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Cold weather riding...

By B-Rock,
in Dual Sport & Adventure Motorcycling

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B-Rock

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Hey guys, I just have a few questions about your cold weather riding experience.

This year I am going to try and ride for as long into the winter as I can (both on and off road.... I will be switching over to studs once the ice comes).

Do any of you have any tips or tricks for getting your cold bike started in the morning (ie switching to a hotter spark plug)?

What about things to be aware of that might cause problems (ie. switching to a lighter oil)?

and lastly, but most importantly; What tips do you have to keep as warm as possible (ie best helmet or gloves)?

All suggestions are welcome!! ?

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Beyond The Pale

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I'm not sure that my definition of cold and yours have anything in common. For me in Southern California it's anything below 10C. I don't have the clothing or much desire to ride below -10C.

When it gets cold I generally forget about riding gloves and wear my skiing gloves. As long as they are not too bulky they work pretty well. For riding gear check out what the snowmobile's use. What works for them should work on a bike too.

I've never had too much problem starting my chokeless XR600 down to freezing or so. Unless you are running 20W-50 oil cold weather viscosity shouldn't be too much of a problem unless you plan on riding at -20C or something crazy like that. It's really no different than the viscosity concerns for a car. A 5W oil like the synthetic 5W-40 Rotella will cover you no matter how cold it gets.

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spidennis

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While I never really had much of a problem while snowmobiling and staying warm, being on a non-faring type machine could is different. Last winter I was thinking this ...... it doesn't look like that crazy of idea huh? speaking of which, I threw out an old ac unit, just today ..... and that has lots of copper coils in it ......

heatexchanger2.jpg

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Teneighty23

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the first thing on me to get cold is usually my hands, i was just on a two week trip and hit some +8 weather and my hands got cold, i MAY invest in heated grips next year, and sometimes i wear a bandanna and balecalava. as for the bike i am going to try bootin around this winter with studded tires on sturgeon lake. so i will see how the bike and i behave. where in alberta do you live? i live in Grande Prairie. where you been on your DRZ?

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BeeDub

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Well, I don't even ride street yet, and I doubt I'll have to deal with this, given the weather in SoCal, but over on ADVrider, they talk about heated grips, AND heated clothing all the time. You can basically get full heat to your body by plugging into your bike. You might need to make some electrical mods to the bike, I'm not sure, you'd have to check. I'm sure there's more than one company, but one I've heard of is Aerostitch, I believe...

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njdrt-rdr

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It's a true case of you get what you pay for. I started with dual-stars ($30 ea) and went to hot grips ($80-$100 ea) for several bikes. You won't find more reliable or true warmth than the Hot Grips. Easy to wire in and much more rugged than dual-star.

Which model hot grips do you have and how do they hold up off road. I've used the daul star style and was pretty happy with them. Heated grips is #1 even if you don't ride in the dead of winter. Then just layer up as if going skiing. How many layers depends on what you ride. Tight single track and too many layers and you'll over heat.

In winter like 20 degrees, single tracking I wear thermal shirt, jersey and light riding jacket. Thermal bottoms and regular motocross pants.

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Ruffus

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A full face street helmet makes a big difference in rider comfort, when the air gets nippy, or look at snomobile helmets with dual layered face shield to prevent fogging, If you want to continue wearing a moto helmet for offroad, look at getting ski goggles for a no fog solution with a neoprene face & neck mask

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wgwgoldwing

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From a previous post of mine in the DRZ forum:

I went the electric gloves route.

eglove.jpg

I have heated grips on my Wing and they are great for the Wing, but on the motard my hands are much more exposed. The gloves are like wraping your hands in electric blankets. Elements surround both the palm and back of your hands and also the face and back of each finger. Nice and toasty. I routed the wires behind the body panels, gas tank and up through the number plate area. When not in use, I tuck the wires behind the number plate. I mounted the switch here (just below the choke knob):

egloveswitch.jpg

Only drawback is being "wired" to the bike. Routed properly though, the wires do not get in your way.

Also put on the Acerbis Rally Pro hand guard "Spoilers". They extend the surface area of the hand guard, dramatically reducing wind on the hands.

exten.jpg

Only other problem I had last year during the winter was with face shield fogging. Cured that this year with this neat little fighter pilot looking attachment made for my helmet (HJC-CL14):

helm1.jpg

It completly surrounds your mouth and nose. Your warm breath is seperated from the face shield. Actually helps to keep the nose and lips warm.

helm2.jpg

Zero fogging. No more riding with the face shield cracked to de-fog.

Other than that Joe Rocket Ballistic 5.0 pants, Ballistic 6.0 jacket, thermal undies, couple pairs of socks, balaclava, and I'm good all day down to 32 degrees. I simply won't ride lower than that. Drove my previous Goldwing into a patch of ice a few years back and don't ever want a repeat. Didn't crash, but it was a wake up call (a business left thier lawn sprinklers running and the temps dropped to about 20 degrees, needless to say the road iced over).

WGW

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B-Rock

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Only other problem I had last year during the winter was with face shield fogging. Cured that this year with this neat little fighter pilot looking attachment made for my helmet (HJC-CL14):

helm1.jpg

It completly surrounds your mouth and nose. Your warm breath is seperated from the face shield. Actually helps to keep the nose and lips warm.

Great info.. thanks!

Did that helmet come with the fighter pilot attachment thing??? or did you find that somewhere else??

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wgwgoldwing

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Great info.. thanks!

Did that helmet come with the fighter pilot attachment thing??? or did you find that somewhere else??

No, I had to get it seperatly. Got it here:

http://www.motorcyclecloseouts.com/sport/helmet+parts+&+shields/2

They make one for the CL-14 and a different one for the CL-15 / CL-SP. I forgot to mention they also make "chin curtain" which I also use (also on the above link). Good stuff to help keep the head and face warm.

WGW

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