Riding in windy conditions?

[Lets Do Science]

Hey Y'all, so yeah had a super scary situation today while riding at high speed where it felt like my entire wheel was off its balance due to the winds pushing something in the gyro/wheel. I was able to duplicate this situation and it really feels like the entire wheel is off axis when this occurs with certain wind forces, it's terrifying like I'm slowly being pushed over on the wheel. Whats going on here? Is the gyro being manipulated by the wind? How should i respond when this occurs? 

[The Brahan Seer]

Whats going on is perfectly normal its just the wind pushing you and your wheel. Only way to counter it is with your stance, leg muscles and balance ie riding experience. Going out to deliberately ride headfirst into gales is one of the most exciting and fun things to do on an EUC. Its the closest feeling to surfing on dry land.  But equally having a side wind continuing hitting you as you drive along an exposed road going somewhere is a pain. Just practice going out on windy days start slow and keep going, enjoy! Unless you mean something else, in which case I have no idea.

Edited March 27, 2022 by The Brahan Seer

[rcgldr]

For a side wind you need to counter-steer to lean into the wind (same as steering for balance). If the wind is coming from the left, you'll need to (tilt) steer right so that the wheel steers right from under you, causing you to lean left into the wind.

[Hellkitten]

I got hit so hard from the side by random gusts of wind today, that twice I had to get off and walk a bit. There is no way to predict that kind of bursts of wind and counter steer. I could understand if it was consistent and coming from one direction, but these were random in direction and strength. I could compensate for the milder gusts, but not the heavy ones. It sucked. 🌬💨

[.....]

Wind can be a total pita. Of course SOME people like to say it doesnt matter, but I'm pretty sure they are on harder drugs than I can find. I am pretty light and tall. I've been in crosswinds enough I just about fall off my wheel. Even my heavy tracking sherman, can become a serious handful in high winds. Tbh, I really need to work on my high wind riding skills. I've been riding along at 40mph, hit a gust and simply could NOT stay tracking straight. I find that crouching low helps, and adjusting knee bends to try and offset the weight. FOr some reason, it just doesnt seem as simple as merely staying leaned against the wind. I've no problem leaning to rail thru 40mph turns, but high wind crap is something else!

Edited March 31, 2022 by ShanesPlanet

[Tawpie]

Wind is the worst. I don't exactly tip the scales, but sometimes it feels like I'm going to get blown clean off the wheel—the sail area you present causes balance changes big time. Similar to being on a bike, but worse because you're compensating with your feet and legs. To me, it's not only tiring for the muscles but the noise is tiring as well.

I think what you're feeling is perfectly normal... you just have to get used to it as @The Brahan Seer advises.

[The Brahan Seer]

I think I should clarify, going out and deliberately going into strong blustery head winds is a very safe way of learning how to cope with it. When I'm leaning into a headwind thats blowing anywhere from 30- 50mph, fighting it, my ground speed is from zero, trying to launch into it, hanging in the air, to really pushing hard into it and probably going no faster than 5mph. It is this super slow speed that enables you to correct for the changes and learn how to ride it (hence the surfing analogy). Something I've experienced is that an EUC is more stable than a pedestrian which makes sense as we always have one foot (the wheel on the ground) as opposed to 2 feet alternating changing our centre of balance. If you ride in snow or very cold conditions its surprising how stable we are despite how counterintuitive. Same idea. But side winds over 35-40 knots are a pain and potentially sketchy especially going 20+mph. So I slow down. But I am a light rider on a light wheel. You may have no issues what so ever. 

[rcgldr]

On 3/31/2022 at 10:13 AM, Hellkitten said:

I got hit so hard from the side by random gusts of wind today, that twice I had to get off and walk a bit. There is no way to predict that kind of bursts of wind and counter steer. I could understand if it was consistent and coming from one direction, but these were random in direction and strength. I could compensate for the milder gusts, but not the heavy ones.

There's a limit to how much and how quickly a rider can react (countersteer) to a gusting crosswind on an EUC. Heavier EUCs are going to be more of an issue. One helpful aspect is if a rider tries to lean into a crosswind in the same manner as if standing on the ground, the rider will put more pressure on the downwind pedal, which will countersteer an EUC, but will probably have to further adjust the tilt to remain balanced. Motorcycles have the advantage that up to a point, the side force from a cross wind will cause a motorcycle to countersteer due to trail (contact patch is behind where the steering pivot axis line would intercept the pavement), giving the rider enough time to react for a stronger gusting crosswind. From a rider perspective, a crosswind on an EUC blows the rider sideways, requiring the rider to react, while a crosswind on a motorcycle feels like blows the tires sideways (due to trail) automatically reacting.  I've got 480 miles on my V8F, but if the winds are 15 mph or more I don't ride (I may look for a slope | ridge site to fly my radio control gliders instead).

Edited April 1, 2022 by rcgldr

[5Cauac]

On 3/27/2022 at 11:25 AM, Lets Do Science said:

... it's terrifying like I'm slowly being pushed over on the wheel.

Yes and not to mention the feeling you look very awkward doing a side lean while trying to go straight. 

All great suggestions mentioned above on how to cope with winds but if you want a visual regarding sudden cross winds, here is an example of one and keeping control. 

(Video starts at point of interest)

Note: My speed was roughly 18-20MPH and was carrying a small dog on my back.

