Summer is the new winter (bike)

[Monsieur Remings]

Well, if the weather has proven anything to me of recent, it's the pointlessness of having a dedicated bike for either season. Like a lot of you no doubt, I'm sick of the weather, wondering why the powers that be, God, Mother Nature, Allah and all the rest of them bother giving Britain a summertime season at all..? Why not skip monsoon season altogether O divine ones?

On Tuesday, and I'm wondering how many other people see it this way, I was up at 5.30am ready to roll. Courtesy of my father-in-law who decided to stay another night and have the kids until about 1pm I was free to go a-riding. So, heavy rain was not overly welcome and I promptly got back into bed for another hour, got up around 6.45 and had another go..? Nope, still pissing it, so take the...er...winter bike. But alas, I'd forgotten, only one magnet and bottle cages both on the summer ride. What a faff, sorting that out, then there's the tool bag switching over, check the brakes etc as it's a while since I've ridden it, plus my old shoes seem to work better on the 105 pedals I have on the winter, where the feck are they? Disorganisation and dismay follows. And it's nearly midsummer's day and I'm having this conundrum?

I eventually get out and about and then the sun peeks out from behind the clouds. My god the old bike seems so different now, a bit heavier than I remembered truth be told, what hard work. So I went home, swapped them over again and that was that, took the summer bike and promptly got pissed on about an hour or so later anyway. What joy.

So, after another conundrum this evening that's it! No more arsing around. What's the point in a winter bike when it rains more in the summer? Maybe a winter 'Sunday Best' might be a better option? Or, just put some mudguards on, clean the bike regularly, dry off any water in annoying places fanatically (like I do anyway) and to hell with worrying about it all. This seems like the best option all round given that I won't ride when it's cold enough for ice or salt.

What do you all reckon?

 

[Ian Cooper]

It's England in June. Maybe Global Warming has changed things over there, but when I were a lad, we'd count ourselves lucky if we saw the Sun before July. I remember one June we had snow. Don't tempt the gods - they can do a lot worse than rain if they've a mind to.

Be patient - only a few more weeks until the Sun comes out.

And anyway, what's wrong with a bit o' rain? Do Britons melt these days? Does bike paint come off in a shower? In my day we 'ad to get places - a bike was a vehicle, not a toy bought to take out joyriding - so we couldn't just lay in for another hour when it rained - heck, we might be in all week! And we 'ad these things called raincoats - you'd put them on and by the end of the journey you were as wet through condensation on the inside as you would have been if you'd just worn a T-shirt and let the rain do the job - aye, them were 't days! ... Oh, wait - I had one of them days last week.

Just noticed - you're in Clevedon. That's Somerset, right? Well that explains it! You Southerners aren't used to a bit of rain like we Northerners are.

And yeah - a dedicated bike for a certain season is a waste. If a bicycle can't handle any weather, from heatwave to blizzard, it's not much of a bicycle, in my view. I reckon a bike without mudguards, in Britain (and a lot of other places), is a lot like a chocolate teapot.

 

[sidevalve]

It's England in June. Maybe Global Warming has changed things over there, but when I were a lad, we'd count ourselves lucky if we saw the Sun before July. I remember one June we had snow. Don't tempt the gods - they can do a lot worse than rain if they've a mind to.

Be patient - only a few more weeks until the Sun comes out.

And anyway, what's wrong with a bit o' rain? Do Britons melt these days? Does bike paint come off in a shower? In my day we 'ad to get places - a bike was a vehicle, not a toy bought to take out joyriding - so we couldn't just lay in for another hour when it rained - heck, we might be in all week! And we 'ad these things called raincoats - you'd put them on and by the end of the journey you were as wet through condensation on the inside as you would have been if you'd just worn a T-shirt and let the rain do the job - aye, them were 't days! ... Oh, wait - I had one of them days last week.

Just noticed - you're in Clevedon. That's Somerset, right? Well that explains it! You Southerners aren't used to a bit of rain like we Northerners are.

And yeah - a dedicated bike for a certain season is a waste. If a bicycle can't handle any weather, from heatwave to blizzard, it's not much of a bicycle, in my view. I reckon a bike without mudguards, in Britain (and a lot of other places), is a lot like a chocolate teapot.

100% on the mark ! Too many [of course by no means all,to all you dedicated comuters out there] bikes have become fair weather toys. Of course there's no shame in using a bike just for fun / pleasure riding, nothing wrong in having several bikes, but you don't "need" several bikes, you want them. I just find it a little amusing the number of people [and there are plenty out there] who bang on about the "green" bicycle and only use one for sport/sunny days and ferry it about on the back of an enormous 4X4.
If a bicycle isn't tough enough to be used on the road [and I do mean road, not some billiard ball smooth section of new tarmac] then it's true home is the track.

 

[fossala]

I ride everyday to work. I don't drive so unless I don't want to get paid I have to hope on the bike. I NEVER see another cyclist if it is raining or very windy, but when the sun comes out I see about 5-10 depending on the day/time. Silly fair weather cyclists.

