Quick Thoughts: The Weather Perspective

Growing up in Southern California, I was very much used to the "curse" of the eternal summer.

It wasn't unusual to see sunny and 75 degrees for weeks on end. And in those occasional instances when it would rain, it was usually predicted far in advance to a point that it became an event to wait for the precipitation to fall. When that would happen, time just seemed to stand still, a mystic feeling would come over me as the world was being cleansed of the weeks of built up smog and grime on the roads. For just a few moments, I could sit back, watch the rain come down, and hide away for a while.

The rain carried a whole different aura during my time in the Midwest. When it poured, it was unpredictable and in most cases, relentless in its approach. It came in bursts and it disappeared as fast as it appeared. Us Californians consider the rain to be a major event. In my former life in Ohio, it was just another Tuesday. It was, drop by drop, annoyance and inconvenience. For me, it brought out a yearning for sunnier days, both in the weather and in the corners of my own mind.

Day 12-14: The Long Haul, Mother Nature's Free Bike Wash, and a Return to Peoria

**This series of posts recap my two-week trip to Billings, MT and back from July 1-16, 2013. For the entire list of my featured rides, click here.**

We left Buffalo, WY a little after 5AM and powered on toward Pierre, SD with absolute minimum stops for food, stretching, and biological needs. The first stop for gas in the morning is usually the longest because of breakfast. The tchotchkes I come across in the middle of nowhere are quite amusing.

Because motorcycle?

Several of our stops for stretch/bathroom breaks were quite amusing because of their outdoor art. Like this one in Wasta, SD (mile marker 100 on I-90 eastbound).

Stopped by a teepee. Because we had to go pee pee. It's crude. It rhymed. Deal with it.

We stopped in Pierre, SD for the evening. Check-in at the Super 8 there was a bit weird because it turned out the front desk had thrown out Rebecca's hotel reservation that she did online on her phone during breakfast (which was faxed from the reservation center afterward, and seriously, how do you do fail that?) and of course, they had to put us in a 2nd floor room on the other side of the building, far from where our bikes were parked. Anyway, good, authentic Mexican food makes it all better, and Guadalajara Mexican Restaurant just happened to be next door.

Surprisingly good Mexican food in Pierre, South Dakota right next to the Super 8 we were staying at. The service here? Great. The service at the hotel? No comment. Let's just say that my co-rider was *this close* [pinching fingers really close] to dropping a biotch.

We left at 4AM the next day to get as much ground covered before the sunrise. About 35 miles into the ride, we pulled over in Reliance, SD to put on the rain gear after watching a eeringly beautiful lightning show in the distant eastern skies. We then headed right into a hefty rainstorm that blew us around for 100 miles and leaked rainwater in every possible orifice on our bodies and our bikes. After stopping in Mitchell, SD (home of The Corn Palace) for an extended break and breakfast, we continued on through the remainder of South Dakota for another couple hours and into southern Minnesota where we were able to finally shed the rain gear later that morning and let the sun naturally dry us out. It was a straight shot through Iowa and then across the Iowa-Illinois Bridge back into the Land of Lincoln.

It was another hard-riding, 700-mile day, with short stops and long distances in between fuel tanks. Considering we were both on top-end touring bikes, getting through the straightaways was comfortable but quite boring since we didn't have any radio communication between the two of us. So waving and intermittent rounds of hand puppets and rear-view mirror Rock, Paper, Scissors had to do. Perhaps I'll get a CB radio installed on my bike when I grow up, or find more friends to ride with full-time.

We parted ways after a night stay in Moline, IL in the Quad Cities area, about 120 miles from Peoria, my second-to-last destination before heading back to Cleveland. Rebecca rode into the night for the long haul to Pennsylvania and then eventually back to Massachusetts. And if I had to mention one additional thing I learned from this very spirited trip, a well-timed bottle of Corona Light is a good thing after riding hours. Until next time!

