Keep warm on cold roads

No doubt about it, it’s winter. And, when temperatures drop into the low 20s and early teens, a motorcycle rider’s thoughts automatically turn to …. what gloves are going to keep his hands warm and how many layers will be enough?

There’s no reason to put the bike away all winter long, unless you live in the land of 10,000 mud-ponds interconnected by frozen tundra. You do, however, have to ride differently.

What will kill you on a motorcycle is wind chill. If there is no wind at all and the temperature is a balmy 30 degrees, your 60 mph cruise down I-64 is going to subject any uncovered skin to temperatures of 10 degrees Fahrenheit. Not much fun.

The idea, then is to cover your skin. Motorcycle Cruiser magazine offers some solid advice.  So does the American Motorcycle Association.

Start with a full face helmet. It will keep your skin from freezing and keep your head warm. If you don’t groove on full coverage, there are a variety of balaclavas and headgear that will fit in and around open face and half-helmets. But full face is the most convenient and effective.

Colorado- based SOB Aaron Sylvester takes his wing skiing

You can buy devices that deflect wind from coming up into your helmet and freezing your chin. Those are good. Beards work, too, if you can grow one that doesn’t make you look like a bridge sleeper. And cover the neck. A bandana with a scarf over the top is going to help a lot.

Next look at the body. The big danger is hypothermia which is no fun. You get cold, your core temperature drops, you shiver, your teeth chatter, your reflexes slow and numb and your thought patterns go from ‘what is that old fool gonna do?” to “I’m so uckfing cold!”

That’s where a barn door fairing like the one on a Gold Wing come in handy. Big windshields help take the breeze off the body, too. If, however, you have your basic standard bike, get a big jacket.

If you’re a leather guy and cannot afford a major leather winter jacket – and who can? – grab some cheap, imitation ski jacket from Walmart that will fit over the top of it. Under the leather wear any variety of fleeces, sweaters and thermal underwear.

A nylon windbreaker over the fleece will keep warmth in. So, in a pinch, will a large garbage bag.

Overpants will keep your legs warm, especially as  your body chills down. As you get colder, the blood and heat are withdrawn from your arms and legs to keep your core warm, so a good pair of textile or leather overpants – with the omnipresent thermal underwear – will hold the heat.

For feet, good boots, thermal socks usually work.

Hands, on the other hand, are tough. It’s hard to keep your hands warm, even with good thermal gloves, if you are traveling at speed for any length of time. Heated hand grips help. So do those handwarmers you can buy at Blue Ridge Mountain Sports, Shenandoah Harley-Davidson and other outdoors stores and cycle shops.

They make a big difference as hands are the first thing to ache on a long run.

Electric gear is great if you have power connections on your bike or if you’re traveling a long distance. If you’re riding 15 miles to work on a commute, it’s a little too much.

Still, if it’s seriously cold out, limit your exposure by limiting your riding. Below-zero is probably not  good idea for riding, but down to 25 degrees, you can handle with no issue.

Just prepare.