Originally Posted by HTupolev

I'm surprised at how many people baulk at the idea that stuff flung off the front tire can splatter into a rider's front. If you ever ride on wet roads that aren't clean, it quickly becomes obvious that it's not just rainwater splattering onto the arms and cockpit and whatnot. Of my bikes, the one that experiences this effect the least is the one with Velo-Orange fenders, which have far more front extension than most other fenders.

I'm also not sure why this phenomenon is confusing. While it's usually true that there's not a direct tangent path from the tire to the rider's front, cycling isn't happening in a vacuum. At sea level, there's well over a kilogram of atmosphere in every cubic meter of air, and that air can be moving around with respect to the ground. Small particles have extremely high aerodynamic drag coefficients relative to their mass, and can do all kinds of things after being flung away.

I agree that the rider's face won't experience much of their own front tire spray, if any, for most postures and riding conditions. There are exceptions, though.