Modern Buddy

My daughter and I were out riding and we had to stop at a stoplight near a trolley station. I looked over my shoulder and noticed a swarm of bees coming at us. I'm wearing my half-helmet, muscle shirt and jeans because of the heat. I turn to her and said, "We've got to get outta here!"

Full throttle and they gave up following us.

I took one on the Adam's Apple at 60 mph on the Ortega Hwy this Tuesday....is still swollen and itchy (my neck, NOT the Ortega Hwy). I had to pull over and dig the stinger out!

It wasn't really a swarm of bees, it was BuddyRaton trying to come ride with you guys, he just looks a lot like his avatar!

same bees that held up the game? SCARY!

I've been stung before by honey bees, and bumble bees. Bumble bees are the worse because one bee can repeatly sting you.

Ouch....glad you got out of that situation. I had a big beetle smack me in the face going about 45...that hurt

How scary. I had some instances of bees getting into my FF helmet while I was riding, this spring. I guess they got sucked in as I went by. I managed not to freak out but just flipped open my visor and they got blown back out again.

But a whole swarm of bees!?! I can't imagine I would have stayed so rational. I am sitting here without an insect in sight and the thought is making me shiver.

Good job.

-v

jijifer wrote:same bees that held up the game? SCARY!

I don't think so. I was in the Cajon zone.

Vic wrote:

How scary. I had some instances of bees getting into my FF helmet while I was riding, this spring. I guess they got sucked in as I went by. I managed not to freak out but just flipped open my visor and they got blown back out again.

I was going to comment on how I was glad that I wear a FF nowadays, but that comment is making me wonder just how safe the FF is. Just when I thought I had it figured out!

Did you have the visor open? Please tell me you did!

, i got hit in the left eye under my glasses @ about 45 one eve by a "big bug" of some type, my was swollen/red and icthy for almost a week,, warm compress and saline flush. folks @ work thought i had been in a fight!!lol

I had something squishy smack into my shoulder as I was riding to work at 4am. Personally I was glad that I was wearing my jacket and I couldn't see what it was.

Lostmycage wrote:I was going to comment on how I was glad that I wear a FF nowadays, but that comment is making me wonder just how safe the FF is. Just when I thought I had it figured out!

Did you have the visor open? Please tell me you did!

Most of the time I wear a FF except on extremely hot days. I'm afraid to tell you that even with the visor down on my FF, I've had insects fly inside. No bees but the nats that swarm around somehow find the opening under my chin .

I've run into single bees before while riding at high speed. They feel like rocks. I hate the ones that splat on the faceshield.

Lostmycage wrote:

Vic wrote:

How scary. I had some instances of bees getting into my FF helmet while I was riding, this spring. I guess they got sucked in as I went by. I managed not to freak out but just flipped open my visor and they got blown back out again.

I was going to comment on how I was glad that I wear a FF nowadays, but that comment is making me wonder just how safe the FF is. Just when I thought I had it figured out!

Did you have the visor open? Please tell me you did!

Umm I wish I could tell you that I ride around with my FF with the visor open, but I don't. What happened was I would be riding along and then notice a blob on my visor, then I saw it was crawling and then looking at it more carefully I could see that it was a bee. I then reached up and snapped my visor open quickly and rode like that for a few seconds while scooping as much wind with the open visor as possible and when I closed the visor the "wee beastie" was gone.

I did find at Iron Pony a blocker thing that goes around the bottom of a FF and secures around your neck to stop wind, debris, insects, etc from getting sucked into the bottom of the helmet. They had them in winter weight, which I believe was also wind resistant and lined in fleece, and summer weight which was likely some kind of cotton blend.

I did not buy it because I sew and I am going to make one for myself and also incorporate some additional features which I would like to have for hot weather riding. I am a natural redhead and anything that will keep the sun off of me is a good thing in my book, add in the bug resistance and reduction of wind blowing across my contact lens covered eyeballs and I think we have a winner. Now to just find time to do the actual sewing of the thing...

So, to answer your question, sorry the visor was open, but perhaps you can find one of those hood/skirt/blocker thingamabobs to keep the bees out.

-v

Mayflys are my nemisis around here, they come out after dusk on mild evenings. The other night I had to stop TWICE in 3 miles to wipe my visor just so I can see!! And you should see ALL the corpses caught in my beard!
Can SOMEONE please invent an automatic wiper system for a helmet!!??

Had one big bug smack into my sunglasses while I was riding with the half helmet this week. Sucker somehow got past my glasses and partially hit my cheek. Hope it hurt him more than it did me.

In 1969 I was in college and was riding my Honda 90 at about 40 mph with my girlfriend on the back. I was wearing a thin cotton jacket with loose cuffs. A bee or wasp or yellowjacket (I don’t know which) went right up my sleeve. It didn’t like that and was stinging me. Oh what fun. You can’t just start swatting or you’ll wreck.