How to Ride Across Steel Grate Bridges
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- Опубликовано: 10 янв 2021
- support this channel at / brettkacs
Steel decked bridges can be intimidating for beginner and experienced riders alike. When you ride a sport bike a Harley Davidson Ultra Classic a Honda Goldwing or a light weight dual-sport or ADV bike it can be an exciting ride.
In this video I offer tips and techniques so you can ride with confidence and fearlessly across any grated bridge. These are the same techniques for riding gravel or dirt roads too.
I offer an intro into rake, trail and gyroscopic precession. Enjoy the ride across the Bridge of the Gods between Oregon and Washington
For more on gyroscopic precession check out this video @ • Gyroscopic Precession 
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The most important thing when crossing a bridge is to check if the bridge is there.
Laugh....
Thanks Bret for explaining in greater detail the terms you refer to in your education videos. Very helpful 👌
Thankyou for the valid information.
😂👍🏽
Wisdom :)
Very good video. I do ride a Harley ultra classic and they are more stable but I have friends that get scared shitless on a grate bridge. I have told them to just relax and don’t fight the weight of the bike and don’t jam the brakes. Thank you for the information. Always good to have a safety reminder and I’ve been riding 52 years but I still know that there’s more to learn.
True i asked my buddy about his ultra and he said he didnt even notice anything
Thanks. This is very therapeutic. Every time one of these jumps out at me, a decades old cheese-grater incident triggers faulty muscle memory which induces a hang-on-for-dear-life clench. It’s kinda like seeing my ex.
This video brought me back to my experiences on the Macinac Bridge in Michigan. Except it's about 4 miles of grating with 30-40mph cross winds!
My 83 R100RT with earlier versions of Metzeler tires hated this bridge! Something about the tire tread design or compound I think because at any speed the bike squirmed all over the place. Riders behind me would comment later how my back end was kicking out back and forth to the point of oscillating. I used to live in SSM Canada and traveled over this bridge many times a year.
Been there done thst as well! Whew, glad to get to the other side.
@pete lavigne Sault Ste. Marie. North end after crossing the Mackinac bridge
I've crossed this bridge a few times. It's no big deal on street tires. With 50/50 tires and a ton of traffic that's moving below 20mph it was like riding a fish with ADHD. Extremely unnerving.
Ah the good ol Mack. That bridge made me seeing the Golden Gate for the first time wholly underwhelming.
It is indeed a big chungus of a bridge with a ton of grating and length.
But worth crossing for the wildernand trails out there.
Thanks, I got more understanding about why I’ve always found that going slow in mud, gravel and sand is much more dangerous than riding normally.
Yes that little speed really helps. In India we have scraped roads left without patching for many weeks. when we ride on such scraped patches the bike tends to follow the scraped marks and rider feels like the bike is going to drop. However when we maintain some speed and grab the handlebars softly bike autocorrects its course and it becomes fun. In fact, now I look for such scraped roads and go on those to enjoy and practice 😀
Hood Canal bridge actually has placed two “tire paths” of concrete in the grate on entry/exit so if cars or motorcycles want, you can ride those smooth paths (about 20” wide each).
well done. we have so many grated bridges around here that I learned all of that by simple trial and error. In one case, an actual crash on a grated bridge. I had help, though. A young lady, inexperienced driver and not from the US, panicked at the far end of a fairly short bridge deck and braked hard enough to tangle her car with another. just as I had committed to the deck myself. I scrubbed as much speed as I could, but my inexperience applied only the rear in bursts because I treated the deck as if it were ice or some other loose surface. That lasted until I was either going to hit the car or the deck. around was not an option. The grate tore up the bike enough that it was a write off and I lost a bit of skin (jeans are bad, kids. )
Thirty-ish years later - this is absolutely right. Confident. relaxed. its not as big a deal as you think.
Best explanation of rake and trail I have had. Totally sunk in. Thanks!
Thanks Bret. Good information. Rode over a steel grate bridge for the first time over the Columbia River going into Hood River this last summer. It was very unnerving! First instinct was to ride slower.... that didn't help at all. Luckily made it across without tipping the bike over. I'm going to have to ride across the Bridge of the Gods now!
I enjoy these quick short tips videos. I like that your channel has a good mix of short quick tip videos as well as longer more in depth instructional videos.
