Riding in wind (not just for Wellingtonians)

I can’t count how many times this summer my plans to get the boat out have been been thwarted by high winds. It didn’t make for very inviting riding weather, either, so a bunch of chores around the house got done. Early on, I consoled myself that windy weather like that wouldn’t last and normal service would be resumed as soon as possible.

Fat chance. Pretty much the entire country has been beset by high and sometimes gusty winds all summer. If you’ve wanted to ride, you will have had to cope with it. And let’s face it: if you live in Wellington and left the bike parked every time the wind was over 50km/h, you wouldn’t be doing much riding. So here are a few tips on riding in windy weather:

Watch out for debris on the road, including branches, patches of leaves and rubbish blowing around. Don’t get target-fixated by it - ride around it on the upwind side if it’s safe.

• Don’t tense up on the bike. Keep your lower body locked in, your upper body relaxed and, in crosswinds, apply a gentle push (countersteer) on the bar on the windward side
• Keeping your body low helps avoid a little wind pressure but make sure your upper body remains free to move into the wind to help balance
• Things like rucksacks, topboxes and tall tailpacks act like sails. To a lesser extent so do tank bags and panniers. Leave them at home if you can
• Look out for gusts in the gaps between buildings, hedges and other traffic (especially large vehicles like trucks and busses). Anticipate the blast when you hit the gap.
• Gusts can push your bike into a slide in a corner (I’ve had the front tyre push over a metre out of line on track before now). Don’t tense up, sit up or chop the throttle: you’re more likely to have an off. Just stay steering where you want to go, keeping a gently positive throttle and body relaxed, and wait for the bike to correct itself. Rule#1: maintain stability at all times.

All the above will help but, if the wind is really severe, it can be a real hazard. Just like a boat, a bike is best left at home when a strong wind advisory is in force.