Watch out for cross winds
 

I almost crapped my pants reliving this. This was not me, But I have had This almost happen to me many years ago

https://youtu.be/38N7UKh4phU

WOW :wtf:

I think I would slow down and stay in the right lane :tup:

I agree with you. :tup::tup:

So it would blow you into the traffic coming up behind you in the L lane? No thanks. He did a good job of not freaking out. Bet he was thankful for a flat/firm/treeless median.

If you slow down to a much safer speed you will have better control and if the wind does blow you sideways you wont be traveling the same feet per second so a better chance of staying in your lane.

Do that in our medians around here you either hit a cross culvert, a plow truck cross over, boulder, ditch, atv tracks or mud...........Mike

Holy Crap, that was scary.
I would call a cab and get the bike on a calm day :D

I think I peed myself just watching that clip...reminded of how that feels everytime I travel across South Dakota. Not fun.

A rider and his passenger died about a week ago after riding into a ditch on I-88 near me. I had discussed this with some other riders and we feel the wind may have blown them off of the road as there has been no other indication of why this happened.

He definitely needs to slow down. I've ridden in winds like that, too, riding across Kansas. Never got blown out of my lane, but I also kept it between 45 and 50 mph during the worst winds. 60+ mph and I probably would have been blown around. I had a harder time on my 600 lb Honda Sabre 1100 than the guy I was riding with. He was riding 2 up on a big Harley Ultra. I can't imagine riding in those winds on a 450 lb bike.

I experienced wind like that the day Barrie (Ontario) got hit by tornadoes back in 1985. I was on the 401 highway on the bike and felt like I was riding at 45 degrees. It was only after I got home from work and watched the news that I saw that multiple tornadoes had swept across Southern Ontario.

That was my thought when I saw him take off after that

80+mph and left lane... Lucky he kept it together..

If the crosswinds are at right angle to the bike centerline then lower speed only helps because it gives the rider more time to adjust the line if the wind moves the bike sideways.

If the winds are at an angle to the bike, say 45 degrees, then MORE speed helps because the forces balance out better with a higher forward force. Also, because the bike is leaning into the wind, higher forward speed in angled crosswind produces a higher force vector against the wind.

In either case, the lane closer to the wind source is probably the better choice. So wind from the right is best controlled from the right lane. Left lane for wind from the left. Assuming the rider is on a multi-lane highway. If on a two lane highway then its lane position to the wind. Constant countersteer input to the wind side helps and the other hand acts as a damper, always ready when the wind suddenly drops or rises.

I once crossed the Mackinak bridge in the rain on a very windy night in early September with 40 mph gusts from the left as I rode north. I stayed in the right (paved) lane to stay off the steel grid, and tried to ride alongside large trailers as much as possible to minimize getting blown around. I made it across to my hotel in St. Ignace, but it was one of few times I was nervous on the bike. Hotel manager said I just made it across before they closed the bridge. 552' above the water makes for a breezy ride!

:bs:

Throwing the friendly BS flag here.
The top of the towers are at 550+ feet. Deck height is closer to 200 feet.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mackinac_Bridge

Doesn't change your points: big bridge, a long damn way down, lots of wind there.

Ride safe and lean-into-the-wind,
Smokier