Your coldest ride

[triman11427]

So I'm here in NY and its been 12-24 degrees. I've ridden in 19 degrees and I'm just wondering what the coldest temps you've ever ridden in? A little mid winter distraction thread.

 

[joneil]

As a sophomore at LSU back in 1980. I rode a 1976 Yamaha 650 Special ll from Baton Rouge, LA to Alexandria, LA on New Years Eve to see a girl. It was a night ride that almost ended in the next year. Wind chill hadn't been invented back then, but it was near freezing that night and without a windscreen the cold was almost unbearable. To top it off, I had no real cold weather gear. A nylon ski jacket and two pairs of jeans were basically the extent of my protection from the cold. When I got to Alexandria that night, I couldn't lift my leg off the bike. I had to back off the bike taking baby steps. I was cold for two days. Good times.

 

[TreeMuncher]

Back when I was a kid in New England, I would routinely ride single digits or teens off in the woods with the Hodaka or the trials bike. When the swamps were frozen and the leaves were down, there was more to see and explore. For one winter season, I did commute to work on the street when the snow was cleared in temps down to single digits.

Check out Sjaak's upcoming ride here: http://www.r1goesextreme.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=241&Itemid=274&lang=en

He's going to ride in extremes of 50 below or less. I hope his trip goes well. I will be watching his progress on the net.

Here in TN, I get to ride 12 months out of the year. Usually, if it's 35 or above, I ride. Coldest temps I've been in so far was 27-28 last November leaving out in the early AM for Oklahoma. The only thing that really gets bad cold on the Tenere are my feet. I need to build some deflectors to solve that problem or get electric insoles. The Cycle Gear Freeze Out booties are not cutting the mustard when it comes to keeping the dogs warm.

 

[~TABASCO~]

The coldest was probably 15-17* I was on the FRJ doing about 75 on the high way.. I think other people thought I was crazy... I dont know what the wind chill would have been but that was pretty cold...

This was another pretty cold ride with some pain involved....

It was about 20-25* out... I didnt think much about that until it started sleeting and hailing... That was bad... I was at a place on the high way there was no cover to be had. I was cold (I didnt have the good gear back in the day) and the sleet and hail where beating the S&*T out of me.. When I got home it looked like I had been shot with a paint ball gun about two hundred times.... I though I was going to die on the bike... That really sucked...

 

[eemsreno]

When I left home this morning it was 7f, but sunny and it wasn't bad. " Wee " was the ride.

 

[EricV]

I've ridden all day in 20-22F with heated gear, but the lowest recent ride was last Winter at 19F. Left the house at a nice 45F and gained a few thousand feet of elevation while the temps dropped like a rock. At our brekkie stop that day, (about 10 am), we met some 1%ers that were heading back the way we had come and told them of the temps. One guy responded with, "I think I'll wait a couple more hours..."

 

[snakebitten]

Left home (ran away) in a huff one time at about 17 years old. Jumped on my CB750 and headed for San Antonio. (200 mile ride) In my haste, I didn't consider warm gear. Jeans and a leather jacket and gloves.

Sun went down about half way there. I was frozen. Stopped at Franks Restaurant in Schulenberg. Cold water on my hands burned like fire. The manager said I was white as a ghost and that they thought I might be frostbit.

I made it to San Antonio. I stopped a few times to just feeeeeel the relief of less wind chill.

I couldn't and wouldn't tolerate those crazy youthful events anymore.

 

[ST-venture]

I rode the Tenere to work one day last month at 13.1F (currently in the top 10 on the coldest ride list at ST-owners.com). Last year I rode my ST1300 to work at -2F but the thermometer I was using, for the ST-owners coldest ride list, only showed 11F. So I ended up tied for 10th on their list last year.

 

[Danno]

While stationed at KOTAR Range Korea in 1982 I rode a Honda 90 around in 4° F. Snot freezes right up in that kind of temperature.

 

[88millimeter]

I had just sold my truck and i wanted to purchase an fz1 in dallas for my mexico trip when i left beaumont tx it was 78 F in february, when i rode back the next morning it was 36 F and i was not prepared. The only protection i had was the textile riding jacket that came with the bike. My wife drove the car back and complained because she had to drive for 5 hours by herself, poor thing.

 

[GrahamD]

I had just sold my truck and i wanted to purchase an fz1 in dallas for my mexico trip when i left beaumont tx it was 78 F in february, when i rode back the next morning it was 36 F and i was not prepared. The only protection i had was the textile riding jacket that came with the bike. My wife drove the car back and complained because she had to drive for 5 hours by herself, poor thing.

Why don't people use newspapers to keep warm anymore?

