Motorcycling in the winter

When it comes to motorcycling, there’s no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing, so make sure you get it right when winter arrives.

You might have noticed it's been getting cold. This is the time of year when a lot of riders give their bikes a good clean, wheel them into a corner of the garage, plug in a battery charger and forget about them until the spring.
Yet in some respects, winter is the best time to be riding because congestion is worse and parking a car more difficult. As we reported earlier this year, a small increase in the number of cars has a disproportionately large effect on congestion, and when the weather deteriorates, a lot more people drive instead of walking, cycling or riding motorcycles.
When you're looking out at cold rain driving against the windows and a bitter wind is bending the trees, it's tough motivating yourself to go out on a motorcycle, with little protection against the elements. But get past that initial barrier, and it's rarely as bad once you're out there, as long as you're properly set up for it.
The bike itself matters as there are some features which make a big difference. A fairing is a major advantage: the bigger the better. A big touring bike like a BMW R1200RT will even keep most of the rain off you, until you come to a stop that is, but it's more difficult to ride through heavy traffic than smaller bikes. Even a small screen makes a noticeable difference as the key is reducing the speed at which the wind is hitting you – this also reduces the windchill factor, which above 60mph is substantial.
A very useful accessory is a pair of hand guards, common on adventure-style bikes. These also break the wind pressure against your hands and stop rain hitting them with such force. Or try handlebar muffs, which wrap right around the bar and your hands – these certainly work at staving off cold but they can be clumsy to use and it's common at speed for them to push back on the clutch or brake levers.