ride every day.

I kind of like rain riding, I know that is odd to say because most all my riding pals hate the rain.

 

[honest bob]

What Scott said:thumbup: There already is enough risk on a clear day for me. Lets add lightning, hypothermia, poor vision, for you and all the others out there, flying debris, falling branches and trees, antifreeze, oil, deisel, hail, fog, hydroplaning, slipery controls for bike, unknown depth of water on the road, and unknown surface under it. Are we having fun yet?:thumbdown:

 

[hornetguy]

My Wee is my daily vehicle, but I have a cage for a "weather back-up", and for when I need to stop to purchase larger items than I can safely carry.
Since I don't have any "good" rain gear, I usually take the car if the chance for rain is 50% or better. I generally don't deliberately ride in the rain.

I have been caught in rain, due to faulty weather forecasts (no, really) or bad timing on my part.. in fact, I was riding to work after a golf tournament one Sat afternoon, and rode through a complete and total downpour... cars were pulling over to the side of the road, because they couldn't see the stripes on the road. I just slowed down and soldiered on, the last 4 or 5 miles to work. Frog Toggs didn't work all that great.. I had several wet areas when I arrived, and of course, my shoes were soaked.. life goes on..

 

[aldntn]

Idea for a new product: GPS with alternate screen for local radar and weather advisory. I'd buy one. I've ridden in all kinds of crappy weather. I will avoid rain if I can but there are times you just have to punch through it or stop and wait. In the summer, if it is hot enough, I might even go looking for a rain cloud. I have had some fantastic rides in rainy/wet conditions.

Debris in the wind? A car is not safe either.

 

[John V Strom Jr.]

I also would try to avoid it at all costs, but on a trip, I will keep going if conditions allow.

In June, I was 45 minutes from Miller Motorsports Park at 7:00 PM, plenty of time to get there before dark. I had already ridden 45 minutes in the rain on I-15 which was treacherous enough because it was one big construction zone with lane switching and poor surface. But after a break, the wind was so severe even in town, there was no way I would attempt (actually I did give it a go) to go over the mountains between me and the racetrack. I was thinking it might be snow. Later on my trip however, I did ride through snow flurries twice in northern CA. That was weird.

 

[nobie381]

I check the forecasts and watch the weather maps. If it is not raining when I go to leave for work I ride. If the weather could be really bad I will take the cage. TOday for example there is a 100% chance of rain from 4-6 with it dropping to 70 after that. I would have rode but I don't know when I can leaving work and there is alot of red and white areas so lightening etc will probably be present which I do avoid.

 

[larry0071]

It's raining in the Burgh today. My rain gear is on the desk beside me. Not a big deal. The real massive wind can be a fun challenge, I've had a couple "interesting" rides in high winds. The wind is way more of a problem than some rain by far! It would need to pretty amazingly bad for me to pull the truck out of the garage.

 

[Scott E. Bonds]

My hat is off to you water riders.

 

[MoDaddy]

Like you _Edge, I too live in the Sonoran Desert, out in Vail actually.

For my response, I would need to clarify my two definitions of 'storms'.

From September to June, I will ride if the weather report states up to a 30% chance of rain. I might get a little wet. No biggie. Cold and wet is bad, but can otherwise be dealt with. Over 30%, I start to think about it.

From July through August, (our monsoon season) a 30% chance actually means that a third of the homes will loose shingles, a third of the trees will snap off at the ground and a third of the roads will be impassable due to raging floods and floating trees and roofs.

Given the weather in Tucson for the past week, I'm leaving the 'Strom at home. These ain't sprinkles, boys and girls. The weather station at DMAFB clocked 70 mph sustained winds for twenty minutes.

P.S. On Monday, my neighbors 50 foot porch and most of his roof was lifted up and flown 75 yards over to my place.
Our house looked like another house exploded in mid-air above it.

 

[V-Tom]

The only difference for me if it is raining is I put on my rain overgloves. If it looks like it is going to rain I put the overgolves in the right upper pocket so I can put them on while riding. My Roadcrafter 2 piece is waterproof for me. I commute with suit and tie under it and do so rain or shine.

There is no right or wrong to this, but, since getting good gear, there is nothing in rain that stops me from riding.

..Tom

 

[on_the_edge]

Like you _Edge, I too live in the Sonoran Desert, out in Vail actually.

For my response, I would need to clarify my two definitions of 'storms'.

From September to June, I will ride if the weather report states up to a 30% chance of rain. I might get a little wet. No biggie. Cold and wet is bad, but can otherwise be dealt with. Over 30%, I start to think about it.

From July through August, (our monsoon season) a 30% chance actually means that a third of the homes will loose shingles, a third of the trees will snap off at the ground and a third of the roads will be impassable due to raging floods and floating trees and roofs.

Given the weather in Tucson for the past week, I'm leaving the 'Strom at home. These ain't sprinkles, boys and girls. The weather station at DMAFB clocked 70 mph sustained winds for twenty minutes.

P.S. On Monday, my neighbors 50 foot porch and most of his roof was lifted up and flown 75 yards over to my place.
Our house looked like another house exploded in mid-air above it.

I was waiting to see exactly that sort of thing. Fortunately, it never precipitated where I was at, though it was certainly dangerous IMO. I saw someone on something like a Silver Wing come south trying to hold on for dear life. I presume they simply had no other choice, or at least they thought they had no other choice. Like Clint Eastwood once said though, "Dyin' ain't much of a livin'!" :iagree:

 

[larry0071]

I'll also add that in my area, we typically do not have high winds. We also do not typically have massive down pour rains, and when the odd super rain hits, you can park under a bridge or a building outcropping and wait the 15 or 20 minutes and the rain will almost always taper back off to a steady medium rain.

Maybe if I lived in some of the more stormy areas of the country I would react to rain differently, but around here with the hills, our weather is more scattered and broken up. Same with winds, I think the hills and valleys scatter it around more.