Can't be bothered to go cycling when it is cold outside

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Mo1959

Legendary Member
It’s the filthy bike to clean that puts me off more than myself getting cold or wet to be honest.
 

gmclean

Regular
My own experience of winter riding, is that you get some really crisp, wind free days with clear blue skies.

Plus, you get less traffic on the roads.

It all adds up to an idyllic riding experience.

When it comes to keeping warm, it's the extremities which are the challenge (fingers, toes, ears). The rest of the body keeps itself warm by doing stuff (pumping pedals uphill is a great way to get warm).

You don't see footballers playing an away CL game in Minsk in January wearing bloody great jackets and layers of leggings. They might chuck on a vest and some will wear gloves, but that's about it.
As I said, I know about layers, I know I'll warm up when I get going. I used to run all year round, at times with ice under foot.

It's not about not knowing HOW to do it, it's looking out the window at another grey overcast/drizzly day and thinking, UGH.😊
 

Mo1959

Legendary Member
Mudguards for the win
Even with them it still seems to get everywhere!


557975
 

Mo1959

Legendary Member
Do you have mudflaps as well?
No, might help a bit I suppose.
 

Lovacott

Über Member
Do you have mudflaps as well?
I made some mudflaps a few months back with simple duct tape (just to test how effective a mud flap would be).

Two minutes work and a world of difference.

I've since built a fairing to protect my drivetrain using some 1mm thick black plastic sheet which I moulded using boiling water.

Works a treat.
 

Lovacott

Über Member
They catch a lot of the spray off the road, which can arc up and onto the frame. Particularly a front mud flap is good at stopping the splatter on your down tube.

Very easy to make as well.

I have ABS mudguards which are quite easy to pierce with a red hot kitchen knife.

I made some shapes out of a plastic hip support tray (used by roofers and available at builders merchants for about £2 or £3 each).

I then made a pair of slits in each flap and a corresponding pair of slits in the tail of each mudguard.

I then secured the mudflaps with cable ties.

They've made a world of difference to the amount of dirt getting into my drivetrain.
 
Very easy to make as well.

I have ABS mudguards which are quite easy to pierce with a red hot kitchen knife.

I made some shapes out of a plastic hip support tray (used by roofers and available at builders merchants for about £2 or £3 each).

I then made a pair of slits in each flap and a corresponding pair of slits in the tail of each mudguard.

I then secured the mudflaps with cable ties.

They've made a world of difference to the amount of dirt getting into my drivetrain.
As I've decided to carry on with the Revell mixte, and it has a set of (badly painted) SKS guards on, I'll make up something similar for the front.
 
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