If you get caught in the cold you buy a bunch of newspapers and stuff 'em in your gear. (flat) Used to work id you were caught short.

I'm sure it's not as good as all the trademarks but it worked for me a couple of times. Must admit I did ride for a long time once in the cold and that old trick never occurred to me at the time. It was only a day later that I remembered. :

 

[SuperCruise]

I've ridden a few times to work in -7C (19F), but that was only for 20 mins. The coldest I've ever felt was riding for about 1.5 hours just under freezing. I sat in a chair all rugged up in a warm room for about an hour before I started to get any feeling back. In hindsight, I was so cold that I was not riding safely at the end of that ride.

 

[Dirt_Dad]

Never run across anything colder than 23 degrees when I've been out. Heated vest, gloves and grip warmers made it all comfy while on the bike. Somehow after I get off the bike and back into the house all of a sudden I've got a chill I can't shake. Should have stayed on the bike.

 

[MidlifeMotor]

I rode to a Sunday morning church event a few weeks ago when the temp was 25F per the Weather Channel. However, according to my trustworthy S10 display, it was a pleasant 62F. Couldn't figure out why my hands were so cold )

 

[True Grip]

28f across the Cherohala skyway one November morning. The trees were coated white with ice from fog, the sun was out, the road was practically empty. One of the prettiest ride i"ve done. My feet and hands were numb as i sat at the store at Tellico drinking coffee. It took about an hour to thaw out and get some feeling back. One of those rides i won't forget and would do again. I did spring for the heated grips on the Tenere and enjoy them and will add more heated gear as needed.

 

[knutte-bor-i-amerika]

It was the first race of the year in the mid1980's on Thirteenth Day of Christmas, not celebrated in workaholicy America. On my YZ 125 enduro, it was -22C, at least I had gripheaters but my face.....after that the minimum temperature was raised to -20C to hold a race in Sweden was introduced. Lot of people had freeze burns. I thought I was going to lose my thumb, it was getting blackened out for a week!

 

[211john]

Last Sunday I rode from Reno to Monterrey. It was in the teens at my house when I left. I think the temperature as I went through the Donner Pass area was in the 20's.

The hardest part for me is keeping my hands warm. I use Tusk hand mitts from Rocky Mountain. They fit good over the stock hand guards. Combined with heated grips I can wear normal gloves. For some reason on this trip my heated grips wouldn't work. I think the relay was frozen because they worked fine the next day. So I wore fleece mittens and I was fine. I also used hot hand feet warmers which prevented my toes from getting cold.

I bought a heated vest just for this trip. Never had one before and I like it. I could have survived without it but it was nice.

 

[1310]

25F (-4C) today. God knows what it was at speed.
No heated anything

 

[Jap_STi_3]

Zero Degrees - http://trinityzxr750l1.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/zero-degrees.html
Lowest ever was riding back from Coldits in Former East Germany set off back at 4.00am at -8 stood still had ice build up on the crash bars and my arms! No heated gear on either.

 

[timothy.davis]

My first bike was an Orange Kawasaki 1970 something 500 CC triple two stroke with a Mr. Natural decal on the gas tank. Bought it in California you know. Not really the best bike to learn on but I was twenty years old and wise. Was discharged from the USMC in January of 1976 and headed for Bloomington Indiana the second week of February. For cold protection I had a complete USMC cold weather suit and a bright yellow rain coat big enough to fit over it all. Still having the military hair cut coupled with being on a motorcycle proved to be a huge disadvantage when trying to get a hotel room. People in those days did not want you or the bike around. I rode a 12 hour day in the Dallas Fort Worth area, 32+ degree weather and rain. Was then turned away at a hotel in Mt Pleasant Texas, no vacancies for the yellow clad biker dude with a military haircut. They lady behind me was given a room, and then I demanded one and was accommodated. When I got to the room I lay down for a second and woke up twelve hours later, still in the cold weather gear and rain coat. The following day saw a steady decline in temperature and when I reached Dyersburg Tennessee it was 17 degrees. The first two things I was asked when checking in to a hotel were: Son is you in the military? Son is you on a bike? I thought here we go again. Then the kind gentleman proceeded to give me a room on the first floor. He said son I want you to put a piece of card board down so you don’t drip oil on the carpet. That bike won't start if you leave it out this cold. Then he told me to get cleaned up and join them for dinner in the dining room. We got Catfish and hush puppies son and we got a piano player. I will never forget that hospitality. It just didn’t happen in those days to short haired biker dudes, on an Orange motorcycle, wearing a bright yellow rain suits. The last day saw me home after riding in 17 degree temperature the entire way. Thank goodness for the shape I was in after my stay with Uncle Sam's Misguided Children and youth, lost twenty pounds during that seven day journey.