Riding in rain?

[Fabricater]

What is it like to ride a spyder. In the rain?Do they have good rain protection so you don't get wet?I ride a goldwing now and it does a decent job of keeping the rain off of me as long as I am moving .I had a HD ultra and I think it picked up extra water and threw it on me.I got real wet fast.

[5PYD3R]

From what I remember when I had fenders, it did a really good job of keeping you dry. Now with no fenders, I avoid the rain like the plague! If I get caught in it, it is pretty comical to see three nice rooster tails coming off my bike. Washed a cops windshield behind me once and didn't even charge him for it :roflblack: Didn't get a ticket either!

876968769787698

[NZSpyderRyder]

I like the no fenders look and the TBR twin looks awesome.

[garb55]

I ride in the rain :yes:and in the snow :yes:and I usually stay dry until I stop
The only time the Spyder stays home is when chains are required and I have been thinking about that
Don

[Chupaca]

I avoid rain but the times I have been caught in it the roadster did keep me remarkably dry. When moving but the passenger does not fare that well...:shemademe_smilie:

[hogrider46]

Is this a joke or what? :yikes:

[daltmeyer]

The spyder is a rain moesheene! Can't think of any better 2 or 3 wheelers that are better handling in the wet. Rode the dragon, devils triangle, rattler, snake, etc, etc all in the rain. Not just rain but constant downpours. No problems to report.

[Bob Denman]

The RTs do a really nice job of shovelling the worst of the excess humidity around you! :thumbup:
Light sprinkles: I don't usually need to pull on my raingear...
You'll still need quality raingear; you just won't be putting in on quite as often. nojoke

[joet82]

people are surprised at how dry I stay with my RS. when it's a light rain, I don't get wet. medium rain, I only get wet where the jacket meets my thighs and heavy rain, I put on my rain pants when I can.

[Raknid]

I have ridden in the rain on the RT. With that giant fairing and windshield you get a lot of protection from wind and rain.

[harrypottar]

Has an ex Goldwing rider my self I can confirm that the spyder does not come close to the Goldwing for that nice air bubble to drive the rain around. However look at the difference in design so I didn't expect it to do so. One way to get really close is to instal baker air wings, they really do a great job of creating that air bubble barrier.

I have the BRP upper defectors that came with the limited and I added a set of clear baker air wings and uppers. Turning them out wards deflects a lot of rain around you and the passenger and of course turn them in and they keep you really cool in the summer.

There're lots off threads on form over function, I'm not a huge fan of obvious bolt on accessories and baker wings are obvious bolt on accessories but they do work extremely well.

They're simple to install no drilling, uses mounting ponts that already exists and one small sticks pad. Adds an extra minute at most to check oil has you have to remove one bolt to remove panel. However you will never lose your side panel has some have.

harry

[sassoman]

We rode one full day in a steady rain with no problems .Our Victory brand rain suits which are not worth what they charge for them .We would have been wet on the Victory ,but we were not on the RT.

[JkRbbt]

You can ride in the RAIN???? :yikes: :):)

[easysuper]

If you live in the Willamette Valley in Oregon you will ride in the rain or you won't get to ride much , on of the reasons we picked a spyder .:yes:

[harrypottar]

To clarify, I do not belive the OP was asking about riding in the rain as it's inevertable that you will at some point get rained on.

Riding on three wheels is safer than ridding on two in the rain or sunshine.

It's all about the degree of wet one gets, I've ridden it some really bad storm where you are soaked through no matter how good your gear is, it will find every weak spot and whittle its way in.

Some bikes offer better rain protection than others, you're still going to get wet but some bikes offer better aerodynamics. If you've ever ridden a Goldwing you will know what I mean, while moving there is a pocket of air that forms around you. It helps to push the rain around, up and over you. Yes you get wet but no where as near to soaked as you do on other bikes.

love my spyder and wouldn't part with it, but it does not have the same pocket of air that I'm talkng about coming off a wing.

Harry

[Fabricater]

Thanks for the responds .We take trips on thebike,sometimes gone a week at a time.It seems we always have to ride in the rain at some point.Some trips it rained every day we were gone.It sounds like the spyders do a good job at keeping the water off.Maybe not as good as some bikes,but still do better than most

[bluestratos]

I ride in the rain all the time and stay very dry except when stopped. The fairing and windscreen do a
great job, better than any other touring bike I have owned. The rain does rollup and off the top of the windscreen but only a fraction of it actually comes back on my body, the bulk hits my helmet and rolls on by. I got caught in a very heavy rain this Saturday at the top of the pass on I-5 and rather enjoyed it. I was wearing a rain proof jacket and some pull on over nylon over pants so I stayed perfectly dry.

One thing I will warn you, as the tires wear the bike becomes more prone to hydroplaning and its something you do not want to experience, lol.. I suddenly hydroplaned and had no control other than to keep it straight as she ran diagonally across 3 lanes on the freeway. I have experienced it 6-7 times now so it is not a rare occurrence when driving in heavy rain.

