RIDING TIP: Surviving Monsoon Season on Two Wheels
Last Updated: February 5th, 2021
Surviving Monsoon Season on Two Wheels
I’ll never forget my first summer in Arizona. I was a transplant from Portland, Oregon, and was unfamiliar with monsoons. Or haboobs. Or flash flooding. To say I was naive would be an understatement. Through pain-reinforced learning I came to respect monsoon season.
I was traveling down Broadway Road in Tempe after work and noticed an accumulation of dark clouds heading towards me at a rapid pace. The wind picked up and moved me and the motorcycle from one side of a lane to the other. Two minutes from home a wood 2×4 swirled into the air and nearly decapitated me; my helmet deflected most of the blow. One minute later I was doused with a warm rain that rivaled a fire-hose in its intensity. I arrived home with a softball-sized bruise on my neck from the 2×4 and a soaked backpack with water-logged college textbooks. Obviously I was ill-prepared for Arizona in August.
Fast forward twenty years and my respect for monsoon season is as strong as ever. Even with advanced warning systems now in place, it is possible to get caught off guard when riding our motorcycles. So how can we successfully survive monsoon season with the least amount of risk?
Do You Have An Overall Strategy?
Have an overall strategy for dealing with monsoon season. If you’re a daily rider, then that may mean storing gear at various locations like work or family/friend’s houses. If you’re making a weekend trip, one may consider alternate routes or locations. Watching weather reports will be crucial. If storms are really bad, be prepared to have alternate transportation modes available to you. Whatever you do…have a plan in advance. And that includes having a plan B.
Is Your Gear Ready?
Is your gear ready? For comfort. For visibility. For reducing your risk. Having the right rain gear can make all the difference. What’s on our list? Glad you asked!
- Full-Face (or modular) Helmet
- Comfortable, high quality, easily visible rain suit
- Waterproof gloves (preferably something with liners…check this out for QUICK FIX)
- Waterproof boots
Sure, we don’t get the chance to use rain gear like folks in Oregon or other wetter places, and it stings to have to invest a little money in rarely used gear, but to have it when you need it is priceless.
Is Your Ride Rain Ready?
Is your bike ready? Sure you’ve heard us promote T-CLOCS hundreds of times. Well, we’re gonna do it again. At the very top of the list is “T” for tires. We cannot stress enough that your tires have the correct tire pressure, have sufficient tread groove depth for whisking away water and sand, and have an appropriate date code range.
You’ll want to make sure the brakes are working properly and that all moving joints are properly lubricated.
Ready To Rock The Casbah?
WARNING: We recommend hitting the local coffee shop until the storm passes and the roads are clear. If a dust storm approaches, try to exit the freeway/roadway if you can do so safely.
So you’ve decided to ignore our warning and ride the motorcycle instead of keeping it parked. We get it; you could stay off the bike and remove risk entirely, but you’ve got things to do and people to see. You’ll want to keep a few things in mind before you take off:
- The roads will be slickest the first 30 minutes of a rain storm. When roads are dry they accumulate oil, grease, and other contaminants that make for a treacherous surface when water is in the mix. Over time rain can remove these contaminants from the surface. We recommend avoiding riding during the initial 30 minutes of a rain storm.
- Ever heard of hydroplaning? This occurs when the tread of a tire is separated from the road surface by a layer of water. In essence, the traction patch is now floating above the road surface which makes for interesting times as a motorcyclist. Avoid rain riding if your tire wear is close to the wear bars.
- Our friends at ADOT have some recommendations should you be confronted with a wall of dust. Here’s what they have to say at PullAsideStayAlive.org
- If you encounter a dust storm, immediately check traffic around your vehicle (front, back and to the side) and begin slowing down.
- Do not wait until poor visibility makes it difficult to safely pull off the roadway — do it as soon as possible. Completely exit the highway if you can.
- Do not stop in a travel lane or in the emergency lane. Look for a safe place to pull completely off the paved portion of the roadway.
- Turn off all vehicle lights, including your emergency flashers. You do not want other vehicles approaching from behind to use your lights as a guide, possibly crashing into your parked vehicle.
- Avoid engaging your front brake lever or rear brake pedal as they will illuminate your brake light.
Do any of you experienced riders have anything to add? Place a comment below.
If you ride through the summer in Arizona, getting caught in a storm is bound to happen Monsooner or later. However, it is what we do in advance that can make all the difference!
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Bill Seltzer has been a Motorcycle Safety Foundation RiderCoach since 2003 and a Total Control Advanced Riding Instructor since 2011. He currently serves as the Marketing Director for TEAM Arizona and is a member of the Arizona Strategic Highway Safety Planning committee. Have questions or comments about the article? Email him: Bill@MotorcycleTraining.com
I am a commuter, so I have a few things worth mentioning.
When roads are wet, slow down and pay attention to where your tires are as well as your feet. As a rule of thumb, you want to try to avoid putting either on paint (lane lines, etc.), manhole covers or anything metal.
If possible, ride in the path cars’ tires leave behind them. This is (generally) cleaner than the rest of the road, since the car tires passing over the same section of road over and over have a tendency to ‘sweep’ debris, oil, and other stuff out of the way.
Avoid the outermost lanes (closest to the sidewalk), as a monsoon can fill this area with water quickly. Trust me, you don’t want to hit 6″ of water at 45 mph.
Great article! One thing I could add in my 20-plus years of riding, is to address roads that have developed tracks. Asphalt roads get very soft during our hot Arizona summers. Because of that, the weight of trucks and other vehicles compresses the asphalt to create a track. These are especially dangerous when water from rainfall will settle into these tracks. My strategy is to ride on the crown during or after a rainstorm to give me that extra measure of safety from preventing hydroplaning, as it is difficult to determine just how deep the water is in the track. Writing on the crown has a natural tendency to drain and is much better margin of safety.
Erik, you are absolutely correct. To avoid hydroplaning, we want to ride on areas of the road that aren’t under water if possible. Riding on the crown or in lanes where motorists have displaced the water are good strategies. Good stuff! Thanks for the comment. 🙂
Nice one Jon. Avoiding road surfaces that can be slippery when wet (paint, steel plates, etc) is important. We also agree that riding in areas close to drainage points (curb lane) is important too. Nice addition! 🙂
GREAT INFO,I’M AN OLD DOGG but can STILL LEARN!!!
That’s a great attitude David! Yep, even after 35 years of riding I seek out various types of rider training annually. It is totally worth the time, money, and expense. Plus it is a BLAST!
I always carry at least 1-gallon water
I’d like to know what to do if you’re out riding and don’t have anywhere to go for shelter. Obviously getting off the road is a good idea, but then what? Your helmet is only so much protection. Should we carry a dust mask or something?
Great question Rob. Not having shelter during a major monsoon would obviously pose problems. In our experience, we haven’t had a need for dust masks. However, haboobs have made their way into Arizona recently and they move a lot of material into the air. In that case, if a rider is caught in the middle of a haboob, a dusk mask could be helpful.