Riding in the rain
 

ok i just got home from work, i couldn't commute today, and it's raining like pouring piss out of a boot but guess what i guess i'm hooked i'm going riding. at least for a little while. i'll post results after my return.

chris

Go for it. We'll wait here.

A vancouver resident providing encouragement about riding in the rain is like an eskimo preaching the value of a parka. :)

I rode in the rain yesterday too and forgot to bring my goggles, getting road dirt under contacts feels like sandpaper on the eyeball.

Wulfheir - what sort of goggles do you use? I'm getting kitted up to ride in rain for the first time (winter commuting) and haven't been able to settle on eyewear.

I don't know about goggles, but I have a pair of riding glasses from Performance that has interchangeable "glass" parts (it's really plastic of course). Most day rides I use the amber glass. I can't remember the last time I used the traditional sunglass colored glass. For my commute as I am at work generally around 12 hours I've switched to the clear glass. Very cost-effective.

ok i have to agree with what some people have said before. Riding in the rain is great. It is almost zen like. And to think when i left i was having second thoughts. Ride results 1hr 15min 22miles 2 wet shoes, 2 wet socks, wet shorts, wet jersey, and 1 mad cager: not my fault she tried to pass in the turn lane and almost hit a car head on. Will i do it again; every chance i get. Would i suggest it to others; of course i would. And about those goggles where can i get a pair.

I love riding in the rain .It is so much better than Rinding in the rain.

Rode home in a downpour yesterday. As long as there's no lightning or hail, I'm good. Once you're saturated, you don't get any wetter :beer:

just got home and it rained the whole way. you're definitely right about the ride being almost zenlike - just you and the pitter-patter of rain on your helmet. i have one of those incredibells on my bike and it was cool how it would ding when a raindrop hit it just right.

Once you accept that you'll be wet, riding in the rain is relaxing. One day I had to drive an office car for 2-3 hours in the pouring rain. It was hell.

I got to the office, changed to my cycling clothes, and rode home. That was one of my most relaxing rides home ever.

Of course, too much rain can be a problem, as I explained in this thread . But hey, that was fun too, once I got through it.

When it rains here in the Tampa Bay area, expect a lot of lightning to accompany it. I wish I could go out in the rain and not have to worry about a lightning strike. It's so bad that local news will report how many lightning strikes occurred in the storm.

I had to ride through a driving down pour the other day...god it sucked big.

They key to riding in the rain is resigning yourself to getting wet. Once you do that, it's beautiful.

I went to a university on top of a ridge once. You could see the cold fronts coming, and the science blocks were 100 m from the rest of the university along an exposed part of the ridge. It was then I found out that facing the driving rain, instead of hunching over, made it much more enjoyable.

Have had a few wet rides this year, and where I live rain generally comes with less wind, so it is very good and welcome. :)

a

The only thing I didn't like about my two rain rides (so far) was how wet my shoes got. It felt like water was sloshing around in there after a while! What's a cheap effective solution to this that I can carry in my rack bag?

Also, my BB seems to be making noises after riding in the rain...or could it just be dirt on the cogs?

jeff-o, try some sandals.

You mean, shimano sandals with SPD cleats? More expensive than I'd like, they don't fit in my bag, and they're not warm enough now that it's getting cooler (at least in the morning).

Well I suppose at that point just put on a wicking sock and put wool socks over to keep the feet warm. Of course, your shoes will still slosh...

Remember the bike needs lube.

Safety glasses from work. They are somewhere between hi-end and the cheapies. They are wrap around like oakley's so there is just a small space between my skin and the glasses.

When it gets to around -20C i switch to full blown snowboard goggles.

nice, we have some like that laying around the lab, next time it rains i'll raid the various suplly cabinets and find the best ones :D

That's probably the worst part about riding in the rain, there's nothing known to man that will stay on a chain through persistent rain. Wax-based lubes are hopeless, I find oil-based will work somewhat, the greasier and goopier the better, like BoeShield or Phil's tenacious. And just keep putting more on at every opportunity.

It's a good idea to have lights in the rain too.

Here's my solution:
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=130302

As written earlier: get a pair of shoecovers
I'm using a pair of BBB Isolators
http://www.bbbparts.com/products/bik.../isolator.html
for 10 months now and they are really great.
No wet or cold feet any more