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Highway driving
- Thread starter sdenhart
- Start date
Huntindawg1962
New member
Get more saddle time on the highway. You will find that although you are getting buffeted you are not getting tossed into another lane like on a 2-wheel cycle. You will also start to loosen the "death grip" with more saddle time making it more enjoyable. What you are experiencing is something most of us have. You may want to try adjusting the windscreen on the RT too as that can change the wind dynamics. The miles after 500 feel a lot more comfortable than the ones before 500 :thumbup:
mtbear
New member
I agree.
It took me a little while, like about 300 miles to get use to the handling, but after I learned to relax a stopped the death grip on the bars the wind was no problem and neither is the handling.
You just need to relax more which will come with time and you will really start to enjoy the ride.
mtbear:thumbup:
It took me a little while, like about 300 miles to get use to the handling, but after I learned to relax a stopped the death grip on the bars the wind was no problem and neither is the handling.
You just need to relax more which will come with time and you will really start to enjoy the ride.
mtbear:thumbup:
Arr MiHardies
New member
Loosen your grip, and maybe tighten the shocks a notch.
ARtraveler
R.I.P. Dwayne
All good advice above. It gets better after about 500 miles. :thumbup:
summerdawn
New member
Set your shocks to the 5 setting and it will make a tremendous difference in handling. So will more time in the saddle. Keep riding! 
SpyderAnn01
Active member
Another thing you might try is lowering the windshield. I find that if I have the windshield at the highest I get a lot of buffeting and if it is at the lowest I don't feel any. But the most important thing is to lose the death grip!
bullant12
New member
All are good suggestions!:agree::agree::agree: But the best one it would be to get more rYding time! When I first got mine, I didn't want to hit the interstate to save my life. After a couple of times, I got used to it. A suggestion I can also add is to ride with a full face helmet. It makes the wind noise a lot easier to deal with.
Hokiev
New member
Had the same problem with my Limited when I first got it. (probably from FMS also).
First changed shocks to 5. Was a little better but still had issues. Had dealer rebalance tires. A little better, but still not great. Added Ride On which helped a bit more.
Finally got Elka's from Cowtown for front and rear...made all the difference in the world. No problems on I95 anymore (other than the traffic!).
Bob Denman
New member
Once you start to loosen up the death grip on the bars, you may want to try bringing your knees in against the tank pads to help steady you in place on the bike a bit... :thumbup:
flybuddy
New member
I had asked the same question early on and got pretty much the same answers. A lot more comfort came with extra miles of riding, loose grip, knees on tank, max shock adjustment, more air in tires, etc. It's better but I still feel buffeted by turbulent airflow off large vehicles. Pretty much make minor corrections and power through it, unfortunately, IMO, it sucks the fun out of high speed riding. Look up Elka shock threads and start reading through them. Experienced riders pretty much all say the same thing that the Elkas solve this problem. Apparently they raise the front 1 to 2 inches changing the camber which cause a Spyder to track straighter and be less sensitive in oversteering.
BikerDoc
New member
Not to be harsh, but i have heard so many "early ryder" complaints over the last three years. I have at least 25000 super highway miles and this point and I don't experience any of the the things I hear complained about.. Anything new will seem different. Let's all give whatever we try out for the first time whether it be a Spyder or or new razor, some time to acclimate before we hit the "bit....ch" button.
currin20fan
GOS member (Girls On Spyders)
I-95
I too had the same experience on I-95. Forced myself to loosen up on the grip and changed to Stage 1 Elka shocks. Problem solved...:yes:
I too had the same experience on I-95. Forced myself to loosen up on the grip and changed to Stage 1 Elka shocks. Problem solved...:yes:
Flight Risk
GOS member (Girls On Spyders)
Everything they said above AND check your tire pressure. The factory settings can really make things wonky. I have my fronts at 18psi and back at 28.
Good luck, congratulations AND just give it some time.........
Good luck, congratulations AND just give it some time.........
Kinderhook
New member
Relax!
