When riding on freeway, I'm scared of wind blowing me off, is it what you wear that helps this??

Question

I have been on the freeway twice since I bought my bike last year. I am scared because it feels like I'm going to get knocked off when I go over 60 mph. I think it's because of my heavy leather jacket. This jacket is not those jackets like in The Wild One. It must weigh like 4 to 5 pounds. I'm very light too, I weigh 140 lbs. My question is is it natural to encounter wind regardless of my jacket or is it the jacket?? If clothing's not a factor, what are some tips to ride the freeway?Thanks

Answer 1

Leathers will help out in the event (knock on wood) you should fall off, they will keep the road rash down considerably. Especially if your a young rider...wear your helmet. The wind at 60 mph always feels like it's pushing you around, if it worries you simply slow down to a speed your more comfortable with. After your a more experienced rider you may consider a bigger bike. They feel more stable on the road. A fairing will also help. Enjoy riding!!!

Answer 2

u dont say what bike u have, but i will tell u from experience a wind sheild does wonders in taming the wind blast at interstate speeds. some bikes can get detachable ones, others dont have that type.
another thing is, ur jacket has to be very snug. it has to be so that the wind blast doesnt make the back ballon up. this will make the wind blast feel worse than it is. a snug jacket and u wont notice the wind blast quite as much until u get some stiff cross winds. and contrary to what 1 said, a wind sheild equipped bike isnt hard to control in heavy head winds.

ur jacket should become like a 2nd skin. if u go down, a jacket that's too loose will wind up ridin up, and expose skin to the 'road grater'. the same with chaps. when walking they should feel very snug. when on the bike, they'll tighten up just a tad more, but not much. the wind field will find any loose areas belive me.

Answer 3

Keep that leather jacket on you, that jacket will save your skin if anything were to ever happen!

What type of bike are you riding?

At 60mph, the wind or air flow is not going to knock you off the bike, but it will feel as if it would like too. Not knowing what type of bike you have I can only assume you are either riding a Sport bike (small shield) or Cruiser without a shield. For both types of bikes, if you are really feeling uncomfortable on the highway, you can buy aftermarket shield that will deflect the air flow above you and you will feel maybe 20% of the wind. Regardless, you will get use to the air flow over time. I wear my leather jacket 99.9% of the time and the wind in the summer makes for a better ride than a shield stopping the flow and making me hot. Hope this helps.

Have fun and ride safe!

Answer 4

It's not the jacket. You weigh far less than a car, and will just have to get used to the wind. A full-face helmet is more aerodynamic and allows you to concentrate on riding instead of dodging bugs.

Sportbikes are more comfortable at speed than cruisers, because the wind holds you up and takes the weight off of your hands.

As far as crosswinds go, if it's really windy keep the bike in a smaller than normal gear and let the gyro effect of the engine help keep you upright. Other than that, just lean into the wind.

Answer 5

I weigh 115 and I have never been blown off my bike. When I wear my leather jacket or in the summer with no jacket at all it doesn't feel any different. You may still be nervous about the freeway.

Answer 6

When i first hit the highway on my bike was scared to death of the wind. I felt the same way, well not that i was going to be blow off the bike but more like i was going to be blown into traffic or the wall. The biggest thing i can say is that when going 80 u should try to crouch down and low if can that makes the bike feels a lot more stable. Another thing i Have to Stress to you is to not fight the wind, only go against the wind if you have to. But if you can let the wind blow you to one side and when it calms recover to you normal riding position in the lane. The bike is going to go where it wants to go so let it and adjust only if you see danger or if you really need to fight it to keep from hitting something. Other then that let it blow you where it wants. One thing i do that helps me is i tilt my head to side that the wind is blowing. I.e. if the wind is blowing left i tilt my head left. And as long as are holding on the handles bars you are not going to fly off.

Answer 7

I have a feeling that you don't have a windshield because that's one of the major issues in windage. The clothes do not really have much to do with it because I sometimes wear leather and sometimes I wear my Joe Rocket kevlar/mesh jacket - however, all clothes should fit snugly and not have any flaps, collars or lapels that are loose (not buttoned/snapped down)...Here's my best tip for you....whenever I ride on a divided freeway going in the same direction as a truck or in the opposite lane on a regular highway, I always move myself to the outer edge of my lane and put as much sideway distance between me and truck and this cuts down the windage drastically...

Answer 8

I'm about your weight, and have to hang on on the highway too. 65mph wind does push on you. If your jacket is large, it can act like a sail, and pull too. Leaning forward, so the wind holds you up helps. A windshield or fairing will help you a great deal. I found the fairing on my Honda increased the stability tremendously. Even blasts from tractor-trailers are hardly noticed.

Answer 9

It's not you - it's your bike. Some bikes are just more aerodynamically stable than others.

Naked, unfaired bikes often get pushed around in the wind more than fully faired machines. All that plastic enshrouding really helps cut the wind. I was amazed at the difference when I got my first sport-touring machine - much more stable than a comparable weight cruiser!

Answer 10

a leather jacket has a hard coat shell that helps the rider from being slamming around.a light jacket which can catch air feels like you are being slamed around.your jacket must be the same as your chess if your chess is 38 then you have to have jacket that is 38.