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

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Location
London
don't go if it's raining
curious that isn't it? I don't really mind riding in rain, apart from certain visibility issues, and in fact in my wondrous altura varium jacket have laughed in the face of it/enjoyed real deluges. But I am loathe to head out the door in rain.
 

Jenkins

Legendary Member
Location
Felixstowe
curious that isn't it? I don't really mind riding in rain, apart from certain visibility issues, and in fact in my wondrous altura varium jacket have laughed in the face of it/enjoyed real deluges. But I am loathe to head out the door in rain.
I will cycle commute in whatever the weather throws at me - thunderstorms, ice, snow heatwaves. However if there's the possibility of rain on a leisure ride forget it, I'm not going.
 
Location
London
I will cycle commute in whatever the weather throws at me - thunderstorms, ice, snow heatwaves. However if there's the possibility of rain on a leisure ride forget it, I'm not going.
pretty sure that in a night ride london to brighton a few years ago I knew that it would rain.
Sure enough as i approached brighton it started chucking it down.
I then rode along the lower prom in a deluge.
And enjoyed it.
Thanks to my varium - and I knew I was heading to a nice spoons - dried my socks in front of its fire as i had a nice breakfast and a strong beer.
Also rode London to southampton overnight recently - pretty much had to go as i had the return train booked.
Chucked it down for large parts of the night.
Had a good time.
Then sat it out until the return train in a spoons (mostly espresso I swear)
Hang on, maybe there's a pattern here ...
 
D

Deleted member 1258

Guest
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.

When I was commuting I used to make mudflaps out of old plastic washing up liquid bottles, old plastic milk bottles or old orange squash bottles.
 
The risk of ice can be present even when the ambient air temp is above freezing. The ground temp is not necessarily the same, and can be lower, which means black ice can be there even if it isn't freezing. My rule of thumb is that if my hands feel cold when outside in still air without gloves, which happens below 4c, then I assume there is a risk of ice on the ground. I will wear gloves above that temp to reduce wind chill, but I find just being outside, if my hands feel cold then I know to be very careful of the surface.
Yip, I was caught out that way when I first moved down here. Up north treated roads were good around 0deg, here it was raining and above 0deg and I thought I'd be fine. But what I didn't count on roads were treated less and the rain was falling on black ice. Hence it was like marbles. Fortunately it was a very low speed fall to the ground as I was unclipping after a warning from another cyclist.
 

Lovacott

Über Member
been pondering the same for a cpl years. I made a template with tin foil but never really got anywhere with it. any chance you would share a photo?
It's basically two bits of plastic held together with a couple of cable ties.

The first bit is folded in half along its length and attaches to the down tube with a couple of cable ties. As I have cabling running below my down tube, I've made a tight fold at the apex to make sure the fairing doesn't foul the cables.

At the bottom end of the down tube fairing, I've attached a bit of plastic sheet which I've bent across it's length to follow the shape of the crank set.

The plastic I use is a "felt support tray" which can be bought from any builders merchants for a couple of quid. They are generally 1.5m long. A good pair of kitchen scissors is all you need to cut it with.

If you pour boiling water on the plastic, it becomes very malleable for a few seconds before setting hard again. You can repeat this as many times as you like until you get the shape you want.

I've also attached a mudflap to the front mudguard (again with cable ties).

I've been using this set up for around 25 hours of cycling in all weathers (mostly rain) and it's working really well.

Here's a picture I took a couple of weeks ago but I'll take a few more in the daylight tomorrow which will show the make up a bit more clearly.

fairing.jpg
 

Lovacott

Über Member
When I was commuting I used to make mudflaps out of old plastic washing up liquid bottles, old plastic milk bottles or old orange squash bottles.
My first attempt at a fairing was a plastic milk bottle cut in half and it worked well, but it looked like a plastic milk bottle cut in half so I spray painted it black.

It worked really well, but it looked like a plastic milk bottle which had been cut in half and spray painted black.
 
I'll take a few more in the daylight tomorrow which will show the make up a bit more clearly.
BRILLIANT yes please. also, any photo of the thing before you mounted it? you are my hero! I have done similar things to my MTB because when the chain gets dirty it's prone to chain-suck. it has full front MTB fenders, w/ a home made mud flap from a neoprene mouse pad. & I mounted an over-the-counter Planet Bike Grunge Board downtube bike fender. but you are helping me with the missing link

I also did some tinkering at the front of the back wheel to protect the location of the front derailleur, thereby extending the rear fender downward. I used a Mucky Nutz Butt Fender trimmed down w/ scissors. also added a metal & rubber roof over the derailleur mechanism, but I would love to add an edge to protect the chain. I see you have a bare seat tube at the bottom, have you thought of extending that fender?

mtb w fenders.jpg


seat tube extension.jpg


MTB wedge.JPG


chain_w_marsh_mud_and_beach_sand.jpg
 
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I don't know, because I've never seen them, if the tyres you mentioned are suitable for road bikes.

I've no data but I'd guess there are possibly 10-14 days in a year when ice makes cycling too dangerous for me. I don't see any benefit in investing in tyres which I might use 5/6 times a year. There's also the hassle of changing them if it's potentially icy.

If one regularly commutes I can understand why some may choose such tyres. I'm retired and can pick any day I wish to ride so studded tyres have no value to me.
I have that same equation so I made some studded tyres according to onw of thw many DIY instruction. Pick a cheap knobbly tyre with biggest knobs. Apply self tapping screws from the inside. Dremel to a suitable length. Add protection to the heads on the inside.
Mine have been good for about 10 years of occasional use. Excellent grip in snow, ice, slush and wet ice. Not as durable as commercial versions but I dont need that.

Changing tyres is a drag. A cheap set of ice wheels would be nice but I have hub gears at the rear and dynamo hub up front.
 
thought about this thread yesterday morning as I was sneezing & coughing wondering how I would get past the door threshold. but one foot in front of the other, I eventually got out there. 3 layers up top & a thin woven hat under the helmet was just about right. the trails were mostly empty but also passed occasional walkers so the face covering was on. might be time to plug up the helmet vents soon

ACTP0457.JPG
 
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