First ride to work today

[Alphashooter]

0630. Cracked the seal on the garage and watched my breath fog in front of me. I knew it was going to be painfull but i had been waiting for this day for too long.
Turned the key and hit the starter. She snapped to life with a whine and a growl, and began the warm up process.
Against my better judgement i peeked at the temp gauge. 45f Not too bad. What i didnt realize is that was garage temp. Once out on the road it dropped to 37f. Uh oh. Not good. Oh well. Too late now.
10 min into my 15 min commute i lost feeling in my fingers. By the time i hit the front gate I felt like a block of ice.
Curious though. I was grinning like a fool the whole time. I just love this bike.

[Nungboy]

Good for you Alphashooter! Where are you? Here in Tucson those are the lower temps we see in the winter in the AM so I have ridden a bunch in that BUT we are now warming up...lows in the 50's and we may crack 90 on Staurday! Wish you were here!
KEEP SMILING!

[t money]

Lucky you, it was 45 degrees in my garage this morning also. Only 28 outside so I didn't ride to work, patches of ice on blacktop in some areas. Sometimes Duluth, MN is too far north.

[drewl]

Good times. I have become a seasoned cold weather rider. I hate being cold, but riding makes it worth it. Layers. high 30s, 40s...no worries. The neck gator helps bunches. Supposed to be 60s this week though. Rock on.

[Alphashooter]

I'm in Central California. On a Navy base 150 miles from the ocean. Go figure. We get high 30's to low 40's in the mornings but it warms up nicely in the afternoons. Should be in the 80's by the weekend.
I have a trip planned to the sequoias this weekend. Cant wait. Pics up after the ride.

[Nungboy]

Ooh! I envy you the trip to the Sequoias. Big trees and fast bikes! How wonderful...enjoy!

[34468 Randy]

If there is no snow I ride. Exception being below freezing on a clear calm night. This is the recipe for black ice. If it is cloudy, there should not be ice, nor if it is windy. Agreed, layer and keep the neck covered. A heated vest under you suit makes and amazing difference. I have ridden many times where it started out a few degrees above freezing but by time I got to work the temp dropped a couple below. Yup it is nippy but worth it. Both personally and financially. Commute is about 100 miles round trip.

[Alphashooter]

It'll be the first with this bike. Saturday cant get here fast enough. Of course i'll be riding with a cruiser alongside but ya cant be picky.

[xShadowrider]

Originally Posted by Alphashooter

0630. Cracked the seal on the garage and watched my breath fog in front of me. I knew it was going to be painfull but i had been waiting for this day for too long.
Turned the key and hit the starter. She snapped to life with a whine and a growl, and began the warm up process.
Against my better judgement i peeked at the temp gauge. 45f Not too bad. What i didnt realize is that was garage temp. Once out on the road it dropped to 37f. Uh oh. Not good. Oh well. Too late now.
10 min into my 15 min commute i lost feeling in my fingers. By the time i hit the front gate I felt like a block of ice.
Curious though. I was grinning like a fool the whole time. I just love this bike.

Yesterday was my inaugural "bring your bike to work day". Plus 16 degrees centigrade-plenty good enough to veefer to the office. Topped off by many compliments on my new ride including more than a few from 20-somethings of the female variety. Made this geezer proud!

[KC-10 FE]

There's no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing.

KC-10 FE out...

[dskelton]

I had been waiting for the outside temp to get to 40. this morning it hit 30, and I thought, close enough! Lowest temp I saw during the ride was 23F. The Proclava is a godsend! Was a little chilly but still felt damn good.

[hondawolf]

If the temp gauge on the bike is around 35 or higher, I usually ride. Proper gear will make you comfortable. But I also have a very short commute of a few miles to work. But then visit the gf 20 miles away few nights a week. Usuaully in the high 30's coming home at night.

[drewl]

I live at the edge of the Sierras. It hase been 20s and 30s most of the winter. I rode on days that were closer to 40 and clear. I won't ride if the roads are wet, that's what the cage is for. I have started commuting on the bike since spring keeps trying to start. It snowed yesterday but the sun was out, so I rode anyway. I will be using the bike as much as possible this summer.

[PuCaudata]

The coldest weather I've ridden in was 28 degrees. The temperature dropped when I was out riding and the sun went down. That was on the temperature gauge...I was also riding into a 30 knot headwind. That ride was terrible...and yet still fun. I made a deal with myself...nothing under 35 degrees from now on.

[KC-10 FE]

In Germany, I rode a 88 Hawk GT to work. Hot or cold, day or night, rain or shine for almost 3 years. The only time I didn't ride to work is when there was ice or active snow fall.

KC-10 FE out...

[Shinigami]

With the right gear the only thing that stops me is ice on the roads. I rode several times in January here in SLC and have been riding on and off all winter, ice permitting. A windproof neck gator and balaclava make a huge difference.

I find myself riding in rain just to practice smoothness- that's the key on wet roads as far as I am concerned. Only thing I don't like much is riding wet roads in traffic into the setting sun after a rainfall- visibility can get bad in a hurry.

[goinphaster]

Originally Posted by Alphashooter

0630. Cracked the seal on the garage and watched my breath fog in front of me. I knew it was going to be painfull but i had been waiting for this day for too long.
Turned the key and hit the starter. She snapped to life with a whine and a growl, and began the warm up process.
Against my better judgement i peeked at the temp gauge. 45f Not too bad. What i didnt realize is that was garage temp. Once out on the road it dropped to 37f. Uh oh. Not good. Oh well. Too late now.
10 min into my 15 min commute i lost feeling in my fingers. By the time i hit the front gate I felt like a block of ice.
Curious though. I was grinning like a fool the whole time. I just love this bike.

WHAT!?!?! I motion to revoke Alphashooter's motorcycling man card for suspicion of fair weather riding practices ! are you kidding!?!? with the exception of night riding during the winter, Lemoore is good riding country! did you know there are people in this country that would give their left nut for the weather we have?! It nearly brings a tear to my eye when I think about all those poor souls that can't ride due to extreme cold (sniffle...) . my heart goes out to them all. There should never be a seal on your garage in California unless you live above 4,000 ft. For shame!!!!!!

(Disclaimer: the above statements were made in jest, but in all fairness I have ridden to work at least once a week for the last two months- and I work mids!)