How hot was it?

swooshdave · Aug 4, 2012

It was so hot I only took one picture. My dad and I rode out to PIR after the Norton club meeting this morning. It's been a little warm around here but it now is in the triple digits. They were estimating that on the track it was 120-ish.

As soon as we could cross the track (we had come over into the infield to check out the pits) to come home we did. Just too much for leather jackets (vented or not) and helmets. The wind on the way home was hot, so there was no benefit in riding in it.

Hoping it will be slightly cooler tomorrow, it's the OVM Oaks Park Bike Show. Unlike PIR there is lots of shade. So I might take a few more pictures.

grandpaul · Aug 5, 2012

What I would have given to have been able to take ONE RIDE with my Dad...

You are blessed.

rwalker28 · Aug 5, 2012

I live in Phoenix, all summer is 105 - 116F. It is reverse of windchill. You body creates a thin layer of body temp air, cool breeze removes that and cools you off, in winter cold air breaks through that layer and sucks the heat right out of you. Hot air is the reverse, you have a 95-ish layer of air next to your skin, but the hot air continually blowing is like a blow torch.

Big_Jim59 · Aug 5, 2012

I had a Ducati just like that except mine was black. It was a fantastic bike, rock solid, non-desmo. I even did some track days on it.

My old boss told me about riding across Death Valley. While everyone in the group was taking clothes off he was putting on his Fullbore suit. His reasoning was, "if your body is 98.6 degrees and the air is 110, then your body is cooler and you must need to insulate against the heat. If the body cools by evaporation, blowing hot air will cause instant evaporation and next to no cooling." His idea was to put on his winter gear and open the vents to allow a slow flow of air and a more controlled cooling.

Is this wrong or right?

I have to admit that I am not venturing out much on the bike or in the car. I am not sure that this type of weather is good for the bikes and I just hate getting into a car that is two degrees cooler than the surface of the sun.

swooshdave · Aug 5, 2012

Big_Jim59 said:
I had a Ducati just like that except mine was black. It was a fantastic bike, rock solid, non-desmo. I even did some track days on it.

My old boss told me about riding across Death Valley. While everyone in the group was taking clothes off he was putting on his Fullbore suit. His reasoning was, "if your body is 98.6 degrees and the air is 110, then your body is cooler and you must need to insulate against the heat. If the body cools by evaporation, blowing hot air will cause instant evaporation and next to no cooling." His idea was to put on his winter gear and open the vents to allow a slow flow of air and a more controlled cooling.

Is this wrong or right?

I have to admit that I am not venturing out much on the bike or in the car. I am not sure that this type of weather is good for the bikes and I just hate getting into a car that is two degrees cooler than the surface of the sun.

My guess is that the body needs the evaporation, but it also has to have enough water in it to keep up with the evaporation. I'd rather not find out the hard way.

swooshdave · Aug 5, 2012

grandpaul said:
What I would have given to have been able to take ONE RIDE with my Dad...

You are blessed.

Yes, I am very lucky. Just to see his grin after riding that Ducati is worth it.

alexhobo · Aug 5, 2012

we had a rough heat wave here the last few weeks. luckily, i can still ride to work at night without the sun beating me on top of the heat

alexhobo · Aug 5, 2012

This is my father and I a few years back. Getting instruction on the throttle (left grip) and the advance/retard on the right at various speeds/terrain before taking off. The pic seems to get a bit cut off but I figured it was worth sharing.

Matt Spencer · Aug 6, 2012

Dave , Id surely be tempted to borrow those ' mufflers ' and try them on your Commando , to investigate the acoustic propeties , just temorary , like .

Hobot · Aug 6, 2012

Nice flash back alexhobo, I got to spend time in Fla on very similar Chief summer and winter. I'm L handed so could shoot well but did Steve McQueen it similar to the those WWII Harley leaping films. V belt generator drive. Total hair drier blast this week when suns up and deer are besides themselves out at all times looking for greenery. Next time out w/o gloves put hand down by cabr/air box inhale area...

Nortiboy · Aug 6, 2012

Big_Jim59 said:
. While everyone in the group was taking clothes off he was putting on his Fullbore suit. His reasoning was, "if your body is 98.6 degrees and the air is 110, then your body is cooler and you must need to insulate against the heat.

Still doing the odd 4 hour Enduro in summer (say up to 95f). Full MX gear, body armour, leg and neck braces, basically covered head to toe. We use an evaporative vest you soak in water and air movement cools you down. Every hour we stop and squirt water from the backpack to keep it damp, plus we drink about a quart of water an hour. Without the moisture / sweat and air movement cooling you, you would not get far.

