To windshield or not to windshield, that is the question

First of all I completely agree about riding with a sheild. My bike came with one detached,and I rode it home  without the shield - wind blowing about 40mph+, and I was exhausted! Next day I put the shield on, and it's never come off. Ride 100+ a day, and never feel beat up.
Second - in reply to the mileage issue - your mileage should actually be BETTER with a shield, since the drag and turbulance should be smoothed out - more aerodynamic.
And last - yeah, the thing ROCKS in keeping nasties off my face and body!
Full helmet, jacket, wind shield - and riding is fun AND safe!  

I ride a Suzuki C50 with a shield and would not ride without it.  I understand the crusier looks better with no shield, butI prefer the look of my face without rocks, bugs, etc.  The most recent experience I can share is with my sister.  She commutes daily (100K in 7 years on a harley) in the hill country of Texas and encountered a group of turkey buzzards on the side of the road.  As she approached, the group took off from the ground.  One of the birds struck her at windshield height and destroyed the shield, breaking it in half.  She stayed on the bike, did not crash, and stopped a short distance later to survey the scene.  Impact killed the bird and she was shook up but no worse for wear...  Probably saved her life.  Thanks for the shield...  take care and ride safely.  

I ride a Harley Road King with a detachable windshield. The shield has only been off a couple of times. Both times I took it off I wished I hadn't. It wears me out when I don't have it on and after a direct hit on my nose with a June bug I learned my lesson.  

I'm a former infantryman (read: tuff guy) LOL and for years I rode without a windshield (read: more look cool value) on my dirtbikes and dual sport bikes. As I turned 50, I started riding a cruiser, added a windshield and never looked back. Man, how did I ever survive all my long rides, 400 to 500 miles per day without wind protection?  Well, my KLR650 only had a tiny factory windshield, but I was tired after every ride.  I'm too old for that shzt now. Bring on the windshields for my wife's VStar 650 Custom and my VT1100C2 Shadow Sabre. Life is good.
Barney  

My V-Star 1100 Classic came with the windshield. I was doing a little cleaning the other day and took it off. I thought I should take a ride to see how I liked it. After about 10 minutes I returned home and put it back on the bike.  

I think you'll find that anyone who has tried a windshield will keep it, and those who haven't will never know.  A detachable shield gives the best of both worlds.  In California almost all routes lead to freeway driving to a certain extent, so the shield is nice to have.  If I plan to cruise city streets the shield comes off in seconds.  It's a no-brainer as far as I'm concerned.  

I think you'll find that anyone who has tried a windshield will keep it...

There's a bit of wishful thinking. In 1983, I bought one of the last of the naked bike GoldWings. I put a windshield on it for about 10,000 miles, then took it back off and never bothered with another windshield on any bike.

...and to you folks who get worn out trying to ride without a windshield...

Riding a bike on the highway for 10 hours a day or so is not physically exhausting. Highway riding is the couch potato version of motorcycling. Sure, it takes more effort to sit up on the couch, than it does to lay down on it, but it still isn't exhausting to anyone who is capable of walking farther than the refridgerator for the next beer. If riding a bike on the highway wears you out, you're doing something wrong... very wrong.

regards,
Joe  

I've been watching this thread as it's evolved over the past few weeks.  I'm definitely on the "to windshield" side of the equation.  Only took up riding 2 seasons ago and I knew from riding on the bikes provided by the ridng school that, after spending some time at what I would call commuter road speeds (50 mph), I definitely did not want a bike that had no windshield.  I personally prefer the look of a bike with the bags and windshield (I have a Suzuki C50T) as opposed to the nakedness of a "bare" bike.  They just seem to my eye to be not yet finished.

If your preference happens to be a custom chopper, that's a whole different ballgame, and I don't imagine anyone would envision one of them with a windshield.

But ultimately I think it comes down to each individual's comfort level, aesthetically and physically.  If you've seen a bumblebee appear to be about the size of a quarter just before it hits your windshield instead of your face, or hear and see and feel the sandblasting that takes place as you meet a gravel truck on the highway, it doesn't take long to realize that the windshield is a great idea.

And as for whether or not you feel exhausted after 10 hours riding anywhere, highway or otherwise, it's a great way to spend a day before your head hits the pillow and almost instantly fall asleep, eager to wake up the next morning and do it again.  To be doing it at all says you're doing something very right.

Here in the south central part of BC, where it is currently minus 15 Celsius (was minus 26 three days ago) and we have about a foot of snow in the valley bottoms, 3-4 feet on the ski hills, we await the arrival of spring and the opportunity to ride again, which seems to be far too far away yet.

Do whatever you need to do to be comfortable and safe and, as every hockey coach will tell you, "Keep your head up".

Merry Christmas everyone.  All the best for 2009.  Herb.  

