Would appreciate some "rain" experience from those of you who have ridden in the rain. Since wrecking my car a few days ago, I have to ride my 2000 Savage to work during rush hour both am and pm. I can handle that, but it was been raining during the pm rush hour and I'm uncertain as to what kind of reduced traction I can expect. Man, cars are crashing all over the place and I want to be able to avoid them.  How is braking, swerving and riding on sloped road surfaces affected?

riding in the rain can be both a pleasure and a disaster.

add time to the commute.
rainex for the outside of your faceshield,  anti fog for inside.

slow down,braking distance will be greater.
try to down shift as much as possible,when braking  go easy on the rear, rely on the fronts.  wipe headlight and taillight before each ride.

wear a highly reflective rain suit. wear food handler rubber gloves under your regular gloves, that will keep your hands dry as your outer gloves get saturated.

lane split to the front of the line at intersections, this way you are first off the line, with little traffic ahead of you. less water will be thrown up from car tires.

ride in the car tire tracks ahead of you, not the middle of the lane, the middle of the lane is where vehicles drip their oil and coolant making for a slicker surface.

try to avoid riding in the first 30-60 minutes after the rain first starts. that is when the roadway is the most slick.

don't carry passengers.  

i've always said "if you don't ride in the rain, you aint a biker"

i hope these tips and the others before me help you out.

Thanks for the good advice. One in particular that I noticed was that riding on the crown (middle) sure felt slippery until I moved over into one of the car track lanes. When I first started riding, I kinda vowed only to ride when there were dry conditions. However, Florida is noted for unexpected thunderstorms, and I think it is prudent to know how to better handle wet situations.
Hope more of you experienced riders can lend some additional advice.

I learned the hard way to ride further back from the driver ahead in the rain. I got caught in the rain years ago on my GN-400 & I was riding fast to get home. The car way in front of me stopped & when I hit the front brake the tire slid & the handlebars yanked to the left. I stomped the ground to keep from falling & I slid past him just as he turned left. The tire finally grabbed when my speed dropped enough. Didn't take much to hydroplane that tire & it had plenty of tread.
I'd watch for the slippery stuff too like manhole covers, painted places, grease spots, etc. Rain-X on the visor might be a good idea.

sluggo wrote on 12/31/69 at 16:00:07:

Yeah, I had to sell it after I crashed it 'cause my fiance freaked out every time I rode. It was a fun bike. I only put 7,000 plus miles on it. I dropped a few teeth off the back sprocket for the highways. I don't remember if mine was an '81 or 82. It was red & the cheaper version with the spoke wheels. 98,000 miles! I should have kept mine! Happy riding.  

Only use your rear brake when the vehicle slow down to 20 mph or less(very easy to lock it in the rain no matter how you baby it). Therefore leave plenty of cushion space between you and the cage in front and use your front brake religiously.

surplusguy wrote on 12/31/69 at 16:00:07:

Just re-read and actually comprehended this.  Yeah.   Wet streets and the the slip-sliding-crashing goes full steam.

Moreso than ever you need to ride ahead, look beyond the vehicle in front of you, beyond the vehicle in front of him, beyond the ...  you get the picture.  As they teach in the MSF course, you need to be looking 14 seconds travel time ahead for developing situations.  A person changing lanes can cause someone else to brake too hard and slide.  Keep an eye on your butt, you don't want to end up as someone's hood ornament by hitting the brakes in front of a tailgater.

For Florida rain riding, try and ALWAYS pick the inside tire track from the vehicle before you.  Florida roads have a mandatory 2"crown in the "exact center" of the entire width of the street so by choosing the left tire track you are avoiding the center of your lane like surplusguy said.  Remember that the exact center or crown is the imaginary line that separates both lanes of traffic.  Besides, In Our rain you can become very Invisable to other cages around you and by staying more towards the center of the street, others can see you better.  Slow Down and ARRIVE ALIVE