I wrote this for American Iron, and while I no longer spend any time on two wheels, anyone who does is well-advised to heed the advice that follows.

Winter Riding Tips
or
Keeping Your Cool When It's Cold

Those of us who live in the northern portions of the so-called "temperate zone" — upstate New York, for example — are blessed with several months of wonderful riding weather. However, in return for that blessing we're forced to endure The Curse of Winter. When the first freeze hits, some riders (and in this in stance we use the term loosely) take it as a sign to add fuel stabilizer to the tank, haul the battery inside, and act cranky for a few months. This syndrome is called POS, for Post (or, come February, Pre) Motorcycle Season.

Other riders — real riders — simply take the beginning of winter as a sign that it's time to adapt the pre-ride preparation to account for the change in the environment. To them we say bravo, or brava as the case may be. They know that motorcycling is far too much fun to let a little cold weather put a stop to it. In fact, it's possible that the satisfaction of coping with the challenge of cold weather riding makes it even more fun than the comparatively easy warm-weather sport.

With a view towards increasing the number of intrepid souls who venture forth when the temperature dips below T-shirt levels, we're pleased to present the following tips. Some relate to rider comfort, which is to say, keeping the cold at bay; others address the motorcycle itself, for machines behave differently when the mercury falls; and a few are concerned with the road and other external factors that can have a significant impact (if you'll pardon the expression) on the ride.

Keeping Warm
You've been going outside in the winter long enough to know that when the wind begins to blow, you feel colder. This phenomenon is called the Wind Chill Factor, and it's not something your mom made up to get you to bundle up for the walk to school. Simply put, when the still air temperature is 50 degrees, a wind speed of 40 miles per hour brings the perceived temperature down to 26 degrees. Drop the still air temperature to 40 — still comfortable in a light jacket — and the same wind speed feels like a bracing 10 degrees. The "official" wind chill charts generally don't deal with wind speeds created by a moving motorcycle, but you can probably perceive a trend here: the faster you go, the colder it feels.

Mind you, those perceived temperatures presuppose a dry, adequately clothed person. Get wet, either from perspiration or precipitation, and the effects of wind and temperature increase dramatically. Consider: the conductivity of water is 25 times greater than that of than dry air.

Right about now, members of the "I can take it" crowd are probably thinking, well, "I can take it." Maybe you can, and maybe the only result of a macho cold-weather ride will be some nasty frostbite. But bear in mind that when the body's temperature begins to drop, blood is diverted from your extremities and skin, and used to keep the head and vital organs warm. At first, hand control suffers; eventually you'll lose grip strength and coordination. Will you crash? Maybe; it also depends on how you respond when the involuntary muscle contractions known as shivering set in. But enough of these scare tactics. You know that keeping warm is a good idea; the question we want to answer is "how?" There are basic two answers to this question. One is to conserve heat, the other to create it. First let's look at conserving heat.

Wear Layers
A winter motorcycle jacket should have a windproof outer layer (see Wind Chill Factor, above) and an insulated inner lining. Ideally, the jacket should be large enough to allow additional layers — a long-sleeved undershirt and a sweatshirt are an ideal combination — to be worn underneath. The same layered approach holds for trousers: long underwear, jeans, and chaps or overpants, such as the Aerostich Darien pants.

By the way, if your "regular" jacket is a spiffy leather job, you'll find that it's not a terribly effective windbreaker. If budget considerations don't allow for a "real" winter jacket, and the fashion police permit it, you can get excellent results by wearing your rain jacket as an outer layer. Similarly, rain pants are a compact alternative to chaps.

Bear in mind, too, that at least 50 percent of your body heat is lost through the head. If the notion of a full-face helmet is anathema, break down and buy a balaclava. And don't forget your neck: even with a full-face helmet and upturned collar, you're likely to have a small exposed area catching the wind and turning blue. Full-face wearers can attach a HelMAX Weather Guard, which extends 12 inches below the helmet. The Aerostich Wind Triangle provides a less dramatic but more universally useful form of protection. It can serve as a bandanna or face-mask, as needed.

Keeping your hands warm is crucial, which means good gloves. The best winter gloves incorporate several layers, each designed for a specific purpose. An excellent, if expensive, example is provided by Tour Master's $130 Grand Tour Elite. From the inside out, they've got a Thinsulate lining, a Hipora (waterproof and breathable, like GoreTex) insert, and a reinforced leather shell. For even more insulation, the gauntlet portion houses a nylon outer mitten. It's not necessary to spend $130 to get good winter gloves, but you should look for similar features.

Layering works for the feet too. No matter how cold it is, your feet are likely to sweat. Since keeping dry is an important part of keeping warm, what you need to do is wear two pair of socks. The first should be a liner designed to wick moisture away from the skin. The second should be thick, and of a material that won't lose its insulating capabilities when wet: wool or one of the new high-tech synthetics, but not cotton. Finish off with a pair of insulated boots, with a GoreTex or similar liner, and your dogs won't be barking at the end of the ride.

Electric Clothing
If your bike has an adequate charging system, you don't have to rely solely on keeping the body's own heat from escaping. Wearing electric clothing makes it possible to add heat externally. The most popular item of electric clothing is the vest, which is worn underneath a jacket. By heating the body's vital organs, the vest fools the body into sending more blood elsewhere, keeping the hands and feet warm — or warmer, anyway — as well. Other heated garments available from the sources listed at the end of this article include jackets, jacket liners, gloves, chaps, pants, and socks.

Heated Grips
Heated grips — either permanently mounted (as from Custom Heat) or in the form of a wraparound (from Aerostich or Farnam) — are a surprisingly effective way to keep comfortable on a ride when the temperature is borderline chilly. We prefer the permanent type, since they're always available. The wraparounds are just as effective, and gain in economy what they lose in convenience.

Install a Windshield
The wind chill factor will have less of an impact if you can keep some of that wind from reaching you. We dresser owners know all about that, but if you're on a Road King winter is an ideal time to try out the windshield that you tossed in the closet on Day One. If your bike didn't come with a windshield, buy one right away. Your friendly Harley-Davidson dealer has plenty from which to choose, or you can save a few — perhaps quite a few — dollars by checking out the aftermarket. National Cycle's venerable PlexiStar 2 and PlexiFairing 3 are among the most effective we've encountered, and are can easily be removed and reinstalled on an as-needed basis.

Start Slowly, and Read The Road
When the weather's cold, both safety and consideration for the machine require that you start slowly. Unless the bike's kept in a heated garage, its fluids will need some warming up before they are fully effective. Let the engine warm up a bit before riding off, and when you do hit the road, keep the engine and road speeds low for the first few miles. This will also serve to let the tires warm up and regain their grip. Speaking of grip, even if the temperature has risen above the freezing point in the sun, you can hit slick patches when the road is in the shade. This is especially true on those tree-lined back roads we love so much.

The bottom line? Simple: even if the joys of global warming haven't reached your neighborhood, riding can be a year-round pursuit. As long is the roads are clear of ice and snow, two wheels is plenty. Now get out there and make some noise!