Joe,
I have a Stratoliner with a quick-detachable windshield but leave it on 95% of the time. I disagree  that riding 10 hours a day is not more exhausting/demanding without a windshield than with.It keeps pressure off your chest among other things.Riding that many hours is tiring no matter what kind of riding you're doing because you must be very
alert to stay out of trouble (potholes,debri,other vehicles.etc. You seem to always say the opposite of what others are saying just to be differnt.Anoying!Most of the other responders had many and varying legitmate points.Yours was not.
Luke  

It keeps pressure off your chest...

When you get used to using it instead of fighting it, that pressure is what supports your body, so you can relax your back, shoulder and arm muscles. Lean into it slightly and that's what happens.

You seem to always say the opposite of what others are saying...

Probably because I have a completely different perspective. After all, since 1980, I have had as many years when I rode 50,000 miles, as there were years when I rode less than 20,000 miles. Most of the responders in these forums have little riding experience.

regards,
Joe  

Dear Sloowpoke Joe.  I always find your contributions to any topic interesting and which seem to be pretty clearly founded in a fairly extensive background in motorcycling and broad-based knowledge of any number of related subjects.  However, after the above entry into this thread, I have to ask you this question.  What the heck do you do for a living that allows you to regularly log anywhere from 20,000 to 50,000 MILES a year on a bike.  As a commercial traveller (travelling salesman) I average between 20,000 and 25,000 miles a year.  Adding that time to hours actually spent in contact with my customers and time spent in my office, short of getting a divorce from my wife, disowning my kids and grandchildren (all of which I have no intention of even thinking about) and then spending every remaining waking moment on my bike, I still doubt that I would come close to reaching such numbers.

And even though you must surely live where you can ride 365 days a year, your numbers baffle and astound me.  I hope you'll fill us in a little.  Cheers.  Herb.  

ive had three windshields on my 97 honda valkyrie since i bought it in 03 with 700 miles on it from WISCOSIN cycle SALVAGE.the former owner told me most buyers of salvage bikes dont ride them out of the lot.i replied id like him to give it a coat of wax and straighten out the kickstand.hey for $4000 you gotta get youre moneys worth.after 30K my GF dropped BLackie(my 97 valk)and broke the windshield.the next one lasted only a year and 10K as i ran into a low flying crow.ive had this last one on for about 20K.ive spent about $450 on 3 shields but i like to ride in the rain and snow.dont care much for slippery roads though.so with 62K blackie is taking a little time off.steve  

herba,

Actually, for a single guy, those kind of miles are easy to rack up. Get off work in the afternoon, go to bed, get up at midnight to do stuff for a couple hours and be on the road by 2 am. Come home 200 miles later and get ready for work. At 200 miles a day, you can rack up 1,000 miles a week and still have your weekends free for whatever. Throw in a couple weeks of traveling 500-800 miles a day on vacation and a 50,000 mile year is fairly easy, with 70,000 miles being doable if you like riding enough.

Actually, the only year I rode more than 70,000 miles was 1992, the year after I retired. I rode 72,000 miles from march to august that year.

The only new Harley I ever bought, was a 1981 FXB. I broke it in by taking a 30 day trip. It was already out of warranty (6,000 miles back then) before it was two weeks old.

Riding 365 days a year? I've never even tried to do that. I really don't like riding in the rain, when it's colder than about 50°f and riding on icy roads when the temperature is above 20°f is kind of chancy. Below 20°, you can ride slowly to keep your tires cold enough to get traction, but above that they will melt the surface of the ice and that's when it's really hard to ride, although a little snow on top of the ice does help.

As for what I did for a living... I played :-)

All my life I've been saying...
It matters not, how skilled you are at the task nor how dedicated to the goal.
If you're not having fun, you are doing it WRONG.

In 1969, I decided it was time to start thinking about my financial future, so I enlisted in the Navy. The less than 20,000 mile years after 1980 were mostly years that I spent 6 months or more outside the US, riding rented bicycles and scooters, if my ship was in port somewhere.

However, my arthritic & damaged spine has been slowing me down the last couple years. I find it difficult to stay in the saddle more than about 90 minutes at a time these days. My recent break-in trip on the new Sabre only included a couple days that went over 400 miles and I had to sleep in a bed each night, instead of simply stretching out on top of the bike for an occasional catnap. It looks like it's getting close to the time when I'll have to let the next generation take over the open road :-)

regards,
Joe
--
Electronics Instructor(retired), Miniature Repair Technician(retired)
Motorcycle Instructor(retired), Ditch Digger(retired), Sailor(retired)
Technical Writer(retired), Petty Bureaucrat(retired), Gambler(retired)
Truck Driver(retired), Jungle Guide(retired), Hog Farmer(retired)
Chief Petty Officer, United States Navy(retired)  

Hi I have pretty much always used a windshield.  It is sure wonderful to stop the buffeting on your chest.  It also reduces fatigue.  
Jay T.
www.ridesafe.today.com

I personaly believe that if you want a windshield, drive a car. I want the bugs and dirt it's a motorcycle what did you expect!