Just relax, the Spyder will take care of itself. I fractured the part that allows increasing or decreasing the tension on front shocks/suspension, and repaced the RS shocks with used used RT shocks from an Elka install. Set the RT shocks at 5 and the Spyder handles wonderfully! My advise is to wait until you are very experienced with your Spyder's front and rear suspensions set to a firmer level before investing in Elka shocks, as they are quite expensive. I don't put down Elka shocks, but suspect they are more useful for a rider who really pushes the envelope. After setting my shocks to a higher level, and gaining experience, I can corner far above the posted speed with total comfort. I found that most wind related steering issues were more about the sensation of wind on my body than interference with the Spyder itself! Happy riding!
Just relax, the Spyder will take care of itself. I fractured the part that allows increasing or decreasing the tension on front shocks/suspension, and repaced the RS shocks with used used RT shocks from an Elka install. Set the RT shocks at 5 and the Spyder handles wonderfully! My advise is to wait until you are very experienced with your Spyder's front and rear suspensions set to a firmer level before investing in Elka shocks, as they are quite expensive. I don't put down Elka shocks, but suspect they are more useful for a rider who really pushes the envelope. After setting my shocks to a higher level, and gaining experience, I can corner far above the posted speed with total comfort. I found that most wind related steering issues were more about the sensation of wind on my body than interference with the Spyder itself! Happy riding!
rhansen309
New member
First highway ride
We have had our 2011 RT since Aug 2011. No highway mileage until Sunday night. We did do the short run between St. James and Cuba during Spyderfest but that was like 7 miles. We rode about 100 miles from Flint, MI to Athens, MI Sunday night. Took I69 to I94. A great ride. I have my shocks set at 5 and tire pressure listed on tire. I am thinking of raising the tire pressure. Raising the shocks helped the handling a lot. I did feel some wind buffeting but nothing that concerned me. The Spyder did fine. A loose grip helps a lot. Relax and enjoy the ride!!!!!
We have had our 2011 RT since Aug 2011. No highway mileage until Sunday night. We did do the short run between St. James and Cuba during Spyderfest but that was like 7 miles. We rode about 100 miles from Flint, MI to Athens, MI Sunday night. Took I69 to I94. A great ride. I have my shocks set at 5 and tire pressure listed on tire. I am thinking of raising the tire pressure. Raising the shocks helped the handling a lot. I did feel some wind buffeting but nothing that concerned me. The Spyder did fine. A loose grip helps a lot. Relax and enjoy the ride!!!!!
Dikicep9
New member
Yeah, Virginia!!!!
I'm was born in Va. Beach and lived there 17 years. Moved to the Blue Ridge Mountains to Roanoke, VA for another 17 years. I love VA!! My husband talked me into Atlanta! It's okay, but it's not home. Sigh. Well, enough of that! I have a 2012 RT-S SE5 Spyder and was cruising just before dusk the other nite, on I-20 west bound toward ATL., running smooth as silk and passing everyone else. I was in a state of Nirvana; letting my mind drift and just enjoying the ryde. I had been ryding this way for a while when I noticed I was passing everyone; I mean EVERYONE and I was about to pass a state trooper one lane over and to the left of me, when I looked down at the speedo and couldn't believe my eyes! I was shocked! I was running 85 mph and my baby was purring like a kitten. Needless to say, I snapped out of my reverie and slowed it right down to the speed limit. My point is; u shouldn't be doing the shake, rattle and roll thing up the interstate just doing 60 or 65mph. Something is up. I've had my wind shield up/down/up/down on different rydes and it NEVER made a difference to the handling of the Spyder. I have been ryding one bike or another for 35 years, so I'm real relaxed, maybe too relaxed, but if the problem persists with the shakey shakey thing, I'd take it to the dealer before your big ryde. Good luck!
