Tips on riding in the rain?

[yellowK]

Rode home from work today in heavy rain. This was my first time riding in such weather. I was ok at speed and stopping was fine.

How about corners/curves at speed? It was a little unnerving... Judging from some test stops I did, I had lots of grip, but it was hard to fight that 'it's gonna come out from under ya' feeling during cornering.

Thoughts?

[windofthefallen]

Don't do it unless you have no other choice it stinks! Slow, easy and don't lean anymore than necessary. You need as much surface area for traction as possible.

[Psycho1]

+1, and avoid paint stripes running parallel to the direction of travel, and make sure you straighten up and cross wet metal cattle guards at as close to a 90 degree angle as safely possible.

[Mat0302]

but it was hard to fight that 'it's gonna come out from under ya' feeling during cornering.

As long as you have that feeling you will be ok, haha. you can have a little more confidence. just be easy on throttle control and good tires are a plus

[XelSS]

Don't do it unless you have no other choice it stinks!

now thats the wrong attitude to have...ive ridden countless times in the rain..if you have a jacket you stay dry...you take it easy on the throttle you stay upright. like my MSF instructors said, you still have at least 80% of your traction in rain.. just dont touch the paint. and always wait about 30 mins after the rain has started cuz thats when all the oil first comes up

[rexazz2]

hey yellowk

I have been caught in the rain more this season since I bought the Kat than ever LOL
it has been a wet one this year in ontario
Take it easy and dont forget that the oil will float up from the asphalt making it just a little slicker now that the hot weather is here

[tdrcomm]

now thats the wrong attitude to have...ive ridden countless times in the rain..if you have a jacket you stay dry...you take it easy on the throttle you stay upright. like my MSF instructors said, you still have at least 80% of your traction in rain.. just dont touch the paint. and always wait about 30 mins after the rain has started cuz thats when all the oil first comes up

+1000

The majority of riders that go down in the rain are ones that never get the experience of riding in it. They get caught without any experience and it freaks them out. It's not good to be surprised about anything when you're on a bike. It's good to get out in it to find out what you can or can't do so it doesn't come as a shock to you when you're caught.

Quick shift to get out of the high torque band, increase your stopping distance, stay away from cagers and painted lines. The 30 minutes tip is right on. And as long as your tires are good, trust them. Don't go dragging a knee but you will have traction during normal riding. Just use some common bike sense and you'll be fine.

[yellowK]

^^^ Thanks. I don't normally go pleasure riding when the weather looks questionable, but I bought the bike for the commute to work, so I don't want to be scared of some rain. Today I got caught in it on the way home. So I didn't really have a 30 minute waiting period at my leisure. I did practice some quick stops out in the country (paved road) and also some accelerations. But those damn corners kinda freaked me out. I know it's just a matter of overcoming that weird feeling like the bike is gonna whip out from underneath... I guess it'll just take some time.

[Psycho1]

If I start feeling like the bike is going to come out from underneath me, I slow down more lol.

[JBLUE]

A lot of praying might help

[yellowK]

A lot of praying might help

I don't think that would help me very much. I'm atheist.

[Zepp]

I find that doing a wheelie in the rain helps. That way you don't have to worry about the front tire sliding out on you

[yellowK]

I find that doing a wheelie in the rain helps. That way you don't have to worry about the front tire sliding out on you

Ummm... No.

[tzortn]

Here is a great thread on the topic: http://katriders.com/vb/showthread.php?t=58308&

[buckminster1]

Rain and stripes

I was riding home today and decided to test traction on the large white stripes used for pedestrian crosswalks. It was sunny and completely dry at 80 degrees. I was traveling about 20MPH on my '05 600, rounded the corner, and their it was. The front end nearly slipped out from under me. In all actuality, the front end slid out about 2-4 inches. Point is, white stripes are BAD!!!

A rain story:
A couple of years ago, I was riding in the rain on I-5 in Oregon. I was relatively unexperienced in the rain and rounded a slight turn at 75MPH. I hit a slippery patch, the handlebars began to wobble, and I am thrown off. Sliding down the interstate at 75 is quite an experience. MY front rim was cracked, I bent a fork tube, and broke off a couple of turn signals. But, I walked away with a minor scratch on my back without even a nick on my helmet. The beer gods were looking out for me.

My Interceptor never did that, but then again Oregon never had those MONSTER stripes like Washington state does. My Kat is now my daily driver/rider, so riding in the rain will be extra fun.