[alanmcorcoran]

Moe, Never, Busy:

I decided to check it out. I think the really bad gusting might have passed before I headed out. It was still blowing pretty good though and the gusts were tremendous. The air out here is brown with dust. Here's the deal:

1) I paid close attention and I do not think the wind is actually capable of "moving" me and the bike directly. I think your body and the bike acts like sail, and the wind can influence the lean of the bike, yourself and the handlebar position. I suppose if the blast is really powerful, it could knock you over, but the "moving" is more an influence on your direction, rather than actually sending you five feet to the right. As it turns out, I had no issues with steering or control. (Maybe just lucky.)

2) The bigger problem for me was all of the crap blowing around. I got dust/dirt in my eyes (even though I am wearing a full lid with a faceshield), and all kinds of stuff was bouncing off my head and chest. Being sort of fall, theres a lot of leaves and crap on the street too, and we all know how fun those can be for two wheel traction. Coming down La Palma, past the Regional Park, there were some tree branches down in the road I had to steer around. Good practice for the zombie slalom.

3) I did need to put both feet on the ground at the stops. Normally, I'm not religious about this, but the wind was strong enough to knock me over if I didn't use both legs to keep the bike upright.

Early on on my trip I was heartened to see a motorcycle cop out on patrol. (Never thought I'd say that!) I figured if they didn't think it was too dangerous, that's a good sign. I know they ride heavier bikes (BMW's I think), but still...

So, to sum up, it's not fun, probably more dangerous than riding wind-free, but also do-able. Part of my aim with the GZ is to learn the boundaries of what I can tolerate so I can apply this knowledge should I attempt a lengthy tour. Today was a good lesson on high winds.

-Alan.