Riding during thunderstorms? | GTAMotorcycle.com

Riding during thunderstorms?

DOHC1

DOHC1

Well-known member
Forum Sponsor
I got caught in a thunderstorm recently, and it got me thinking.. is it a bad idea to continue riding due to the chance of being struck by lightening? In a car there is a metal cage surrounding us, so it feels safer. On a bike, I felt very exposed:agave: Any input?
 
Biggest issue to worry about is hydro planing and visibility. Me seeing the road and others seeing me.


Lightening? Farthest thing from my mind.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
If its raining that hard, just pull up under a bridge and wait for it to let up.
If there's a Timmy or a roadside gas bar with a restaurant, so much the better.
The main danger in a bad storm is the wind.
If its hitting you at the right angle, you start making all these unsignalled lane changes.
I almost wound up in the ditch one time because of the wind.
 
Last edited:
nakkers said:
Biggest issue to worry about is hydro planing and visibility. Me seeing the road and others seeing me.


Lightening? Farthest thing from my mind.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

This^ and if you really get drenched , your balls shrivel up.. I got drenched 3-4 weeks ago for about 1 hour non stop pouring... Came home took my clothes off to take a shower... Took a look at myself in the mirror and well I just now regaining my confidence back now..

Just saying...


"If i was educated, I'd be a damn fool"
 
cbcanada said:
This^ and if you really get drenched , your balls shrivel up.. I got drenched 3-4 weeks ago for about 1 hour non stop pouring... Came home took my clothes off to take a shower... Took a look at myself in the mirror and well I just now regaining my confidence back now..

Just saying...


"If i was educated, I'd be a damn fool"
Click to expand...

man, if some rain shrunk your balls I wonder what would happen in the face of real danger :dontknow:
 
Big hail in Waterloo right now.Wouldn't want to get caught on two in it.
 
Bet a lot of people got drenched today....boaters, bikers, campers....damn thing blew across Ontario at 80-90 kph ....that's not wind speed....but the speed of the front ......no time to react and get under cover.

It's belting down right now in Sauga, ligthing and huge rain drops....very heavy rain.

and some hail



mostly melted by the time I got the camera organized...decent size
That would hurt for sure at 100 kph

••••

I'm not worried about lightning - rather visibility both mine and being seen by others. Best just know the local weather and duck it.
This was very nasty today/right now

At 3 P.M. EDT, Environment Canada meteorologists are tracking a cluster of severe thunderstorms near Oliphant capable of producing local strong wind gusts and Toonie size hail and heavy rain. Motion is to the east-southeast at around 50 km/h. It will affect locales to the southwest of Wiarton up to 4 P.M. EDT.

Take cover immediately, if threatening weather approaches. Large hail can damage property and cause injury. Strong wind gusts can toss loose objects, damage weak buildings, break branches off trees and overturn large vehicles. Remember, severe thunderstorms can produce tornadoes. Go indoors and move away from windows and skylights.
Click to expand...



moving very fast and that looks nasty

http://weather.gc.ca/radar/index_e.html?id=WKR

might hit further south later



Movie night sooner than later I think....nice out now tho. Toonie size hail ????!

I'll pass.:rolleyes:

Updated 4.30 pm

Now the alerts are out for Kitchener

An isolated tornado is also possible. These storms are moving east-southeastwards at 80 to 90 km/h.
Click to expand...
 
Last edited:
Yesterday got caught 5 times on my way back from Pembroke area. What had i forgotten in the morning? Rain gear.

What was great is how they were like flash showers of 10m of less...so id dry up and then it'd rain again... rinse and repeat. But one of them was torrential ...like..storm..like limited visibility. I still kept going cause out there, there arent any bridges...and you never know where the sideroads will take you
 
statsman said:
If its raining that hard, just pull up under a bridge and wait for it to let up.
If there's a Timmy or a roadside gas bar with a restaurant, so much the better.
The main danger in a bad storm is the wind.
If its hitting you at the right angle, you start making all these unsignalled lane changes.
I almost wound up in the ditch one time because of the wind. Stopped under the next bridge.
Click to expand...

Similar thing has happened to me.

However, I found the wind more dangerous at low speed, 40-50 km on a posted 50km limit. Once I speed up to 65-75 km, the hydroplaning stopped.

Wind alone is manageable.

Water, water is of course wet; annoyingly so.

Wind + Water = pucker inducing.
 
Keep riding and ignore the elements, Chuck Norris laughs at your sensitivity.
 
Incredible lightning show going on here in Orangeville right now. Just got back in from riding and it began to downpour. Biggest problem is oil lifts to the top of the water in the first minutes of a downpour making the road very slippery. Add to that wind gusts that can hit you just as you're doing a curve and it can be treacherous. I know people get hit by lightning, but it is very, very rare for a motorcycle. I usually just pull off under an overpass or some other shelter until the storm passes. Even driving a car I sometimes pull to the side of the road. Visibility and traction are very poor.
 
If you are the highest conductive material in your large area, your chances of getting hit are good. If you hear thunder or see lightening take cover, and don't move for ~30 mins after you think it passes.
 
I've ridden with a Thunder storm directly over head. There was little to no delay between the light and the sound.

It was scary as ****, there were no underpasses and needless to say I was doing some pretty high speeds to get home safely.

I saw some guys at the forks who got caught today in the storm hopefully they made it home okay.
 
statsman said:
If its raining that hard, just pull up under a bridge and wait for it to let up.
If there's a Timmy or a roadside gas bar with a restaurant, so much the better.
The main danger in a bad storm is the wind.
If its hitting you at the right angle, you start making all these unsignalled lane changes.
I almost wound up in the ditch one time because of the wind. Stopped under the next bridge.
Click to expand...

Thanks; I was wondering what happens when there is a lot of wind....
 
MacDoc said:
Bet a lot of people got drenched today....boaters, bikers, campers....damn thing blew across Ontario at 80-90 kph ....that's not wind speed....but the speed of the front ......no time to react and get under cover.

It's belting down right now in Sauga, ligthing and huge rain drops....very heavy rain.

and some hail



mostly melted by the time I got the camera organized...decent size
That would hurt for sure at 100 kph

••••

I'm not worried about lightning - rather visibility both mine and being seen by others. Best just know the local weather and duck it.
This was very nasty today/right now





moving very fast and that looks nasty

http://weather.gc.ca/radar/index_e.html?id=WKR

might hit further south later



Movie night sooner than later I think....nice out now tho. Toonie size hail ????!

I'll pass.:rolleyes:

Updated 4.30 pm

Now the alerts are out for Kitchener
Click to expand...

Similar in Toronto...and I was mortified to see a rider WEAVING BETWEEN THE LANES through the downpour on Don Mills Road like it was a game.

Scared the heck out of me; I didn't want to be the car that he was beside if he 'lost' and went down. I pulled over and it was done in about ten minutes..

So irresponsible--many lives could have been changed due to his wanting to 'try his luck'.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top Bottom