Longtermers: Rich ventures out in the snow on his Africa Twin
Sod’s law delivers a dusting of the white stuff on a ‘must travel’ day – but should you take the bike?
In any normal year, riding in the snow and ice is just something that happens because it’s unavoidable; I use a bike as my primary source of transport whatever the weather. This winter has been a bit different. Lockdowns and remote working mean my commuter mileage has been decimated – and until last week, I’d completely avoided the white stuff this winter. So it was Sod’s Law that on a day I actually needed to travel (to collect my first ever pair of glasses), we got a dusting of snow. The family bus (a rear-wheel drive auto diesel estate) is utterly, comically, useless in snow – so it was the bike or nothing.
Out of Africa
I’ve been called a lot of things by bikers and car drivers alike for riding bikes in the snow and ice. ‘Idiot’ is probably the most printable. But there’s less to be feared than you might expect. If you’re an adventure bike rider who thinks mud, gravel or sand are fair game – this isn’t very different.
Like any big adventure bike, the Africa Twin feels a little intimidating on snow (and off-road in general). It’s topheavy, weighty, and tall – but it actually behaves well. Selecting ‘off-road’ mode gives you a good mix of electronic assists and suspension settings, allowing it to help you as much as it can. The high, wide bars deliver great leverage and feel, and the seat is low and narrow enough that my 5ft11in frame can usefully dangle both feet to the ground for extra stability when needed. The throttle connection is good, but not faultless. It’s easy to be delicate with inputs, but it’s not at its smoothest in the first 10% of the range. The gearing is good for slow-control riding though, and its front/rear balance works well despite how rear-bias the riding position forces your own mass to be. The soft initial stroke from the long fork is a benefit, too – an area where a GS loses out, for a change.
Dancing on ice
Road tyres generally work surprisingly well on ice (fresh snow favours knobblies), I’ve ridden over huge stretches of black or white ice without incident, then stopped and fallen off my own feet. Talking of ice types: White is easy to see and usually grippier than black, which is dramatically harder to spot – but if you’re riding along and suddenly notice the world’s gone very quiet, you’ve probably found the black stuff (tyre noise usually vanishes). A judicious dab of the foot to test the grip is a good giveaway. If you are gliding like a curling stone, don’t make any sudden inputs to throttle or brakes and you should be fine. In fact that’s the mantra at all times.
Gently does it
Opening the throttle hard is bad. Shutting the throttle hard is bad. Braking is sometimes tricky, and so are cambers. And braking.
All sounds awful, doesn’t it? It’s not. You just have to use micromovements, give yourself lots of room to slow down, always use a little rear brake before going anywhere near the front and only use one or two fingers on the lever. Don’t rely on electronic rider aids to do it all for you, either. Yes, they help, but they can’t overpower physics. If you’re doing it right, neither TC nor ABS will kick in at all. Equally – there are limits. Tackling a snow-covered hill that’s a challenge in the dry is clearly insanity, and if the white stuff is
drifting, only and enduro bike will have a hope of winning. Avoid slush, too (often in the middle of your lane or along the central white line – if it’s re-frozen it’s like hitting rocks or a kerb, and can wipe you out on an otherwise clear bit of road. Finally – use the road to help you. Don’t fight cambers, use them; and if you’re stuck on glassy car-compacted snow, it’s amazing how often the gutter or verge can afford you the grip you need to get moving again. Above all else; if in doubt, you’re getting cold, or the weather is worsening – just go home.
The best rides all finish upright.
LIKES
● Great balance and low-speed control characteristics
DISLIKES
● Top-heavy, glitchy throttle at low rpm, it’s a big unit to pick up