 

 

[Lets Do Science]

@5Cauac

Nice video! Those sudden wind bursts are scary as heck at speed, side winds are becoming my biggest fear on my wheel for sure. 

Why do you wear so much gear tho? You look like a motorcyclist out there, don't you feel too bundled up and such? Looks uncomfortable. 

[5Cauac]

37 minutes ago, Lets Do Science said:

@5Cauac

Nice video! Those sudden wind bursts are scary as heck at speed, side winds are becoming my biggest fear on my wheel for sure. 

Why do you wear so much gear tho? You look like a motorcyclist out there, don't you feel too bundled up and such? Looks uncomfortable. 

Thanks. That day, gear was mainly for visibility (hence the yellow) as I knew I would be riding in the city. Also, as precaution as I had a valuable passenger on my back. If something would to cause me to crash, I'll be taking the full impact and not my passenger.

I used to do a full gear up when I was first learning to ride. Now I gear up for the type of ride. If fact, I feel less confident now when not geared up and tend to ride conservatively. Geared up, I tend to push the limits of my wheel.  

[.....]

37 minutes ago, 5Cauac said:

Thanks. That day, gear was mainly for visibility (hence the yellow) as I knew I would be riding in the city. Also, as precaution as I had a valuable passenger on my back. If something would to cause me to crash, I'll be taking the full impact and not my passenger.

I used to do a full gear up when I was first learning to ride. Now I gear up for the type of ride. If fact, I feel less confident now when not geared up and tend to ride conservatively. Geared up, I tend to push the limits of my wheel.  

Fully geared and Im f*cking superman! Simply invincible and nuthin's gna stop me.....

[The Brahan Seer]

1 hour ago, Lets Do Science said:

Why do you wear so much gear tho?

Dress for the slide not the ride.

[supercurio]

I feel like handling wind is surprisingly easy on an EUC: when it shifts your center of gravity in any direction is triggers an automatic correction by the tire and self-balancing algorithm.
However what's not possible is to keep a straight line when that happens, because the only way we remain balanced left/right is by steering. Therefore between tricky and impossible without lateral headroom.

And I realize writing this that it probably seems easy enough because I don't live in a particularly windy place 

[techyiam]

I typically ride in the rain with an umbrella, mostly around the 30 kph mark along bicycle routes. There is usually some wind, but quite manageable. But at times when the wind is strong, or it is a strong gust of cross wind, it can steer me abruptly, or force me off balance. I have become pretty quick in collapsing the umbrella, or to regain my balance. 

[Tawpie]

10 minutes ago, techyiam said:

I typically ride in the rain with an umbrella

wait a second, that doesn't seem right... in the PNW -nobody- actually deploys a bumbershoot. At least not to prevent rain—keeping the sun off you absolutely, but rain? NEVER! 

[Lets Do Science]

15 hours ago, The Brahan Seer said:

Dress for the slide not the ride.

I disagree with this. Obviously some gear is critical (knee/shin, helmet) but riding with body/slide armor and all that stuff would seem to take much of the joy out of EUC riding. To each their own though in regards to risk tolerance, I haven't had a bad fall yet and don't plan to either!

[Tawpie]

58 minutes ago, Lets Do Science said:

To each their own though in regards to risk tolerance

This is a huge, and 100% valid point. Everyone must make their own decisions for their own circumstance. Besides, if you don't think you need gear, you probably won't wear it and will have wasted your money and our planetary resources.

But I recommend as much gear as you can tolerate (at all times) simply because things do happen. Not just cars/people, but equipment failure or a rogue gust of wind or (most often) rider error will someday make you glad you were geared up. You can manage rider error, but the rest is kind of up to chance.

That's been my experience anyway. Started in skater gear and got tangled up in the wheel on a dismount... promptly put Mr. Visa to work and haven't been sorry in the least.

BTW, you can still get very badly hurt even in the very best gear. There are some falls that you literally can't protect yourself from with external strap on equipment... gear mitigates a lot of risk but it certainly doesn't eliminate it.

Edited April 1, 2022 by Tawpie

[.....]

2 hours ago, Tawpie said:

 There are some falls that you literally can't protect yourself from with external strap on equipment... gear mitigates a lot of risk but it certainly doesn't eliminate it.

Need I make a joke, or shall I just leave this here, just to get people thinking about "what joke"..........

[The Brahan Seer]

4 hours ago, Lets Do Science said:

but riding with body/slide armor and all that stuff would seem to take much of the joy out of EUC riding. To each their own though in regards to risk tolerance, I haven't had a bad fall yet and don't plan to either!

This is where we differ (and thats a good thing), I wear all the gear so I can do more risky things without getting hurt. I really enjoy it. I like pushing myself and the wheel, but only to a point. Trails and off road riding is so much fun but I wouldn't do it without gear. Skate parks still frighten the life out of me even with gear but I'm working on it. I don't mind a bit of pain and the sense of losing control at low speeds. Over the last 11 months I have lost count how many times I've fallen over, slipped out, bashed shins, arms, shoulders etc etc. But I haven't had a high speed crash yet, but I'm sure it will happen one day. But without the gear I wouldn't have done any of it. We are all different and enjoy different aspects of this great sport and thats what makes EUC as a hobby even better. How many wonderful different styles and ways we can ride, it never gets boring. Well not to me anyway. Enjoy!