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Riding on Wet Roads

J

JPG68

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Apologies for what may be a noobie question since I'm a new rider but how confident are all of you when riding on wet roads on our scooters? I went out this morning and when going around turns or curves I got very nervous thinking about the wheels sliding out when I'm leaning the bike. I'm not an engineer but it would seem that when leaning, the wheels have less surface area in contact with the road so the likelihood of slipping increase. I'm very comfortable and confident taking turns and leaning into curves on dry roads but this morning made me think about how others handle this situation. Any advice or words of wisdom from more experienced riders would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
 
Actually, modern tires put the same (and sometimes MORE) contact patch on the ground when leaned over. This applies to NEW tires, however... if you do most of your riding in straight lines, and your tires are old, then likely you've squared off the center of the tire and reduced the amount of shoulder contact patch.

That being said, as long as it is JUST water on the ground you have nearly as much traction on a wet road as you do a dry one. Unfortunately, the likelihood of it being "just water" on a public road can vary. If it rains a lot where you live, you're probably okay. If it rains only every now and then, however, the road surface has plenty of time to absorb dripped oil, diesel fuel, and anti-freeze and all of that comes floating up to the road surface when it rains.

That means that when the rain first starts to fall is when traction is at its most treacherous. You're actually better off if it's a hard rain, as that will eventually wash all that slippery stuff off. If it's just a slow drizzle, however, the road can remain slippery for a long time.

So, the answer to your question in a nutshell is: "It varies."
 
Watch out for a few things when riding in the wet.

1. Paint ... painted lane lines, crosswalks, ect. are not as grippy in the wet as they would be in the dry.

2. Manhole covers-steel road plates-railroad tracks....these damn things are super slippery when wet...I always try to attack these things with caution.
 
I used to have lots of confidence till I crashed ( probably tapped my brake on the yellow line) now I'm more cautious and slow down a bit. If it makes you nervous slow down, eventually you'll gain confidence.
 
Mount Snow is about 35 miles north of Landgrove in a northern part of the Green Mountains. I was at Bromley Mountain for the opening ceremonies of the first mechanical ski lift in Vermont. It was a very different place back then. Very agrarian and very old fashioned new England.
 
I think you may mean 35 miles south in southern Vt Mt. Snow is south, of Bromley is on rt. 11 I have been there many times Wilmington is about 20 miles north of the Mass. border.
 
I've learned how the wheels slide quite a bit over the tar snakes, fortunately I wasn't taking a sharp curve at the time. Thanks for all the information, words of advice and Vermont geography lesson!
 
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