Ice, does it stop you?

[HLaB]

Drove to my usual parking spot and it didn't look bad so I cycled; it was colder today (Garmin says-4deg C but I think that's wind chill) but the roads were cleaner/drier than yesterday.

 

[jefmcg]

Ice has stopped me but not this hardy soul

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVNg5SsPIM4

"Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." - Albert Einstein

 

[runner]

They never grit the Bristol to Bath path and it's the busiest traffic free route in the UK. It was fun today at 5am and -5. No slips though and that's on my roadie with 23mm slicks

Bit behind you today....I was on the cycle track at 7.00am good grip....no slippage...on my gatorskin hardshell 25's...built into my smooth rolling kinesis. Looks like rain tonight but do not believe it will go below freezing so should be good commuting in the morning

 

[BigAl68]

Bit behind you today....I was on the cycle track at 7.00am good grip....no slippage...on my gatorskin hardshell 25's...built into my smooth rolling kinesis. Looks like rain tonight but do not believe it will go below freezing so should be good commuting in the morning

It doesn't look frosty out the window this morning.

 

[runner]

Yeah grip on the roads looks good think I'll take a 11 miler in this morning,,,,,noticed a slight change in the evenings. It's beginning to get a little brighter

 

[summerdays]

It doesn't look frosty out the window this morning.

I can hear the noise of wet tyres on the road when a car goes by, but it's not raining so should be an ok ride in today.

 

[BigAl68]

Well it was wet in places with very odd patches of ice... Got icier towards Bristol
and I punctured and my pump broke and my tube repair was crap and had a slow puncture and nobody stopped to help until I had walked for over an hour.... ICE last of my worries today

 

[w00hoo_kent]

Temp was a couple of degrees for the ride in, but no sign of freezing. It was wet, from previous rain I think, and so everything is covered in slimy black scunge. Need the car tomorrow so it'll probably be lovely.

 

[runner]

Well it was wet in places with very odd patches of ice... Got icier towards Bristol
and I punctured and my pump broke and my tube repair was crap and had a slow puncture and nobody stopped to help until I had walked for over an hour.... ICE last of my worries today

Woa....bit of a bad day...I suppose we all get them but it still does not make them any more pleasant. There was a little more ice/slip as I got closer to Bristol....I only noticed on one steep climb where my back wheel was unable to grip the road for a few seconds.....not quite as bad as a slip but still makes you feel a little unsteady. One thing I am always wary about on the cycle track is going over the cattle grids....needs to be done very slowly and with no sudden movement....

 

[threefingerjoe]

I've been using carbide-studded tyres (same pair) in winter since 2005. Back then, I had 1 bike, but second pair of wheels, so I could install them in a few minutes if it was icy in the morning. Now, I have a "crappy weather" bike, that wears those tyres most of the winter. I would not want to ride on ice without them. Yes, they're a little slower, but who cares? They will let one ride, when one otherwise could not.
Years ago, when I suggested studded tyres, I was informed that the UK doesn't have as severe weather as we have in the US, so studded tyres are rarely needed. But, then I saw page after page of posts about falling on ice. I'm glad to see that more people are using studded tyres these days. They are definitely the answer to the ice problem.

 

[summerdays]

The problem for me yesterday was that where/when I set off yesterday it looked fine, so I wouldn't have used the winter bike as it does slow me down, luckily I did because of problems with my first bike. And there weren't any reports on the radio that I heard, the only warning I did get was a message from a friend saying her husband had set off by bike and come back in again and that another cyclist had crashed by her house.

My twitter feed last night was full of various paths that weren't gritted, and people coming off.

 

[BigAl68]

Well Bristol side of the fishponds tunnel has been gritted. Nothing the south Gloucestershire side though

 

[runner]

The problem for me yesterday was that where/when I set off yesterday it looked fine, so I wouldn't have used the winter bike as it does slow me down, luckily I did because of problems with my first bike. And there weren't any reports on the radio that I heard, the only warning I did get was a message from a friend saying her husband had set off by bike and come back in again and that another cyclist had crashed by her house.

My twitter feed last night was full of various paths that weren't gritted, and people coming off.

they certainly were not making that mistake this evening....i've never seen so much grit on the cycle track perhaps the council getting a little worried of all those claims that might arrive in their inbox...anyway wrap up warm tomorrow early it's going to be a cold one!

 

[iwantanewbike]

I don't have studded tyres but as an additional precaution, I shove a load of old cloths/trainers in both sides of a rear pannier bag.

Should I fall, then I'll minimise the chance of an injury and also protect the rear derailleur and mech hanger from breaking off.

 

[James Blackwell]

i am reading this with interest. My fourth year commuting and my second fall in that time. Black ice and no warning, one second I was upright, next I was on the floor. Road rash and elbow not far off the, damage I suffered when hit by a car last year. I don't have a spare bike so i have to modify the one I have. I commute 18 miles each way and about 7/8 miles are on back roads/ cyle lanes. Am I better off just getting full tread tyres or spiked? Or stick with the car?