Ride your motorcycle safely during the winter and under harsher conditions. Learn how you can stay warm, how to prepare your motorcycle, and what you should do to stay safe during your winter riding sessions.

How to Ride a Motorcycle in Winter

You made a big investment when you bought your motorcycle, which is why you probably want to take full advantage of it. Still, you may think that this isn't possible during this time of the year, since you have to store it away over the winter. Nonetheless, you can ride it in winter if you want! You just need to pay attention to the tips below so you can remain safe while you're at it.

Wear Appropriate Gear for the Cold

Picture this scenario: you're cruising down the road on a wintery day, and the cold air is hitting you in the face. All of a sudden, it starts raining or snowing, meaning that your body's temperature is lowering more and more. If you want to keep this less-than ideal scenario from becoming a reality (one that could end up in you getting hypothermia), you need to wear appropriate gear for the weather when you ride your motorcycle. This includes a helmet to keep your head protected, a jacket that can insulate heat, gloves that will cover your hands, boots for your feet, and lots of layers of clothing, so you can remain warm and safe even under those low temperatures.

Get Your Motorcycle Ready for the Conditions

As mentioned above, you need to prepare yourself with protective gear to withstand the freezing conditions you'll be riding through. However, you should also get your motorcycle ready before heading out. After all, if something is wrong with your engine, your tires, brakes, or another key component in your motorcycle, the consequences could be horrifying, since the snow, ice, or rain on the road could prevent you from controlling the vehicle as you usually would. To be sure that you won't have a mishap, take your motorcycle to a mechanic to maintain it properly, and even adapt it to the conditions outside (for instance, put up a windguard that can shield you from the freezing winds while you're riding).

Marland Enterprises recommends using AMSOIL 20W-50 Synthetic V-Twin Motorcycle Oil to maintain your vehicle. Call (315) 727-4645 to purchase the best synthetic oil in Cortland County.

Be Mindful of the Weather

As a motorcycle rider, you're not as protected against the weather as someone who drives a car or a truck. You're basically naked and at the conditions' mercy, meaning that if there's bad weather, it will affect you that much more. Plus, as mentioned above, there's always the fact that ice, snow, water, and other elements can make driving much more challenging. That's why, to avoid putting yourself at risk, you should make it a point to check the weather before you head out, and only ride when the conditions are appropriate for it. If, by chance, you're already out when it starts raining, snowing, or hailing, you should try to get home soon, or seek shelter until the bad weather passes.

Take a Defensive Approach

As you may be aware, there's a driving style called "defensive driving" which encompasses certain techniques that drivers use to avoid getting into an accident as much as possible. Since the conditions can make riding your motorcycle more dangerous than usual, it's a good idea that you start driving on the defensive to stay safe. For starters, don't ever speed, and even drive at a slower pace. You should also keep more space between yourself and the objects/people around you. This will give you more time/space to brake (which can be difficult because of the wet roads). Finally, always ride with your lights on. Winter days are darker, shorter, and foggier, so keep your lights on so you can see and be seen.

Keep your motorcycle's engine in perfect shape with AMSOIL 20W-50 Synthetic V-Twin Motorcycle Oil. Contact Marland Enterprises at (315) 727-4645 to purchase synthetic oil in Cortland County.

Pay Attention to the Road

One of the first things you probably learned when you started riding your motorcycle, is that you should pay attention to the road. Well, this has never been more important than now. If you don't stay focused while you're riding, you risk hitting black ice, a puddle, or another thing that could cause you to lose control of your motorcycle. To keep that from taking place, you should get rid of all distractions while you're driving (your cell phone, for example), and you should only ride when you'll be able to react correctly to difficult situations (i.e., not when you're tired or under the influence).