On the road, I use a mesh jacket over a cotton Tee Shirt to hold the moisture, keep a little water handy to wet it down and something damp around the neck really helps.

For every litre / quart of water, drink a bottle of gatorade or similar.

So, if you have to ride in extreme heat, wear loose protective clothing that allows air movement over something cotton and damp.

alexhobo · Aug 6, 2012

hobot said:
Next time out w/o gloves put hand down by cabr/air box inhale area...

the old flat definately throws some heat out; but i suppose thats the nature of the beast. more fun than burning yourself-try switching gears without grinding :wink:

Hobot · Aug 6, 2012

Well yeah engines get hot though the Indian has more engine mass with separated jugs to blow off heat and carb not in the air heat path like Nortons, which is what I was mentioning to feel the hot blast while riding. On those dead man clutch gear lever bikes, one must remember to balance on RH foot or get to N before stopping at lights. I was pretty impressed by the heat waves on the Norton intakes to point I don't see how they run so well as definitely must change the mixture toward richness d/t less air mass d/t heat expansion and more fuel vaporized by time it enters chamber. Them big Indians do take up road texture nicely and don't rev enough on cruise to numb out much but does tend to feel like a tractor going faster than expected.

alexhobo · Aug 6, 2012

trying to tune the old carb for better power. Story was it was a NYC police bike originally, then recivilianized by the gent my father bought it off of. It was geared low (as if sidecar) but in third it hits a point that no matter of 1/4 throttle or WOT it maintains the same speed. Thought is that the carbs need fiddled with. We've made some advances but the going is still slow with it just being one in the fleet. Kind of funny how technology advances so durastically from the 48 to the 72 norton I have. Though the beasts had different intents as far as purpose goes when manufactured; the technology is still so far advanced.

Hobot · Aug 6, 2012

try switching gears without grinding :wink:

Yes one of the skills of all decent drivers and riders, messing shifts up or down in most efficient manner. it was slow but statisfying to hand shift and foot clutch like a 40's PU truck but the engine allowed pretty easy throttle levels w/o bogging. On Commandos I am clutch less about 1/3 the shifts. Its natural occurrence to me in the far extremes of rpm/throttle range, very easy low down low throttle snicks up/dn or on hi rpm hi throttle snicks up/dn happen w/o shock to the system, but in-between these zones it better more secure to use clutch. I rode the Chief in upper Fla where its hilly in and out of town so stop/starts on grades was definitely a challenge to me not to fall over or bump stall or spin out on the spot. I definitely felt i was a massive presence to recon with. I got the thing up to 80 to feet some weave onset but mostly felt good below that. Long Horn bars fit my long ape arms well.

Big_Jim59 · Aug 22, 2012

Back in my bike shop days, my old boss and I got called out by a friend of his who was having trouble with his Indian Chief. We didn't normally make house calls but the guy was an old friend of Leroys and he had no way of transporting the Indian. I remember Leroy tinkering with the carb a bit and then firing it up. I was offered a ride by Leonard, the owner, but I declined. I was too nervous about the clutch shift arrangement plus the fact that even in the late 70s the price of classic Indians had begun to rise. Leroy called my a "pussy," pushed me aside, leaped into the saddle, clashed it into first gear and headed off down the street at a drag race start. I still remember him speed shifting that bike and every time he would hook a gear you could hear the tire chirp as he got rubber. Leroy had a Scout as his first bike and he came by his Indian shifting ability naturally.

alexhobo · Aug 22, 2012

Big_Jim59 said:
Back in my bike shop days, my old boss and I got called out by a friend of his who was having trouble with his Indian Chief. We didn't normally make house calls but the guy was an old friend of Leroys and he had no way of transporting the Indian. I remember Leroy tinkering with the carb a bit and then firing it up. I was offered a ride by Leonard, the owner, but I declined. I was too nervous about the clutch shift arrangement plus the fact that even in the late 70s the price of classic Indians had begun to rise. Leroy called my a "pussy," pushed me aside, leaped into the saddle, clashed it into first gear and headed off down the street at a drag race start. I still remember him speed shifting that bike and every time he would hook a gear you could hear the tire chirp as he got rubber. Leroy had a Scout as his first bike and he came by his Indian shifting ability naturally.

I say with pride that I'm a third generation Indian rider.

traffic has made it near impossible to pilot through downtown traffic. It's a real joy on back roads though once its damped right. My father had told me that when he was young he picked up a 52 chief-year of his birth. That when he got it running old men would smile and say they remembered and missed the old bikes that "when ya romp it, ya don't just twist one grip like a sissy; ya twist both!"

How hot was it?

Similar threads