Riding in the rain
- Thread starter macp
- Start date
Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.
hopless500
Trundling along
- Location
- not-as-flat-as-you-think Norfolk
mjr
Comfy armchair to one person & a plank to the next
- Location
- mostly Norfolk, sometimes Somerset
Why did you go and write that?!?
I'm now back at my office after twenty minutes getting my head kicked in by the headwind on my way back from a meeting! Oh well, what doesn't kill me...
jonny jeez
Legendary Member
- Location
- Chislehurst, Kent, UK
It's likely just the lack of recent experience. It's been a long dry summer. Take it easy and you'll soon find your pace again
ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
It depends how greasy the road surfaces are!
I was riding in Spain one year and we'd had the usual pre-ride safety speech. Drizzle had been forecast, and we were warned that the local roads become very slippery when wet. Yeah, yeah, thought I - I am used to soaking wet Yorkshire roads - no problemo ...
So we were riding along near Calpe when the drizzle started. It was about as light as it could be and still be called drizzle. The ride leader immediately headed down a side road and took us to a cafe where we stayed until the drizzle lifted, and then we had to hang about a bit longer to give the roads a chance to dry. What a load of old tosh!
We eventually set off again. I was fiddling about with my bike computer and let the rider in front get a few metres gap on me so I went to get out of the saddle to sprint up to him and my back wheel immediately slid out from under me and almost dumped me off the bike!
A more extreme example in Italy ...
Cycleops
Legendary Member
- Location
- Accra, Ghana
Is there a case for using a cape any more or are they outdated? I remember they were quite good but used to leak around the neck and water could slash up your legs. Maybe designs have improved.
mjr
Comfy armchair to one person & a plank to the next
- Location
- mostly Norfolk, sometimes Somerset
At least one of the Rubinos currently has a file (small diamond) pattern on the shoulders which seems to work nicely.
Globalti
Legendary Member
Colin: as I'm sure you know, tarmac accumulates all kinds of pollutants during dry weather so can be horribly slippery at the first rainfall.
Cycleops: the old rain cape has evolved into modern, well fitting jackets that don't flap in the wind and are hydrophobic enough to keep you dry while allowing moisture to pass. The Castelli Sottile jacket is a favourite because it's slightly stretchy so fits well. But they are still called rain capes.
Cycleops: the old rain cape has evolved into modern, well fitting jackets that don't flap in the wind and are hydrophobic enough to keep you dry while allowing moisture to pass. The Castelli Sottile jacket is a favourite because it's slightly stretchy so fits well. But they are still called rain capes.
mjr
Comfy armchair to one person & a plank to the next
- Location
- mostly Norfolk, sometimes Somerset
I recently got a "Brick Mate" cape which has some interesting guttering so it doesn't leak around the neck, but I did have to add clips to the corners (front ones loop around the bar ends - I'm riding swept bars on the bike where I use the cape - and back around the seatpost so it can't go into the wheel) and if the motorists are being really splashy, your feet may still get wet. I was much drier than others wearing cycling waterproofs.
In general, it's a much more temperature-stable way of keeping dry than waterproofs - but not really a good option for road bikes IMO, especially if you don't have mudguards and a front mudflap, because I think you'll get wet from underneath and it won't attach to drop bars as easily.
ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
Yep - that's probably why the problem is much worse in drier places like Spain. We get so much rain that the pollution usually gets washed away before it gets the chance to build up too much. A Spanish road might not have seen rain for many weeks and then all that crap suddenly gets washed to the surface ...
keithmac
Guru
It's worse when you get just enough rain to make the road wet and "greasy", normally at that point I've got a motorcycle to roadtest with new tyres fitted..
Not really noticed lack of grip on the bicycles but I'm normally under 20mph, tend to take corners slower in the wet and brake earlier with less force.
Not really noticed lack of grip on the bicycles but I'm normally under 20mph, tend to take corners slower in the wet and brake earlier with less force.
threefingerjoe
Über Member
- Location
- St. Louis, MO, USA
why has no one mentioned MUDGUARDS when riding in rain? Don't mind the rain too much...it's clean. But that slop that comes off the road thrown up by the tyres is another matter. And a long front mudflap keeps that gunk from being thrown up onto your chain.
steve50
Disenchanted Member
- Location
- West Yorkshire
I decided to get a modern waterproof jacket instead of a cape but thanks for the input. Regards mudguards, I think the majority of us who do tend to ride in inclement weather conditios already have mudguards fitted or we have a pair on standby ready to fit when required.
I personally have mudguards fitted on both my bikes all year round .
I personally have mudguards fitted on both my bikes all year round .
mjr
Comfy armchair to one person & a plank to the next
- Location
- mostly Norfolk, sometimes Somerset
Because it seemed obvious, probably, and @macp seemed more worried about grip. Mudguards don't help grip AFAICT.
And gunk shouldn't be getting on the chain even without a mudflap because the chainguard/case will protect it, but the mudflap's still good for saving your BB shell from getting a steady pebble-dashing.
Oh well. Enjoy the wet legs