Excellent. These “little” films are BIG help! By fully understanding concise topics I can more easily use them in a cumulative manner. I’m getting better!
As a fan of silent movies I really enjoyed the intro to this one.
I've been loving your videos, Brett. Only recently switched from Sports to ADV riding and have been using your videos as an instructional manual of sorts. Thank you 🙏
That confidence and experience speaks for itself in every video...thanks for all these great videos! Keep riding and ride safe!
Thank you for this video. I've been riding for 40 years and the only environment I am truly nervous about are steel grate bridges. Of course, the primary one I ride over is the South 1st Ave bridge in Seattle during rush hour, and the thought of having to make a quick avoidance maneuver tends to be a big part of my nervousness. Thanks again!
Hey Bret, thanks for your videos. I'm a brand new Aussie female rider who will be devouring your videos as I'll be doing an outback Australian adventure mid this year. I've really enjoyed what I've watched already. I look forward to putting some of your ideas into practice. Cheers
Thanks for joining the channel!
Helpful. I think more for awareness, moral support and sanity check. Confirms that you really can’t do much other than just relax. I’ve always wondered if there is something specifically technical in handling. Learning that the grates have cross angles (it’s not like you have time to stop and look down) helps to diffuse the feeling that they are just parallel, suspecting that you are going to get flipped and dumped at any moment.
My first grate experience was crossing the Mississippi from Memphis to Arkansas on I-40 … and it freaked me out! Everything was loose and minimum speed was 55mph. I hit the grates at 65 (flow of traffic) and had no idea what to expect; plus being a few hundred feet up in the air, plus being surrounded by 18 wheelers, plus … it’s a long bridge. And once I crossed it, I had to cross it back (after stopping on the other side, realising that the Highway on the other side was in bad condition with a lot of construction ripples (worse) and that my casual joy ride had turned into the ride from hell). Weighing my options, I just prayed to Jesus and crossed back over - super uneasy.
I think the other point to consider begins before you leave your house … how is that stretch of Highway used? In this case, the I-40 crossing is literally the logistics distribution to the ‘West’ - so, anticipate that there will be a lot of high speed traffic, even on a weekend; expect that traffic to leave debris all over the place; expect that traffic to wear down the roads, leaving ruts, cracks, potholes, shoddy repair patches, gravel and ultimately never-ending construction - resulting in dust, gravel and ripples. Also, this is why I will never ride open face or without a visor - rocks can get kicked up and hit you like a bullet.
This was 30 years ago. I grew up treating 10-speed Schwinns like BMX and a lot of dirt bike riding before I got a street bike. Therefore, I never had a lesson - just learned from others and on the way. So, ask these questions. I literally had a ‘crash course’ on encountering every single type of road hazard (except ice) in one Saturday afternoon and it was not fun.
Great information even for experienced riders who are encountering metal bridges for the first time
"Smile while you ride!" Amen! As always, excellent video. Keep the great content flowing 👍👍
Thank you, stoped before my first grated bridge watch this, makes me feel better
Interesting, never realized these were difficult. I love going over these, never been on one that long, but find them fun. Hardest part for me was trying to het the kick stand down for a pic.
Love your description of rake and trail .. 😎👍
Great Video as usual!!!! I have only been riding a short time and one of my unnerving experiences was crossing a grated bridge on one of my motocamping trips last summer! I was so nervous but came through it and after watching this will be more comfortable! This tip is also good for Grooved pavement as well! I also caught that experience on one of my first trips as a new rider!! So nerve wracking ! Great tutorial!
Thanks Bret. I'm always learning something new on bikes even though I have been riding them for over 50 years.
A pleasure watching your vids and picking up info. Cheers
Thanks, Bret, I've had times of being nervous when hitting steel grate as I know I've had some trouble when hitting wet steal plates on roads but now you've gotten me thinking, there is a big difference there.
Great points, I used to ride across steel grate very frequently and it quickly became obvious that slow did not help and to just relax and let the bike go, works great, Thanks for the post
Well done Bret, love that bridge.
Perfect advice.👌
Thank you for sharing this knowledge.
The more I run steel grate bridge. The better I get at it. My first time hitting one was like three years ago. It took me a few times before I figured out that some speed helped. Glad to see this video out there.
