Reason for having a "winter bike"?

[T.M.H.N.E.T]

^Take the extra training where you can, for the past few years my bike has easily been the heaviest on any club run.

I was never last up climbs 🤔

 

[keithmac]

I can see the reasons behind having a "winter hack", commuting in salt ridden slush isn't the best!.

Personally I use same bike all year but it was bought for that.

 

[a.twiddler]

All my bikes have mudguards, and tyres that can be used all year round. I don't have a collection as such. They are very different from each other and serve different purposes. I don't commute now as I'm retired but I made the effort to ride to work sometimes regularly, sometimes less so over the last few years of work. None of my bikes were new when I bought them, but they clean up well when I get the urge. None of them could be descibed as built for speed. That ship sailed long ago in my case. For a long time I had just one bike which was used for everything all year round.

The last time I bought a new bike was in 2006-7 and though I kept it clean it didn't get used just in the summer. If I was to splurge £1000 plus on a new bike I might treat it differently but that's not likely to happen. All my bikes together are worth a lot less than that! Replacing them would not be difficult but I expect most cyclists are like me and like to change and improve components to get them the way they want, so I'm a bit careful about parking when I'm out. If I'd spent a lot on something really blingy and up to date I'd be afraid of getting it scratched or nicked and in a way, though nice to have, for me it would take away some of the pleasure of owning it.

Still, it all depends what your inclinations are and if you have a shiny speedster that you want to keep as your best bike by all means go for a more "disposable" bike for the winter. The irony is that the winter bike will probably be with you longer as the summer bike might be part of a chain of incremental upgrades over the years. It's nice to have new stuff but there's something to be said for having an "old faithful" bike with a bit of history behind it. Best of both worlds perhaps?

 

[Sniper68]

I don't have a "Winter" bike as such.I have a Road bike and a CX bike.The CX bike tends to get used more in the Winter.I still use my Road or "best" bike in Winter unless there's snow/ice etc but I do more road/track riding in Winter.
When I was into MTBing a lot of the lads had a HT for Winter which always puzzled me.I had both HT and FS and used which ever I fancied riding at the time

 

[Alembicbassman]

I don't have a 'winter bike' per se, but 4 of my 5 bikes are fitted with full mudguards - I use them in spring, summer, autumn and winter, when it's raining or when the roads are wet / muddy (lots of farmers round where I live). I think it's worth having a bike with fitted guards, I've tried the 'elastic band' fit ones from SKS and Crud with varying results, but a set of something like the SKS Bluemels Olympic Racer really do take some beating. You'll need a bike with the fitting points though - which is a good excuse for buying another bike

 

[antnee]

Well I used to own only one bike which is a hybrid pannier rack and mudguards too! But after a year of that saw a cheapish alloy road bike ( which I though wasn't that dear at £315.00) that was a must have! But then I came into some money just enough to get a carbon road bike So I fitted mudguards on the heavier alloy road bike which has become the winter bike though am disappointed with this second pair of guards Lifeline I think they are as don't seem to keep much mud at bay but stay on solidley and + don't rattle whereas the pair I ditched were Raceblades which I found fell to bits after two seasons So I only ride the carbon in dry weather and keep the alloy bike for wet roads of which we seem to have quite a few of in the autumn to spring.So having the alloy bike for the winter is a big plus as when its time to wheel out the carbon I seem to fly along! well it seems fast to me lol.

 

[PaulSB]

It occurred to me today there's really only one reason to have a "winter" bike.

That's to ride 56 miles on a glorious, chilly Sunday!!

 

[Ming the Merciless]

All my bikes are winter bikes. They are there to be ridden year round. But some get precious about bikes and so have a winter bike a bit like some have Sunday best.

 

[RoadRider400]

My 'summer bike' is more than just a bike to me. We have covered many many miles together and I like to look after it.

I dont have a 'winter bike' per se. However I have a very cheap commuter bike that I will also use for my winter recreational rides. I dont have the time to go very far in the winter due to the reduced daylight hours, so for me its makes sense from a cleaning maths perspective. Doesnt bother me leaving a £100 second hand hybrid caked in dirt. But if I took out my more expensive 'summer' bike I would want to clean it.

Spending 60 minutes on a winter ride then 15 in the cold outside giving it a thorough clean does not sound very appealing.

Spending 120-240 minutes on a summer ride and then 15 cleaning in a warm garden afterwards sounds perfecty fine.

 

[Mo1959]

Spending 60 minutes on a winter ride then 15 in the cold outside giving it a thorough clean does not sound very appealing.

Spending 120-240 minutes on a summer ride and then 15 cleaning in a warm garden afterwards sounds perfecty fine.

This is exactly how I'm feeling about it too. Living in a rural area that has too many large tractors and lorries that the roads really weren't built for, the verges get cut up and mud dragged into the road at this time of year. It's hard enough getting yourself out the door in poor conditions without knowing that the bike is caked with muck at the end of nearly every ride.

 

[Flick of the Elbow]

I have an almost permanently muddy winter bike that I ride for 2 or 3 hours 3 or 4 times a week often on muddy lanes, often on offroad tracks. My only weekly maintenance is to keep the chain oiled and to keep an eye on brake wear. Other than that it gets a clean every month or so.

 

[Juan Kog]

The trouble is with road clubs is that their winter bikes are still high performance bikes so if you turn up on a true winter bike or gravel bike, you’re working much harder to stay on.

This comment reminds of a pre club run gathering last winter .One of the fast group came to speak to our group leader , I said Dura ace on a winter bike "its only old 10 speed ".

 

[raleighnut]

There's always an excuse for needing another bike.

 

[Mo1959]

Very wasteful I'm sure, but I often wondered if you would be as well to pick something up second hand for around £100 or less at the start of each winter and just run it into the ground and get rid of it in the spring, thus saving your better bikes.

 

[Juan Kog]

Very wasteful I'm sure, but I often wondered if you would be as well to pick something up second hand for around £100 or less at the start of each winter and just run it into the ground and get rid of it in the spring, thus saving your better bikes.

It's an idea that wouldn't work for me . I don't like parting with my bikes . I would have to buy another larger shed to accommodate all the old cheap bikes I had bought just for the winter.