Lesse... KE equals 1/2 mv squared, I was going 65...

[patch_bunny]

I was on my SV650 the other week, returning from a trip to see friends somewhat late at night.  I'm just a few miles from home when there's a flash of feathers in front of my visor.  All I could register was a panel of brown and tan feathers, so close I can see the detail in the feather pattern, and then in an instant it was gone.

I figure it had to

Comments

[patch_bunny]

I nailed a bee in the face once when I had my visor up. Hit the bridge of my sunglasses and got stung right between the eyes. I'm never riding without some sort of eye protection in place.

[stilghar]

Yeoikes.

Haven't suffered a birdstrike yet, but a friend of mine did, on his SilverWing - without a helmet. He's also had to dodge bats - he does a lot of riding at night.

[panth]

I've ridden through swarms of bees, over a squirrel on Mulholland's The Snake, deer, cicadas to the head, etc. I know my riding skills; I don't know what the world will throw at me. I can at least protect myself as best I can in such a worst-case with quality head to toe gear.

[panzier]

I'm up to three bird strikes, nothing as big as an owl but usually the contact felt is like being hit with a tennis ball, birds have to fly so they're light but holy cow to they explode! Hit a morning dove with my hand on a ride from KS to MA, I thought it just brushed my glove. Got to a gas station for fuel to find I looked like something from a wes craven movie. Hi viz stitch and one side covered in bird guts and blood, covered from armpit to knee, gas station had a hose :) somehow a dove contains two and a half gallons of guts. Owl might suck depending on size.

[patch_bunny]

The owls I've seen so far haven't been small. :-P

[crankycoyote]

I wear a full-face helmet, but I have doubts the visor would do much, and I'm sure I'd go flying off the back of the bike.

I'm pretty sure that's not actually true. Polycarbonate visors on full face helmets are quite strong, birds aren't that heavy, and it's not an inelastic collision. I would guess that the major problem would be impairment of vision from being instantly covered in bird guts and feathers.