Windscreens

Most motorcycles come naked, they don’t have a lot of wind protection. Wind “protection” you say? Eh, who needs to be protected from the wind – you like the wind! A windscreen is, like earplugs, something that you never really think you need until you try it. A wind screen makes riding a lot more comfortable, and thus sustainable. If you’re someone who rides mostly around town and hops on the highway here and there and you ride a bike without much screening, surely you’ll be fine without it. But if you’re someone like me, and often the open road and the land unknown comes a calling, a windscreen can be your best friend.

Windscreens cured my backaches

I used to get back pain after riding for an extended period of time, I thought it just came with the territory. However, it was much less of a problem after I installed a windscreen on my bike and started using it for longer rides. I eventually figured out the muscles of my back and abs are constantly straining to keep my torso forward while battling strong winds. That’s what was mostly responsible for my backache.

After I installed a windscreen on my bike I found I could ride a lot longer on the highway, in a lot more comfort. it’s just much better for traveling. it will transform any naked bike to a totally different animal on the highway.

Windscreens seem to have a stabilization affect at higher speeds

Not only will a windscreen make your ride more comfortable, but I’ve found that it actually makes highway riding significantly more stable. The screen creates a smooth wind sleeve that goes on either side of the motorcycle and helps the bike stay a lot more stable, even when encountering wind blasts from trucks.

I’ve found windscreens improve my gas mileage

Somewhat related to the stability effect, is the effect the windscreen has on gas mileage. Depending on your bike the amount of mileage increase you get with a windscreen will differ, but I’ve noticed a few mpg gain on most of the bikes I have installed them on. The choppier a path wind takes around an object, the greater the drag coefficient will be. Since the windscreen significantly smooths the front surface of the bike and the path of the wind over it, it will increase the gas mileage.

Protection from bugs, rocks and other road debris

As if that wasn’t enough – there’s one more benefit to a windscreen. Protection from road debris and BUGS. Take a look at all the photos below, I took each of them after having ridden through remote areas. Nasty. Large bugs at high speed can also pack a punch if you take them in the chest. Anyway besides the obvious upside of not getting covered with bugs, I also get hit by random debris and rocks kicked up by cars once in a while. Sometimes you’re rolling along and something just hits you, and you never find out what it was. A windscreen is not going to prevent every potential hazard, and obviously some screens offer more protection than others, but generally windscreens do a lot to protect you from airborne hazards you will encounter on the road.