For those who live where the snow sticks around for a few months:
When are you comfortable starting to ride, especially on freeways with full cloverleafs?
Some some people out on Saturday driving into Minneapolis. I am not ready to trust that the residual salt/sand is gone off the entrance/exit ramps. Do a lot of you for a good rain or know the streets have been cleaned up before riding?
I can even think about it until the driveway and dirt road dry up a little. There is a lot of really muddy soft spots that I don't want to deal with, they toss my car around enough.
Mike
We still need a realy good rain in the Mid-Atlantic to get rid of all the salt still around.
No snow left, but still some cold nights that freeze some roads up.
My pace will be slow until April. Not a bad idea to ease away from winter cobwebs in the rider's head anyway.
Come on, these are outside toys. I rode to work in mpls today ( bloomington to mounds view). Nothing melted but my "when can I ride" bad mood. Sand, salt and the occasional icy patch just keeps the heart beating.
Long time Minnesota rider here.
I like to wait a bit, I heard some bikes out this weekend and felt the itch, but....
Sand you can deal with, just slow down and pay attention. SALT, tons and tons of the crap, raises HE double hockey sticks with all the aluminum on the bikes. I like to wait for at least one good rain just for the salt.
I also like to wait a bit and let the more adventurous riders get the cagers reacquaited with motorcycle season if ya get my drift.
we did however fire em up this weekend just to hear the thunder.....
If my driveway wasn't 1/4 mile of mud I'd have been out this weekend [moto]
I'm in Toronto. 1st ride of the season was Saturday. Rode to work this morning. The roads are mostly clean except along the curbs. I'm just taking it easy and avoiding sand/salt whenever possible.
im in michigan, and rode this weekend...
but we had some major rainy days last week that i think got most of the salt.
what's "snow?"
[cheeky]
I am not up north, but I generaly wait untill after the second heavy rain of spring. Sand has taken me down in the past.
i've seen bikes on the roads already in new england,
but i like to wait until a couple of good hard rains...
i also like to take it slow for a few weeks until i'm more comfortable riding again.
it won't be long now [moto]
It's definitely motorcycle season here.
I heard the downtown squid crew revvin' it up all weekend. And the blat blat of the Harleys and custom cruisers. But for some reason I couldn't hear much of anything over my open airbox. ;D
We'll probably get a snow dump sometime this Spring, but so far it's weirdly warm here.