Thank you for your videos, I just started ridind at 47 yld. I appreciate your tips and advise!
Idea for another video: Wildlife on the road! Being from the Austrian Alps I had many encounters with animals. Deer all the time and higher up there are cattle herds roaming free. Back in my Supersport days in the 1990s I was coming around a corner in South Tyrol at about 100mph and there were half a dozen cows lying on the road chewing what they had to chew. The heart rate went up a bit.
Another great video. Nice to see you found a day that wasn’t downpour. Few and far between round these parts.
This video reminds me of a past adventure preparing for a ferry ride across Lake Michigan with a large K1200 touring bike on my own several years ago. I ran into a bunch of unexpected challenges having never taken a bike across before. The bare metal deck of the ferry was as slick as ice in the morning dew and I had to quickly find a way to secure the bike for an extremely rough trip. I saw a few other riders in another party spin out at low speed just riding on board. I have lots of experience riding dirt bikes in the winter on frozen lakes and loading bikes on trucks and trailers, but I never expected it to be so challenging to properly secure the bike with the limited tie down options on the big BMW. As I was tightening the straps to compress the forks kneeling beside the bike, it came off the centre stand and the only thing that prevented the massive bike from running me over (and colliding with the vehicles beside it) were the two rear straps and I added to anchor the bike in place. After this unexpected discovery I added straps between the centre stand and front suspension to ensure the centre stand stayed up during the voyage! I was considering staying with the bike to keep an eye on it during the trip until I found out an alarm sounds indicating everyone has to clear the area, so time is short getting everything secure. Once underway, cars on deck slid around violently setting off car alarms and doing significant damage to vehicles around the bike. I feared the worst, but I couldn't inspect the situation because no one is allowed down in the lower deck (for obvious reasons) while the ferry is in motion. I was very relieved to see the bike was unscathed when we got across to the other side of the lake. Great videos! Please keep posting more of these.
Love the videos Bret, very well done
I Love Your Videos! Well Done! So much so, yours are the only videos I throw up on our group page for discussion and education purposes. I hope you keep doing this for many, many years .... Appreciated!
New subscriber here. I didn't realize I'd never subscribed to your new channel. Thanks for the info about this, Bret. I never knew what rake & trail were.
I also want to say that you make such nice quality videos. Please keep up the good work.
Hi Bret, Really enjoy your presentation style and always watch, currently I'm going through your back catalogue of what I have missed.
my wife and I are new riders. Thanks for the educational video
Thanks for the information. I’ve been riding for over a year but never went over steel grating. After seeing this video I am not worried about it anymore. In fact, I want to go find a bridge to try it out! By the way, I love that “smile while you ride” I always do. Have a great day.
Awesome job as always! Love your explanations. You make it so much easier to understand and apply the techniques you teach. Hope you are liking the 21" front wheel as well.
Hi Brett, Love your videos, always entertaining and informative. I have watched lots of videos, yours and others, that focus on the importance of the front brakes and how to use them. They all make sense and I have learnt a bit from them. I have never seen anything on when and/or how to get the best from the rear brake. Every bike's got one so I figure they're important.
Pucker moment this year was a construction piece of metal across the road. Of course it was wet. I felt my back tire slipping. I kept simi loose and made it across. I prayed afterwards and was also very grateful for your videos teaching me not to tighten up on the handlebars. Thank you Bret!🙂
Good stuff as usual Bret!
I remember riding across Seattle's Eastlake Bridge on a bicycle when it was wet. The bike slid a couple of times; that was scary. Relaxation is key for sure. I imagine it being much less stressful on a motorcycle. Crossing the Bridge of the Gods into Washington was a big milestone for me when I was hiking the Pacific Crest Trail. Thanks for the great video and bringing me some nostalgia too.
Perfect explanation with not too much physics ;-)
Great video. Thanks. Bridges.. like road grooves, angled railroad tracks, and wet paint!
Aloha from Hawaii. I just stumbled across your videos. They are awesome. Keep them coming. Love them! John
Great video!! Very helpful
Good tips many thanks to you
Fast forward to 2021 Long Beach just completed a new state of the art gigantic Gerald Desmond suspension bridge. Tremendous! Last year I rode over the old one looking up! This year on the new one looking down at the old bridge! 👀🌉
One thought hit me today. I usually comment on most of other channels videos but not on yours. your clips are usually complete so comments become redundant.