[Jeriatric]

Once rode through an errant rain bird. Without getting a drop on me. Does that count? :joke:

As has been said. The RT does well...as long as you keep moving.

[MikeinGA]

I ride in the rain. I have a good wet gear. The Spyder handles really good in the wet. But I won't ride in fog.

Mike

[WackyDan]

I get pretty went in rain on my RS and that is with the large touring shield. I think if I had side deflectors or baker air wings, that would help in a light rain...During sprinkles it is mostly my hands and knees getting went.

[iSpyder]

I have rode in the rain lots on my 2012 RTS. Tonight I got caught in a downpour on my 2014 RTS. A car passed me just as I we both reached a deep puddle (small lake). Needless to say, I got a huge bath as the car passed me through the puddle... no problem navigating through it but I am sure the front of the Spyder took on a significant amount of water in the nose opening. It made me wander if there was any danger of getting water into places it shouldn't be through the nose. Not being a mechanic...I wasn't sure and thought I would ask the folks in the forum...:bowdown:

[ARtraveler]

Riding in the rain is no different than your mention of a GW. You usually do not get soaked if you are moving. Stop, and it lands in your lap.

Good rain gear and waterproof gloves are recommended for the bad stuff. I have driven through a couple 4 hour downpours on the way home from vacations. That was where I learned that waterproof gloves are good. My Firstgear pants and textile jacket did their job just fine.

A word of caution about :spyder2: and standing water. The :ani29: will hydroplane if you hit standing water at speed (50+) hydroplaning will kick it in. The nanny has saved me a couple times and brought the :spyder2: back under control. Now that I am smarter (?) I know what to look for.

[jScotD]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_xY-ztyTNw

[daltmeyer]

The spyder is a rain moesheene! Can't think of any better 2 or 3 wheelers that are better handling in the wet. Rode the dragon, devils triangle, rattler, snake, etc, etc all in the rain. Not just rain but constant downpours. No problems to report.

Oh yes how can I forget the hydroplaning. I can confirm this will happen pretty easily. Happened to me a couple times at freeway speeds. It will get your attention and you will slow down to a more reasonable speed no doubt!

[Silvervette05]

At speed my boots get wet

[SpyderLady]

I can attest to the spyder hydroplaning. A few years ago I went through what I now know was about 4" of rain/water runnoff on the road in a low spot. The front of the bike went up in the air (all the water coming up underneath the frunk picked it up) and sent the bike sensors into chaos. I won't go into details it was posted about 2 years ago.... but I now have the bumper plate on my bike to stop the water from coming up underneath as easily (among other uses) and also am careful when there is water on the road.

Other than that just give me time to put rain gear on and I am ready to roll.

Here is a link to the post.

http://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/showthread.php?37316-Spyderlady-Linda-Had-A-Spill-Today&highlight=Kevorama

[Flanker]

I've been pretty soaked twice; on mine. "Stuff" happens!

[bullant12]

With my 2010 RT, I noticed my feet getting a lot of water, even wearing a rain suit and water resistant tactical boots (Bates). Since I was new at it, I only saw it as an minor thing and just changed socks (I hate wet socks!:mad:).

The fenders of the 2013 are different, there is a cover on the top inside of the fender/wheelbase. I have noticed now that my feet are a lot dryer now while riding in the rain. I suspect that was the reason of the fender redesign.

As far as riding in the rain overall... it handles really well!!!:thumbup: I have plenty of riding the Spyder in the rain and yes... even the snow!88351:doorag:

[Deanna777]

The RTs do a really nice job of shovelling the worst of the excess humidity around you! :thumbup:
Light sprinkles: I don't usually need to pull on my raingear...
You'll still need quality raingear; you just won't be putting in on quite as often. nojoke I rode my :spyder2: in the rain, I did not get wet. ( 2012 RTS-SE5) the rain goes away from you. Bob: :agree: Deanna777

[Deanna777]

I have ridden in the rain on the RT. With that giant fairing and windshield you get a lot of protection from wind and rain.:agree: Deanna777

[Dan_Ashley]

I can attest to the spyder hydroplaning....
In the late 1960's a Honda motorcycle manual stated: "Go smoothingly through mud and grease, for therein lies the skid demon." I guess that goes for water too.

[Bob Denman]

In the late 1960's a Honda motorcycle manual stated: "Go smoothingly through mud and grease, for therein lies the skid demon." I guess that goes for water too.
I would LOVE to know who was doing the Japanese to English translations back then! :roflblack:

[Dan_Ashley]

I would LOVE to know who was doing the Japanese to English translations back then! :roflblack:

When I was in China there were two signs that made me chuckle:
In a five star restaurant:
"The Captain Waiter Will Guide You Table Soon."

And on the Great Wall:
"Writing On The Wall Is A Breach Of Civility."

Both signs were in English. Both had periods at the end of the sentence. All the words were capitalized. What a hoot!

[Bob Denman]

It actually sounds as if they did a MUCH better job with English; than I could ever hope to manage in Chinese! :opps: :D