 

[Pottsy]

I don't believe in a 'best' bike to be saved for sunny days and perfect weather conditions. Just use it! Everything is replaceable if it wears out or breaks. You've spent good money on a great bike so go out and get the pleasure of using it as often as possible.

 

[martint235]

I have a best bike and a commuting bike however the criteria for using them isn't weather based. The commuter is used for commuting, it has marathon tyres and tends to have the saddlebag rack attached. I commute every working day about 12 miles each way. I get wet.
The best bike also comes out in all weathers if I'm planning a longer ride. The setup on it is ideal for 100+ milers so there's always a pretty good chance it's going to get wet. Just have to clean them both once in a while.

 

[Chrisc]

I'm with Pottsy here. Ride it and be damned. My new 'best' bike got a proper coating of mud second time out but cleaned up fine. I was thinking of keeping the old one for winter but the new un is so nice I don't really want to go back so this one will get filthy/washed/filthy/washed instead.
I do have other bikes but for different reasons, pootling with the missus for eg or on holiday, but nowt to do with weather.

 

[Kiwiavenger]

im in the process of trying to source a second bike just incase my allez breaks on me or it gets hit etc. bike is out in all weathers and im stretching the new commute out to include many more miles! (is currently 5) and will be done in all weathers

 

[zizou]

I ride my best bike year round. The rain and wet isn't the problem (although i would prefer it to be warmer and sunnier at the moment) it is the salt on the roads in the winter that does my head in and means i need to wash the bike thoroughly after every ride. At least with summer rain i can just dry it off quickly and put a bit of gt85 on.

 

[jdtate101]

When it's wet and miserable my cyclocross bike comes out, much more fun in the grot. I save the carbon roadie for best weather (although it's just fine in the wet). In some ways I prefer the crosser as it's a more relaxed geometry for everyday riding, whereas my Dogma is a pure race machine and a little less forgiving and twitchy in adverse conditions. Right tool for the job I say...

 

[MacB]

I have a best bike and a commuting bike however the criteria for using them isn't weather based.

Pretty much how I view it, weather is immaterial though all of my bikes have/take mudguards, the 'best' and the MTB just have clip on ones. The commuter stays fully weatherproofed and racked up all year round. The only weather choice I make is ice, then it's whichever bike has the studded tyres on.

But I do have the luxury of keeping all 3 kitted out all the time, so they each have their own toolkits/saddlepacks, spare tubes, bottle cages, lights and pumps. I only use flat pedals so footwear never crops up and each bike is always ready to ride. Unless of course I've been fettling, in which case I may have none to ride

 

[Monsieur Remings]

Some excellent points here.

Like others have pointed out I just can't see the point any more in letting the weather determine what bike I ride, and as a result of the differences in quality between the two machines, what experience I have! Some could argue I should use the better machine with the better brakes in wet weather and they'd be right.

I don't generally ride in salt or ice (I can't see how the drive-train on any branded winter bike is less susceptible to being ruined by salt though) and yet I understand perfectly why commuters have separate bikes for commuting and just general riding, precisely because whatever the weather you guys need to get to work. That makes perfect sense to me.

I'm not a fair weather cyclist by the way; precisely why this thread was started was because I wanted to know what other people's views are on riding in bad weather/choice of bike etc. Living here on the North Somerset coast we get more than a fair share of rain. I remember last year riding two sportives on a relatively new bike and how the rain came down, blowing away any illusion that I was actually riding some fair weather machine any more. Besides, I ride three to four times a week on this bike (150-200 miles average) and find that, as others have rightly pointed out, the bits that can get damaged through exposure to water generally don't if it gets cleaned and relubed every time I get caught in the wet. From now on of course, I'll happily potter along in the piss with no such conundrum regarding bike choice thanks to the replies.

Thanks for all the input, genuinely helpful insights.

 

[al78]

I have a bad weather bike; it has hub gears and a Hebie chainglider so I don't have to bother with all this fannying around cleaning it when I get home. Added to that the bike is in quite an exposed area at work so if it is raining all day then the bike is just sitting there soaking wet all day. I'd rather use the bike that is the most robust to such conditions and minimize the maintenance requirements.

My road bike is more the "fair weather" bike however it is probably equivalent to most people's winter bikes as it has mudguards, puncture resistant tyres and a hub dynamo. If money was no object I would replace the compact drivetrain with an Alfine 11 hub gear and turn it into a proper low maintenance all-weather bike.

 

[Chrisc]

Forgot to add I bought a Batavus commuter bike a few years back. Hub gears, roller brakes, hub dynamo lights, built in rack and totally enclosed chain drive. Ride in any weather and never have to worry about rust. The Dutch expect people to leave bikes covered in snow etc and they still expect them to last 25 years. No concept of weight tho, being flat a 28kg bike isn't an issue there. Bit different in Yorkshire but still useable.

 

[Cyclopathic]

I use different bikes for different jobs but not different seasons. If I've occasion to use a trailer or have something unwieldy like another bike frame or wheels to tie on to my rack then I use my stout scott hybrid which is predictable and comfortable. For most other things my regular squeeze is a Dawes touringesque thing that I've put together. If it's a quick pop down to the Chinese takeaway then it's the little shopper bike.