17-05-13, 10:06 AM
Wet riding brings a few issues, esp for those new to it.
My advice:
Make sure your tyres are at the right pressure (depending on load, it'll be something like 33F / 36R normal, or 36F / 42R loaded or two-up): some people reckon you should drop pressures (logic being "it increases the contact patch") - many newbies do fall for this (inexperience). If your tyres aren't right, nothing else will be.
Relax. If you're not relaxed, you'll end up "fighting" with the bike. I generally let the bike "do it's own thing", if that makes sense.
Decent kit: nowt saps your concentration like being cold and wet.
Finally: keep going out in the wet - couriers cope with it, because they're always out in it and thus get better at wet riding (practice makes perfect). There's no substitute for road miles.
FWIW, my bike is on Battlax BT020's atm, and never moved a millimetre in the wet. The back is due replacement in the next 500 miles or so due to squaring with a Conti Road Attack 2 being lined up as my (experimental) choice of rubber.
My advice:
Make sure your tyres are at the right pressure (depending on load, it'll be something like 33F / 36R normal, or 36F / 42R loaded or two-up): some people reckon you should drop pressures (logic being "it increases the contact patch") - many newbies do fall for this (inexperience). If your tyres aren't right, nothing else will be.
Relax. If you're not relaxed, you'll end up "fighting" with the bike. I generally let the bike "do it's own thing", if that makes sense.
Decent kit: nowt saps your concentration like being cold and wet.
Finally: keep going out in the wet - couriers cope with it, because they're always out in it and thus get better at wet riding (practice makes perfect). There's no substitute for road miles.
FWIW, my bike is on Battlax BT020's atm, and never moved a millimetre in the wet. The back is due replacement in the next 500 miles or so due to squaring with a Conti Road Attack 2 being lined up as my (experimental) choice of rubber.