General topics » Winter draws near

In the UK you're never quite sure what the winter will throw at you.
Near the east coast where I live, it can be quite cold but snow or frost does not generally last long.
Sometimes we have snow but it is not guaranteed. It can be frosty and foggy and then sunshine all in the same day.
This makes it difficult to decide whether to lay up the bike or not.
I am quite lucky in that being retired I can get out if conditions allow so I tend to keep the bike road ready. Good clothing keeps the elements at bay and as long as the local council haven't been chucking salt about I can enjoy a winter ride.
I know that some riders have no chance to get out once the weather breaks so maybe the English weather has its good points.
Alan

Zitat von Alda im Beitrag #1

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In the UK you're never quite sure what the winter will throw at you.
Near the east coast where I live, it can be quite cold but snow or frost does not generally last long.
Sometimes we have snow but it is not guaranteed. It can be frosty and foggy and then sunshine all in the same day.
This makes it difficult to decide whether to lay up the bike or not.
I am quite lucky in that being retired I can get out if conditions allow so I tend to keep the bike road ready. Good clothing keeps the elements at bay and as long as the local council haven't been chucking salt about I can enjoy a winter ride.
I know that some riders have no chance to get out once the weather breaks so maybe the English weather has its good points.
Alan

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Cleaned he RS today and put her in the shed for the winter, it will come back on the road somewhere next spring.

Have a second bike now (G310R) and looking to trade that one in for one with more protection for colder riding. Considering buying an R1200RT or a K100GT, both have much better fairings and also heated grips and seats.

Mrs Bravo and I headed out on the RS this morning,it was a brisk 3 degrees but brilliant sunshine in our part of Norfolk. The strong wind had blessed me with bone dry roads and we had an absolute hoot. We did however get caught in a rainstorm of biblical proportions,the ROAD 5'S were fantastic as was the RS in the awful conditions. We thankfully made it home before the Thunder sleet started...... Winter? Bring it on.

I’ll be hitting the SORN button tomorrow & giving the bike a final wipe down before throwing the cover over it till spring.

Last ride was end of September. That’s life.

Now enjoying planning 2019 trip(s).

Good timing for this thread Alda, with the clocks going back an hour this weekend and morning frosts arriving. I went out for a beautiful autumn run through Staffordshire and Derbyshire this morning, the colours were magical in the low sunlight. The RS was a joy as ever and caught some attention at my favoured coffee stop in Ashbourne. Pity to see that local councils have now started to salt the roads, it’s necessary of course but for me (and many of you I guess) it means lengthy and detailed cleaning after every ride. Still that’s a pleasure in itself if you have the free time and Radio 4 to keep you company.
The neighbours must think I have nothing else to do as I spend Saturday afternoon cleaning the alloy and polishing the paintwork on my old R100RS - that was in prep for handing the bike over for a service later this week, I like to ensure my bikes are spotless before anyone else handles them, sets the expectation!

No salt up here yet, great ride out today totally dry and clean roads and can say the road5 performed well, unusual good weather for time of year.

Ged

Zitat von boxter im Beitrag #8

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No salt up here yet, great ride out today totally dry and clean roads and can say the road5 performed well, unusual good weather for time of year.

Ged

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Ged[/quote]
Bloody typical ain't it? We had a better day here too but had arranged to pick my youngest son and his girlfriend up in the car and take them out for lunch,I nearly cancelled and went out on me bike instead...... I fuckin hate being old!!!!!![/quote]

I feel for you Bravo, I agree that apart from the improved financial security there’s nothing good about ageing. I kneel on a swimming float to clean my bike - old bones and joints don’t like the cold hard floor !!

Zitat von Boxerboy im Beitrag #10

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Ged

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The biggest problem I have, is that now I'm retired people think I'm available to fetch and carry, do repairs, pick up children from school etc. etc.
They think they are doing me a favour by keeping me occupied when really I'd rather be out on the bike.
I'm going to opt for Mr Bravos attitude and come up with some excuse - stuff it, life's too short.
Alan

Zitat von wessie im Beitrag #13

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Zitat von Alda im Beitrag #12

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The biggest problem I have, is that now I'm retired people think I'm available to fetch and carry, do repairs, pick up children from school etc. etc.
They think they are doing me a favour by keeping me occupied when really I'd rather be out on the bike.
I'm going to opt for Mr Bravos attitude and come up with some excuse - stuff it, life's too short.
Alan

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tell them you have shingles and as they are highly infectious you need to be quarantined - they can re-occur at random and last 4 weeks

nobody will want to come near you or let you near their kids

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[quote=wessie|p7106]I just put the Tucano muffs onto my XR - giant R319 things that go over hand guards. Attached the SAE lead to the battery with pigtail sticking above the seat front ready for the heated vest & insoles.

I have fitted the XR handguards with a brace to the brake clamp. This has made a great difference to hand warmth in cold weather. The effect of the heated grips had been muted slightly by the fitting of grip puppies but with the hand guards they are now fine.
Alan