Ice/ winter riders

[bronjeremy]

Does anyone run year round in cold weather? do you use a different weight oil in the winter? also if anyone runs on ice what kind of studs do you use??

 

[anrkizm95]

it your bike sits out side.10/40 weight.

 

[Morbid]

I sit on my bike in the warm garage, act like I'm riding and make engine noises. No oil weight change needed.

 

[BurningExample]

+1 for morbid

thought i was the only one haha

 

[Zeroflat24]

I sit on my bike in the warm garage, act like I'm riding and make engine noises. No oil weight change needed

[up]

 

[Morbid]

In all seriousness if you want to ride in the winter do what I did and purchase something like a DRZ400SM that won't hurt the pocketbook as much when you slide on something and lay it down. However I have yet to lay down my DRZ400SM in the winter sitting on it in my warm garage making engine noises.

 

[anrkizm95]

lol[up]

 

[CowboyKS]

I surf Buell blogs during the winter and occassionally make very pithy yet insightful comments.

 

[beefy99]

I used to ride year round. I never changed weights, but then again the bike was kept in the garage at night. Good luck and invest in some heated gear the stuff is a life saver.

 

[lifeisafractal]

I go all winter in New England, I'll go out as long as there is no snow (as cold at 10 degrees). I didn't change oil weight either. The only thing I can say is let the engine warm up at idle for a good while (5ish minutes). I blew my rocker box gasket by jumping on the bike too quickly.

 

[moshaholic2]

this has gotten me thinking....

buying a little 125/250 old school street legal enduro.. drilling the tires and putting car studs (NOT the big ice racing studs)

Some grip heaters. and have some fun on the way to work each day

 

[Hammer]

All year round here 10w40 works just fine in cold temps. Coldest ride was minus 6. Got some interesting looks that day, Also Gerbings heated gear is the best **** out there I was actually too hot at the end of that ride.

 

[g3STRIKES]

switch to liter oil if u plan to ride in extreme cold i just blow my forced air propane heater on buell for bout ten minutes then let idle while i get suited up no probs, no ice riding yet

 

[bikepilot]

I ride every day no matter the weather. I run 5w-40 synthetic. Its the same as 10w-40 when hot, but flows better when cold.

I've only lived in DC and MA so haven't had huge issues with snow/ice. I've been able to ride the sportbike almost every day and if there's a lot of snow I take the dual sport bike. It is slippery on snowy/icy roads, but rideable. One of these days I'll toss some studded tires on them. As said, don't run ice spikes on the road, they'll all get torn out of the tire, worn down, have poor grip and tear up the road. You've gotta run covers on those just to roll the bike from the truck to the ice for ice racing

For studded tires, have a look here http://kevinscycleracing.com/
click on tires, then scroll to the bottom. check out the dual sport tires (MT-21) titled "WINTER STUDDED TIRES FOR DUAL SPORT BIKES" - something like that is what you want for riding on the road in the winter if you get a lot of snow/ice.

 

[bronjeremy]

 

[PPDRGN]

I have been riding all of this winter season down to low 10s, with mobil-1 20w-50 synthetic. and no change in performance. Do invest in heated gears like gloves and socks... njoy riding and stay safe...

 

[vance580]

I ride all year but I'm in NC so no snow or ice. Just gets cold some mornings especially when it rains. I still run 20w-50 but I let it idle while I gear up. I dont run heated gear but I bundle up pretty good. I dont ride at night in the winter which is probably when I would need heated gear here. Been out in the 20's and was good with my layering.

 

[creeping death]

took this pic today.

AMSOIL 20W-50

 

[riverotter]

Wow, you guys are serious about the snow & ice rides. In the words of Shaggy - ZOINKS! I'm not brave enough to dare those conditions. Minnesota can throw some pretty nasty stuff at us...I was pretty jazzed that I got to ride a couple times in January, and then again today. Fortunately, this winter has been pretty mild so far, but I'm still itching for the spring thaw. Ride safely guys.