Advice: how to ride in strong winds

My list of grievances with so-called ‘road safety policy’ is quite lengthy, but one in particular irks me: slowing traffic down when the wind picks up.

And we’re not talking gale-force winds, either, which makes the whole process even more infuriating. Still, the traffic’s slowed down to 60km/h on a road when you can comfortably cruise at 100km/h without a care in the world.

That’s not to say motorcyclists don’t have to be prudent in strong winds, especially when they are gusting and swirling and capable of blowing a bike off course.

Which reminds me of the time when I was riding a Honda Goldwing along the Stuart Highway, and the right to left cross-winds were fierce – from Alice Springs to Coober Pedy. It felt like the big Goldwing was tracking on a 45-degree angle the whole time – just to stay in a straight time.

One of the ‘leaning’ Goldwings had two 130kg-plus blokes aboard, and that was one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen…

That’s where counter-steering into the direction of the wind comes into play. eg if the wind is coming from the right, apply pressure on the right handlebar. But remember: you may have to adjust your inputs, especially if the wind speed is variable.

The other issue on that middle Australia trek was compensating for road trains coming in the other direction, as a brief respite from the winds (that vortex when everything goes quiet) evaporated very quickly.

Here are a few more tips for riding in string wind:

1. Lane positioning. If you’re getting thrown around a bit, make sure you allow a big gap to the vehicles in other lanes – and that may mean moving further left or right than you normally would.
2. Stay relaxed. If you grip the bars too tightly, you’ll fatigue rapidly and diminish your ability to control your bike if you do get caught out by a sudden gust.
3. Be aware of wind tunnels. Some streets in the CBD of big cities are prime culprits – you’re in cruise mode and then a massive wind blast throws you off your game. If you follow a normal route to and from work, you’ll soon work out where the hotspot deflections are.
4. Taking the go-slow option isn’t the panacea for your wind ills. We're not suggesting that your throw caution to the, err, wind, but use commonsense to keep yourself clear of traffic and in the best possible position to take remedial action. That also depends on road conditions as well, such as whether the road is damp or not.
5. Less drag is a good thing, so if you can get behind a screen on a big touring bike that should be of great assistance.
6. Clothing should be function over form so wear stuff that’s a good fit without any flapping bits and pieces – which not only promote more drag, but will be annoying.