Dealing with gusty crosswinds

bad_moose
bad_moose Posts: 49
edited September 2013 in Road general
Any tips? Went out for a ride today and whilst doing about 45mph down a descent the front of the bike started swerving out in the gusts, very alarming. I found it quite difficult to control and had to slow right down so I felt a bit safer. On the way back the person I was riding with got hit by a big gust whilst they were having a drink and they ended up falling off. They landed on one side of the road and the bike landed on the other.

Is there anything you can do apart from try and anticipate it? It's just crosswinds I'm talking about, front/behind is fine. Thanks! :)

Comments

  • diamonddog
    diamonddog Posts: 3,426
    You just gotta live with it I reckon and I would think if you have deep profile wheels they would make it worse. :)
  • itboffin
    itboffin Posts: 20,073
    with the wind blowing like today i would have thought slowing down to a more manageable speed would be the best course of action.
    Rule #5 // Harden The Feck Up.
    Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
    Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
    Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
  • rolf_f
    rolf_f Posts: 16,015
    itboffin wrote:
    with the wind blowing like today i would have thought slowing down to a more manageable speed would be the best course of action.
    You'd have to slow a lot though - the faster you are, the less the impact of the wind. I find gusting crosswinds by far the worse when climbing. If you dropped from 45 to 30 you'd be affected more and it would still be really nasty to come off.
    Faster than a tent.......
  • bigpikle
    bigpikle Posts: 1,690
    you have to stay low on the bike to present less of a cross section to the wind and as much as possible anticipate them. You cant anticipate the gusts but often the 'gust' is simply a gap in a hedge or gate where the wind comes through, and when you are aware of it you can keep an eye open for likely gaps.

    At the end of the day you have to ride to the conditions.
    Your Past is Not Your Potential...
  • sloppyschleckonds
    sloppyschleckonds Posts: 8,019
    60mm+ wheels
    I'm sorry you don't believe in miracles
  • TKF
    TKF Posts: 279
    Be heavier
  • bad_moose
    bad_moose Posts: 49
    diamonddog wrote:
    You just gotta live with it I reckon and I would think if you have deep profile wheels they would make it worse. :)

    Yeah I thought that might be the case. Ahaha, the pricing of most deep profile wheels isn't really student friendly. :/
    itboffin wrote:
    with the wind blowing like today i would have thought slowing down to a more manageable speed would be the best course of action.

    Yeah I did that in the end and it seemed to give me a little bit more time to react.
    Rolf F wrote:
    itboffin wrote:
    with the wind blowing like today i would have thought slowing down to a more manageable speed would be the best course of action.
    You'd have to slow a lot though - the faster you are, the less the impact of the wind. I find gusting crosswinds by far the worse when climbing. If you dropped from 45 to 30 you'd be affected more and it would still be really nasty to come off.
    I found that slowing down just gave me a little bit more control. The gusts pushed harder but I had more time to adjust to it. Certainly made the bike feel more stable.
    Bigpikle wrote:
    you have to stay low on the bike to present less of a cross section to the wind and as much as possible anticipate them. You cant anticipate the gusts but often the 'gust' is simply a gap in a hedge or gate where the wind comes through, and when you are aware of it you can keep an eye open for likely gaps.

    At the end of the day you have to ride to the conditions.

    I'll try and tuck myself in a bit more. Thanks :)

    Thanks for the help guys. As I suspected, it seems that the only way forward is to just get on with it. Not a problem, I just wondered if there was some magical technique for making it a bit easier/less scary.
  • tapscrew
    tapscrew Posts: 56
    Don't go out in gusty crosswinds! I went out today too and the weather was wild, got soaked to the skin and blown about too. I was soaked and freezing by the time I got home again, but the most annoying thing was cycling into headwinds. But I still enjoyed myself and that's what its all about :wink:
  • Mikey23
    Mikey23 Posts: 5,306
    Sweaty turbo today...
  • itboffin
    itboffin Posts: 20,073
    I have fucker of a 14% descent each night on the commute and its totally exposed, on a good day you can hit 45+ but most days its too windy or wet so i nurse it down, after all i'm just a MAMIL not a pro for sure and defo not racing, plus Mrs itboffin will be totally pissed if she has to pick me up from yet another A&E
    Rule #5 // Harden The Feck Up.
    Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
    Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
    Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
  • cyclingsheep
    cyclingsheep Posts: 640
    TKF wrote:
    Be heavier

    So true. I had never noticed a cross wind until I lost 12kg and bought myself a carbon bike :D
  • blackpoolkev
    blackpoolkev Posts: 474
    tapscrew wrote:
    Don't go out in gusty crosswinds!

    Too much defeatism.Some of my most rewarding rides have been in rough weather.
  • dilemna
    dilemna Posts: 2,187
    What did you do to make the wind cross?
    Life is like a roll of toilet paper; long and useful, but always ends at the wrong moment. Anon.
    Think how stupid the average person is.......
    half of them are even more stupid than you first thought.
  • hatch87
    hatch87 Posts: 352
    I'm always noughts so the wind has to be crosses
    http://app.strava.com/athletes/686217
    Come on! You call this a storm? Blow, you son of a bitch! Blow! It's time for a showdown! You and me! I'm right here! Come and get me!
  • cougie
    cougie Posts: 22,512
    If the wind is like it is today - you're better off staying indoors. I see Russ Downing is training on his turbo today and he's not one to be put off by bad weather - but why risk an injury. If its just windy - then thats fine - but gale force gusts...
  • greasedscotsman
    greasedscotsman Posts: 6,962
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8qgjyqibwY

    :D
  • Rodrego Hernandez
    Rodrego Hernandez Posts: 1,436
    cougie wrote:
    If the wind is like it is today - you're better off staying indoors. I see Russ Downing is training on his turbo today and he's not one to be put off by bad weather - but why risk an injury. If its just windy - then thats fine - but gale force gusts...

    He's got a broken collarbone!
  • cougie
    cougie Posts: 22,512
    LOL ! Well even MORE sensible then to stay in ! :-)

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