It's Official........me & cold, miserable weather DO NOT GET ON :(

[Dave7]

Having really enjoyed a 17 miler in the sun on Tuesday I decided on a 25 today.
I could not believe how cold it felt........similar temperature to Tuesday but it felt 10 below.
At the 5 mile mark I knew I would not make it.......it just seemed to attack me-my face, my knees, my hands.
Now, I stand the chance of offending whatever gods are out there BUT..........I do not care if I never have another cold day.......EVER.
I managed 21 miles but the last 8 was misery.
I realise some CCrs would have been out today and say they enjoyed it. If so then the gods of misery & cold wind were so busy making my life unbearable that they missed you out. If so I am very pleased for you.....I really am. If you could enjoy that while my knackers were falling off, my fingers were dead, even my a***e was tender and my heart stopped beating at 3 miles then I am so so happy for you.
If you passed me in Cheshire I was the one at the side of the road kneeling over and sobbing into a frozen tissue.

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

I don't know why weather from the east - and it's not even particularly windy - always leaves me feeling cold, indoor or out. It's not a temperature that thermometers can read apparently.....

 

[bladesman73]

Totally agree. Went out at 8am this morning for the first outing of the year on my racer. Did 20 miles only! Mainly due to breathing in the cold air,my sinuses started playing up. Body was fine, just the nose and ears.

 

[ColinJ]

It certainly did feel nippy today. I thought I might do about 40 km, but a couple of climbs to an elevation of 400 metres had me sweating on the way up and shivering from the windchill on the way down so I took a shortcut home and only did 30 km in total. Nice to get out, but very nice to get back in the warm.

I am looking forward to Spring, and (hopefully!) warmer conditions.

 

[Accy cyclist]

I hadn't got over Wednesday's club ride (when we were subjected to snow storms and freezing east winds) when i had a similar experience today. Like Dave 7, my face took the brunt. It tends to go numb on the right side and my right eye constantly waters. My sinuses swell up and that plus the combined affect of breathing in freezing air makes riding horrible! To make matters worse i cycled to the football match then had to sit there for over 2 hours without moving, so then you really do feel cold! The body has been ok during this recent spell due to 7 layers but the face feet and hands can't take any more!! Warm up soon please ffs!!!

 

[Moodyman]

I find the key to riding in this weather is to layer up, ride hard enough to keep warm but not overheat and not stay out too long.

I'm good for about 90 mins after which I find the cold air finds a route into the sweaty clothes and cools very quickly.

 

[steve50]

I've not been out on my bike but I have really noticed the chill factor over the last couple of days when walking the dogs, the cold doesn't usually bother me but I have really felt the biting cold on my face and hands.

 

[kiriyama]

Iv not noticed the cold too much this year. Iv got better gear than last year when I really suffered! My feet are the only thing that get really cold.

But currently between family, work and doing up the house I'm limited to commuting. So doing lots of shorter rides. longest I'm out is about an hour and a half, not quite long enough for full body numbness!

 

[mjr]

There's no "too cold", only the wrong clothes. Today I had the double gloves on but it wasn't even cold enough for the fleece jacket. Wait for tomorrow!

 

[gavroche]

I put a new saddle on one of my bikes today with intention of trying it out. I sat on it for a few seconds, felt how cold it was and put the bike away, ready for another warmer day.
Distance covered: all of 3 metres. Roll on spring.

 

[growingvegetables]

Totally agree. Went out at 8am this morning for the first outing of the year on my racer. Did 20 miles only! Mainly due to breathing in the cold air,my sinuses started playing up. Body was fine, just the nose and ears.

I grew up in Aberdeen.

Further north than Moscow. And by God, you knew it when the east wind blew. Apparently there's nothing higher than 200m between Moscow and Aberdeen.

 

[ColinJ]

There's no "too cold", only the wrong clothes. Today I had the double gloves on but it wasn't even cold enough for the fleece jacket. Wait for tomorrow!

I had thin liner gloves under my main gloves so my hands were okay.

I had doubled up on socks too (long travel socks for my dodgy veins with short cycling socks over them) and overshoes, er, over my shoes, so hands and feet were fine.

I had a pair of bib shorts under full bib tights so everything they covered was okay.

I had a lightweight balaclava with a lightweight skull cap over the top of it so my ears, neck and scalp were okay. I have grown a beard for the cold weather so my neck and jaw were okay too but the area of my face which was not covered felt cold, and the cold wind was getting under my glasses and making my eyes water.

I had a long-sleeved base layer on top, plus a long-sleeved jersey, plus a gilet, plus arm warmers, but my upper arms and armpits got cold where neither arm warmers nor gilet provided extra cover. I do have a heavy duty jacket but I don't like to wear it if I don't have to because it makes me sweat too much and that is bad news in the cold when I stop moving for too long e.g. on cafe stops or to fix punctures.

 

[cyberknight]

True

There's no "too cold", only the wrong clothes. Today I had the double gloves on but it wasn't even cold enough for the fleece jacket. Wait for tomorrow!

True if you have normal circulation, if you have got naff all in your hands and feet + arthritis then you have to be more selective.
Coming home wednesday morning at 5 am it took 7 miles for my hands to get feeling in them and thats with winter gloves and liners.

 

[Dec66]

I went out this morning too, as it happens.

I wasn't that cold, but I did feel like I was riding through treacle for some reason.

 

[Crackle]

I don't either. I recall now why I swopped to running in winter. I did a 25 miler last week and when I turned into the wind I just struggled to keep going and felt chilled for the rest of the day. It needs to be over 10c for me, less is hard and below 5 is just miserable.