Commuting in 0 degrees

[12boy]

How is it things are so green?

 

[hoopdriver]

A lot of rain and a generally mild winter

 

[cyberknight]

It ain't the cold it's the traction..... with the exception of the wind.

Indeed i can do cold assuming the roads are clear but our club ridesgot cancelled as we had sub zero temps with a lot of standing water about still form all the floods we have had lately and freezing fog.
MTB section still went out an one fell off and broke his leg , needing pins. Next day it was frosty forecast for my commue home after nights and i wimped out .I could have ridden and risked it and probably have been ok but i have done my share of sliding down the road.

 

[12boy]

It aint too green in these parts in the winter....The road up to the little mountain a couple miles from my house.

 

[ishaqmir]

It aint too green in these parts in the winter....The road up to the little mountain a couple miles from my house.

Just Beautiful!

 

[classic33]

They had shorter lifespans.

Two, now dead, relatives had never been in a car until they were in their 80's. They were in their 90's when they died.

 

[hoopdriver]

Two, now dead, relatives had never been in a car until they were in their 80's. They were in their 90's when they died.

See? They lasted only ten years....😊

 

[alecstilleyedye]

yes, but be careful on untreated sideroads and estates. also look out for frozen brakes if there's any moisture in the cable inner, not that you'll know beforehand...

 

[HLaB]

I got caught out yesterday (Friday). With storm Dennis coming in I thought it would be mild but my Garmin says it was 0deg. I think the garmin records wind chill though and I think it was just above judging by the puddles. There was no drama anyway (Ive commuted in colder) I just made sure I didn't lean much and brake unnecessarily or sharply and my tyre psi's are always ran low.

 

[Bazzer]

My commute is also 17 miles, but leaving at 5.20am if there is an overnight frost, it hasn't had time to go when I leave. However, 8 miles or so is rural or unadopted roads and there are a couple of places on the rural roads where black ice is a potential problem; in one case because of a don't give a stuff farmer and the other because of a don't give a stuff council.

 

[hoopdriver]

I had a very unpleasant experience Friday before last. It was a fine bright day and I was out with my cameras, riding the little lanes in the Sussex weald. There'd been a very light frost in the morning, but the day had fined up nicely - blue skies and temperatures of about 8-9ºC . It was mid-morning, I was coming down a steep hill - about a 25% grade - and discovered to my horror and amazement that it was all sheet ice, thanks - as I learned later - to unfortunate combination of the hill's being in an intense frost hollow, deep in shade and with a broken water pipe which kept a year-round sheen of water on the pavement. (The broken pipe is, apparently, an on-going bone of contention between a farmer and the council with both claiming its the other's responsibility to repair it) I came down hard. Nothing broken thankfully - not on me, or the bike, or my cameras - but I've been quite stiff, bruised and battered and off the bike for the past week. My shoulders and ribs are still not right. On the bright side, I met a lovely old couple who came rushing out of their house, took me in and gave me a cup of tea - and filled me in on the backstory of the ice on the hill. So - some hard won knowledge of local conditions....

 

[MrGrumpy]

Frost is fine , its the black ice you need to worry about. As others have said the main roads normally get treated but not always. I used to be pretty die hard when it came to commuting by bike. I`m not anymore as no need to prove anything to anyone. Believe me its not much fun sliding along the road !

just to reiterate, came of the bike on Monday morning due to black ice !!! Lessons never learned etc :-;

 

[I like Skol]

What is this lethal black ice you speak of, do you mean ice?

 

[Racing roadkill]

What is this lethal black ice you speak of, do you mean ice?

It’s ice that forms over tarmac, rather than on gravel paths / off road. It makes it harder to spot.

 

[I like Skol]

So ice then?
Looks like water, which on a cold day or after a cold snap can freeze. So not really magical, unexpected or invisible. The way people talk about it you'd think it was.