I'm was born in Va. Beach and lived there 17 years. Moved to the Blue Ridge Mountains to Roanoke, VA for another 17 years. I love VA!! My husband talked me into Atlanta! It's okay, but it's not home. Sigh. Well, enough of that! I have a 2012 RT-S SE5 Spyder and was cruising just before dusk the other nite, on I-20 west bound toward ATL., running smooth as silk and passing everyone else. I was in a state of Nirvana; letting my mind drift and just enjoying the ryde. I had been ryding this way for a while when I noticed I was passing everyone; I mean EVERYONE and I was about to pass a state trooper one lane over and to the left of me, when I looked down at the speedo and couldn't believe my eyes! I was shocked! I was running 85 mph and my baby was purring like a kitten. Needless to say, I snapped out of my reverie and slowed it right down to the speed limit. My point is; u shouldn't be doing the shake, rattle and roll thing up the interstate just doing 60 or 65mph. Something is up. I've had my wind shield up/down/up/down on different rydes and it NEVER made a difference to the handling of the Spyder. I have been ryding one bike or another for 35 years, so I'm real relaxed, maybe too relaxed, but if the problem persists with the shakey shakey thing, I'd take it to the dealer before your big ryde. Good luck!
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WingmanRT
New member
Ryding on the highway
Okaaaaay... except this is supposed to be the place where new ryders can come to learn from more experienced ryders. (I know I still am!) Great that you have 25k of highway, but instead of discouraging questions, you should be letting this new ryder benefit from your wisdom. At some point, we all had 10 miles on our odometers.
I've had my RT for about a year and about 8000 miles and still have his same issues with highway. I rode 2 wheelers for about 15 years and didn't experience turbulence like this. (I also had more room on the highway lane to move over, away from the trucks... but) I bought Elkas (helped some), loosened grip, check tire pressure on every major trip, even had the Yaw control on the computer (according to dealer) adjusted. It's all "reduced" the turbulence somewhat, but when a semi blows past you at 85 miles per hour, my high profile Spyder and large frame body are catching some serious wind and being tossed about! Even cross winds on an empty stretch with no tree cover sometimes hits the bike hard. Lowering the windshield seems to help the most as well as powering through it as some suggested. ( I HAVE to do the speed limit due to some unfortunate vehicular velocity choices in the last 3 years.:banghead I tend to avoid 70 (re:85mph) stretches of highway and mostly use backroads (55mph). It's prettier and while it may take me a few minutes longer, I've enjoyed the ride the whole way versus times I am wondering what a guard rail tastes like.
I don't know that this guy was 'bit... ching' as much as he was asking for advice on how to maximize the enjoyment of his ryde and minimize the risks (rysks?:dontknow. Sounds like he got a bunch of great advice to me. Just my two cents. I am not trying to be contentious, I would just hate for this to start being an environment where people (especially NEW ryders) were afraid to ask questions.
:chat:
Okaaaaay... except this is supposed to be the place where new ryders can come to learn from more experienced ryders. (I know I still am!) Great that you have 25k of highway, but instead of discouraging questions, you should be letting this new ryder benefit from your wisdom. At some point, we all had 10 miles on our odometers.
I've had my RT for about a year and about 8000 miles and still have his same issues with highway. I rode 2 wheelers for about 15 years and didn't experience turbulence like this. (I also had more room on the highway lane to move over, away from the trucks... but) I bought Elkas (helped some), loosened grip, check tire pressure on every major trip, even had the Yaw control on the computer (according to dealer) adjusted. It's all "reduced" the turbulence somewhat, but when a semi blows past you at 85 miles per hour, my high profile Spyder and large frame body are catching some serious wind and being tossed about! Even cross winds on an empty stretch with no tree cover sometimes hits the bike hard. Lowering the windshield seems to help the most as well as powering through it as some suggested. ( I HAVE to do the speed limit due to some unfortunate vehicular velocity choices in the last 3 years.:banghead
I tend to avoid 70 (re:85mph) stretches of highway and mostly use backroads (55mph). It's prettier and while it may take me a few minutes longer, I've enjoyed the ride the whole way versus times I am wondering what a guard rail tastes like.I don't know that this guy was 'bit... ching' as much as he was asking for advice on how to maximize the enjoyment of his ryde and minimize the risks (rysks?:dontknow
. Sounds like he got a bunch of great advice to me. Just my two cents. I am not trying to be contentious, I would just hate for this to start being an environment where people (especially NEW ryders) were afraid to ask questions.:chat:
Bob Denman
New member
:agree: Let's let the folks who are still on the steepest part of the learning curve ask what they need; We were all there at one time or another. :thumbup:
...And I'm STILL a big dummy! :gaah:
...And I'm STILL a big dummy! :gaah:
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