When one rides a Honda Goldwing, bugs are never an issue. Eleanor, however, eats them up like cookies and likes to share them with me. Thanks for the adventure, Rebecca!

Riding the motorcycle in the rain?! You'll live, seriously.

I've come across many motorcyclists who only consider themselves "fair weather riders." Loosely translated, that means they're riding only when it's sunny and warm enough that jackets and other protective gear are, for some, cumbersome options. It also means avoiding weather that isn't ideal. If you live in Central Ohio or any part of the Midwest, being a "fair weather rider" can take away nearly half of the riding season thanks to the constant movement of clouds and precipitation in this part of the United States. A bad forecast for later that day can alter a route or cancel a trip with friends. With some practice and preparation this can be changed.

Unless you live in California or any part of the Sun Belt where impending rain can be predicted days in advance, preparing to ride in the rain is vital. The ability to ride well through a downpour is another skill a rider can add to his/her toolbox of motorcycling. Not only will you become more confident on your bike, you'll develop a deeper understanding of your two-wheeled machine.

Here's a few tips to help you out.

1. Gear: Take advantage of the many innovative accessories and gear that allow you to ride in every condition and, in turn, lengthen your riding season. Rain suits, gloves, boots, etc. are available for every need and for every style of riding. Do a little research online or go to your local motorcycle store to see what the powersports industry has to offer.

2. Time: If it's the first time it's rained in your area in more than a few weeks, give the road an hour or so to wash away all the oil and other road grime that's built up during the dry time.

3. Increase your following and stopping distances. Visibility (of you) and visibility (your view of the road) are reduced in the rain. Flash the brake light several times before stopping. Look around and at your mirrors for other cars and objects in your path.

4. Eliminate sudden movements. Take more time to think about where you want the bike to go. Deliberately make line changes visible and obvious to other motorists. Gradually roll that throttle and shift cleanly. Press both front and rear brakes smoothly and gradually until you come to that stop.

5. Take it easy on the turns. This isn't the time to slam into a corner or practice maximum entry speed. Your tires have good grip on the road. When you get more comfortable with your bike in wet conditions, try increasing your lean as you take turns.

6. Always have a way out. Drivers act differently during a rainstorm so be prepared for anything. I usually try to position myself to have at least one (or if I can help it, two) ways to leave my lane in case of a sudden stop, a flying object, or debris on the road. In some cases that may be an adjacent lane, a freeway shoulder, or (in an extreme case because this is illegal everywhere but CA) splitting between traffic.

7. Watch out for painted lines and tar snakes. Those things are slippery when wet, so it's a great idea to avoid putting your foot down on top of one when you come to a stop. When rolling over them, use caution as well.

8. The only way to improve on rain riding is to actually go out and ride in the rain. Travel on familiar roads. Ride to and from work. Take the highway. Practice makes perfect! With time, rain riding is just another moist day on the bike.

Rain, that drippy stuff.

Out of the near month I've been here in Ohio, I swear that it's been raining for half of it. I've probably seen more rain fall here in the last week and a half that I've seen in CA in the last two years. That could explain why everything is quite green and lush here. Hell, it's even raining right now! Most people could care less about precipitation, but the West Coast (unless you live in OR or WA) is in complete denial that it ever does rain, or have anything fall from the sky for that matter. And when it rains in Los Angeles, at least one street is completely flooded, regardless of how little it really does rain. Half an inch of rain in a day is "Flash Flood" status. I think Ohio would call that a drought.

For the motorcyclist, it's another round of puddles to play in. For me, it's a chance to do some research on better gear for the wet stuff. The motorcycle pants and gloves I wear are the biggest issue at the moment. I've been very successful with my Aerostitch Roadcrafter Jacket and I won't budge from that. However, the jacket can't stop anything else from getting flooded below the waist. It's not fun getting water in the crotch or the cold, wet paws on the handlebars. Time for some rainy day shopping!