Thank you. Keep up the good work. And drive wisely 😁👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Comments help more than thumbs for getting the videos recommended. Even if you drop a “Just commenting for the algorithms” it helps.
Bret, thank you for taking the time to talk to us on the other side of the bridge of the gods. And a special thanks for letting my son Adrian film you on the bridge!! Thank you so much! - Santos R
The bridge coming into Aberdeen, WA took me and my pillion girl friend down years ago. All the nipples on the grating had been worn flat, the deck was wet and my old 500 Beemer went down, slicker than fish guts on the f'ocsle, we weren't hurt, hate that bridge.
Thanks Bret, always good technique coming from you.
Thank you for this video!
Great vid. Thanks man!!
On our trip to Alaska my wife and I drove across many grated Bridges it was pretty challenging with a Road Glide pulling a trailer. 35 days on the road it was a great adventure
We are always waiting for their valuable guidance and sharing. I wish you health happiness, good day.
Rode across Bridge of the god’s hundreds of times. Great video Bret. I need to get up to your school
Rode across the Hawthorne bridge in Portland today similar steel grating for the first time, didn’t feel right but took your advice relax and enjoy myself. 👍🏼
Hey Bret, When I went to Yukon in 2019, I got on to the South Canol Rd in the rain. It was hard packed dirt with slippery slime layer on top. I high sided @30-35mph, picked the bike up, straitened the handlebars , and carried on. How you talked about the grates and practicing on gravel roads and getting comfortable with sensation of the bike sliding around resonated with this experience. In 2019 I was a Novice by your rating system.
One more great video again. Keep sharing pls. Love your videos. 👍 Need your recommendation for 50/50 tire for R1200GSA LC 👍
Great stuff Bret. As an Oregon resident, I’ve crossed Bridge of the Gods many times and always enjoyed the views it provides. Not once have I felt it was in any way sketchy or dangerous.
Great video, as always. I’m learning so much in your videos.
I hope i can take part of one of your trainings in the summer, when corona allows it.
Greetings from Germany 👋
Spot on!
I'll try it.
Thanks
This is great tip Bret! I always struggle when I ride on bridges or gravel roads. I'm sure this will not be an issue for me anymore.
I'm now 60 and I can't count how many times I cross steel grate bridge or covered wooden bridge without any issues! But if you encounter heavy cross wind or raining condition and suddenly the traffic jam in front of you that's another story... It happen to me once, my cruise bagger was fully loaded (gear/passenger). I didn't loose it and manage to keep my underwear clean!
The grated deck coming out of Aberdeen WA by the Ford dealer is especially fun as it requires a bit of turning along with being bumpy… Great time
Hi,l love this channel,i am an all year round biker and you offer me some great real world riding advice,cheers! 🙃🤙steve.
Thank you! Never rode across one but I'll just chillax, keep the speed resonable and do the YMCA with my hands off the handlebars 😁👍
Good advice for a lot of situations, not just metal grate bridges. A lot of situations where traction is a little iffy picking the right speed can make a huge difference.
Your videos and tutorials are perfectly made, I learn a lot of things from you Thank you very much for all this blessed investment, always sharing and looking forward to more thanks
Thank you for the grated bridge vid. Im a new subscriber to you and a new owner of a 150 Vespa. I use to ride a Honda Nighthawk a very long time ago and was use to the grated bridges. A little nervous about going over grated bridges with the small tires on the Vespa. But need to. I live on an island that has 3 of the 5 exits/entrances grated. Thank you. Look forward to checking out some more of your vids!
Hello Brat, thank you for your videos. Can i suggest you making a travel video? with all the topics put together. A 5/6 episodes with everithing you can encounter in a trip. Flat tires, mechanical problem, navigation, gear, driving technics and even, camping. keep the great work
Great video as always! Thanks! :)
Good advice. I'd add that its best to keep your eyes looking as far down the road possible. Don't watch the front tire.
excellent as usual
Hello Bret, Like always an excellent content! It's a beautiful bridge, i didn't found one like that here in Brazil. Have a great 2021!
