The next few days are supposed to be dry, sunny and cold which is perfect motorcycling weather. I have not ridden my bike since buying it in September and have to say that I am a little nervous. I thought tomorrow morning would be a perfect opportunity because the roads will be very quiet and wifey and I are not expected at the kids until 1.00pm. I then suddenly started getting thoughts about ruining everybody's Christmas because I might come off and end up in A&E thereby spoiling everything for everybody. As wonderful as a maiden ride sounds and feels I can't get these negative thoughts from my head and have decided to go with the old adage of, if in doubt, don't! Have any of you guys ever had similar feelings?
I'm really looking forward to riding again in the Spring. Salty roads and the cold have no appeal to me at all.
Only natural after a few weeks/months off riding imo. Especially as we get older. You could always look at the other side of the coin though and take your caution as a good thing/sign that you’re ready to ride albeit sensibly.
Christmas Day is the best day for a ride in this country by a mile if the weathers as expected tmrw. Make the most of it, they don’t come along very often!!
Don’t over think it, just go for a steady potter for half an hour or so. When I feel unsure about going out riding I try to force myself to, like today and I was really glad I did because it was just what I needed.
OMG, so many lovely and sensible comments from you all that I cannot thank you all individually. I think i will and just be uber careful because there will not be many other opportunities when the roads are empty. I sincerely appreciate all of the honest thoughts given.
I’d love a ride out tomorrow but I do not wish to face of Lady Vader, she is more powerful in the dark side than me. Hopefully get out over the Christmas period, not ridden for 2 weeks
When I dropped in on my aunt and uncle Christmas Day on the 999 - Cheltenham to Tanworth-in-Arden, however far that is - it rained more or less all the way there and back. Still enjoyed it though.
i aggree with red, if the weather is on side its the best day for the year, no one about, ive been doing it for years, go out early get a blast in before 10 i plan on riding tomorrow start with it in wet mode (boring) and if you feel good go up to sport (better), and try to finish in race (the bollox) and fuck those dark thoughts clean off
Been lovely here in Herts and North London all day if a little fresh. Didn’t manage to get out today but will be testing my new Xmas thermals tmrw for sure Roads are 99.9% bone dry too.
Been there as well, but I just ignore it and head out. For me it changed when we had our daughter and all the ‘what happens if I bin it’ crap started. I am now a very chilled (read slow) rider compared to the idiot was as a youth but that's no bad thing. I was planning on heading out today but walking the dogs showed a fair bit of black ice and as I have brand new tyres as well I have decided to wait for a better day.
I used to hate riding in winter in the UK, purely because the roads were always damp and the tyres never warmed up properly, conversely here in Spain I never ride in summer because it's too hot, but autumn/winter/spring are the perfect riding time.
I bottled it yesterday and didn't go out but just as well because we followed a gritter for about a mile on the way to the kids and its no fun riding on gritted roads in winter. Beautiful day today and not a breath of wind out there in Sussex. Hope everyone overindulged satisfactorily yesterday
As a courier riding in winter was inescapable and I'll do it now without a 2nd thought, but do my utmost not to ride for hours soaked to the skin. Not having to do it professionally makes that easy enough to manage. As an aside, note that I still rode hard - the time constraints didn't disappear because the weather was crap - but never came off; and the tyres were thinner, late 80s technology, as was the suspension (half the time late '70s). Not that it was a sensible thing to do - like up the motorway at 80, mere feet behind cars or bigger. On Crete I wasn't keen on the full face lid, but once the June bugs started bouncing off my face and I pulled the visor down, it was stifling. Too hot anyway and only really bearable after dark - when the notional road lighting and questionable behaviour of other road users made it entertainingly foolhardy. Actually I did come off in the winter - just not as a courier. Came off on a wet roundabout, possibly icy, on the Jota, with my girlfriend on the back.
It can get too hot in the UK sometimes. That all changed last year when I bought a Furygan mesh jacket. Fantastic on a hot day. Only drawback is the weather can change rapidly up here in the north east. If you start out on a blistering hot day and 150 miles later it clouds over, a refreshing breeze turns into hypothermia. I'm afraid I whimp out of winter riding these days. If it's mild the roads will be damp and dirty, if it's cold and dry they'll be covered in salt. The British winter is why God invented enduro bikes.