I rode this bridge on a 600cc sport bike in the rain and wind (if you know the PNW, this is in the Columbia Gorge-***very*** windy) I swore i’d never do it again. Almost kissed the ground on the Washington side. Great info and great video!
As always, Mr Tkacs is elegant in presentation and explanation :)
And when you went down to the front wheel to explain what’s rake, I visualized a cool barge in from RyanF9..... ;)
Thanks Bret! More grist for the mill. :)
Awesome tips. It really is mind over matter.
I crossed that bridge on my way to the wabdr. It's surprising the differences between different Bridges. Thanks Brett 😁
Thank you! If i will have any ideas, will post them.
I would love to see a video on how to do emergency stops in bad road conditions, like asphalt with loose sand or gravel on it, or with lots of potholes. It's not quite offroad or adventure stuff but very, very common.
Learn the fundamentals, practice them yourself it's not something that can be taught. You have to experience it.
Best tip i got: pucker up buttercup!
I am subscribing because I saw something on your bike that really interested me, and that is the setup of your camera facing you along with the rode(microphone receiver maybe)... In addition your knowledge is proven to me that is really good on everything you're showing to us the new age of adv motorcycle enthousiasts... Take care and again big thanks!!
Movo is the mic system you saw but the final voice came from the Sena due to cross wind
@@BretTkacs ohh okay thanks again sir
I’ve been riding for most of the last 40 years more that 20 years of street riding and still haven’t crossed a grate bridge that I remember. I have spoke to people that are scared to death of them but I am just more interested in seeing what it’s like. If I knew of one with in a reasonable distance it would be something I would go try this year. This was a very helpful video, thank you!
They really aren't a big deal... If want to know what it feels like drop your rear tire pressure to about 10psi and go for a slow ride (please don't crash, a low tire is far more dangerous than a metal bridge)
Great breakdown. I was worried about having to go over a bridge like this in Halifax Nova Scotia with my KLR this summer, but it seems no problem if you pull a bit more throttle. Thanks.
Great advice, Bret.
I have also noticed that the steel grating on some of the bridges in the far North is much widely spaced and therefore the wobble is worse on adventure bikes with knobbies. (Far North of British Columbia, Yukon and beyond, for example.)
Just "Use The Force," Bret.
Great video. I crossed the Hood River Bridge in 60mphish wind when it was wet. I slowed down, which I guess made it worse. I was absolutely terrified.
I’ve always loved your videos on riding techniques or riding skills.
Great tips Bret! As a new adventure rider, I pay special attention to your videos! (2020; KTM 790S Adventure)
Another great good one! 👍
Great video, keeping calm, as you say is the key, sometimes difficult when other road user are being idiots, the moment you tense, is the time it goes wrong, do it in a corner and you end up in a straight line; what you need to do is start marketing "big bags of confidence by Bret", buy one and never be scared again! It's better of road sometimes, if you come off, at least it's your own fault and a Car won't run over you. Keep up the good work my friend!
Relax and let the bike do the work! I’ve rode across that bridge too many times to count!
Good video and tips. The bridges here in the Delta area of California where I ride are, by and large, metal grate draw bridges, though they’re fairly short spans.
The only issue I’d bring up that you didn’t mention is that of the speed of traffic. While the rider may want to go 20-30 mph across the bridge, you should be prepared for drivers in front going slower. Even stopping. These will force the rider to do likewise. As you said, changes made on a metal grate need to be gradual and calm.
I've never come across a surface like that, the nearest I have experienced is when a sealed road has had its top coat scraped off in preparation for a new seal. As you suggest the bike is more stable when carrying a bit of speed.
I almost had my heart drop out of my butt when I first encountered that
@@MrMikeDao that sounds funny, although I felt the same 🤔🤣🏍️
Great video. I really enjoy your videos on how to ride an adventure bike. I have done some off road but I am getting older and less confident. I have owned a few dual sports ( dr 650, klr 650, Aftica Twin DCT) and both a new GSA 1250 last year. I want to do mainly gravel roads and any videos around that are appreciated. As to Steel grate bridges, this one (Ogdensburg-Prescott International Bridge) is my nemesis. I crossed than in the rain on my Goldwing F6B a couple of years ago. Pucker factor for sure. lol
Nice catch phrase and yes I do. Hard not to. Thanks.