Winter cycling?

[02GF74]

i don't like it for the reasons above - wrap up in lots of clothes I sweat and then it gets cold, don't wrap up it is cold. it is s lose-lose situation, not to mention of the shorter days and dopey motorists poeering out through a postage size hole made in the ice on the widnscreen .... i could go on .....

roll on summer 2013!!!!

 

[asterix]

Ice, wet roads... tons of stuff can happen.

Just do it. Take things steady and you'll be fine.

 

[TheLondonCyclist]

Does anyone have any recommendations for tires in winter? I currently cycle on 700x23c. I don't want them to be too chunky or thick.

 

[Richard A Thackeray]

Does anyone have any recommendations for tires in winter? I currently cycle on 700x23c. I don't want them to be too chunky or thick.

Due to clearance issues with my Dyna-Tech, I use 20's with Salmon Profil mudguards, and rarely clogged up.

In terms of footwear, use SPDs & cross/mtb shoes, not roadie soles/pedals.

Last winter I only came off once, due to black ice.
Personally thinking, I reckon that anyone who's raced 'cross ought to be able to stay upright most of the time throughout the winter (it certainly helped me over the years)


Running to work is equally fun, I'd just wear my fell-running shoes, they were great in the snow (Inov8 MudClaw 330)

 

[snorri]

I guess, but the ice and snow will dramatically escalate the chances of something happening; I guess that's what I worry about. I care about my bike more than me. Haha

Unless you are having to cycle every day early in the morning, I think your concerns are a little over the top. Although we have to be that little bit more alert to road surface conditions and adjust speed accordingly, I suspect there will be few days that conditions are too severe for you to cycle.

 

[Sara_H]

Got to say, I tried and failed to ride in the snow last winter - I'd read on tese very forums that it would be no problem riding on snow, so pushed bike out, got on, pedeled, nothing happened. Wheels went round I stayed where I was.

Took bike back inside and set off walking!

Seriously looking for winter biking advice. Where I live when it snows it tends to hang around for a couple of weeks as we're high up. Of course after a couple of days its hard and compacted. Do I need winter tyres, snow tyres, studded tyres or wha?
Do these tyres work once you get to roads that have been cleared and treated?

 

[TheLondonCyclist]

Unless you are having to cycle every day early in the morning, I think your concerns are a little over the top. Although we have to be that little bit more alert to road surface conditions and adjust speed accordingly, I suspect there will be few days that conditions are too severe for you to cycle.

I'll be cycling every single morning of the weekdays and my route contains steep hills to go down lol now you know why I worry lol

 

[Cress1968]

Commuting in this was some of the best fun I had on my bike lol

 

[marinyork]

I'll be cycling every single morning of the weekdays and my route contains steep hills to go down lol now you know why I worry lol

Are they north facing hills? Are they busy well used and well gritted roads? Are they not gritted at all. Are they exposed to sharp winds or have protected little pockets of slightly warmer air?

Ice tends to form in the same places and has a higher probability of being better/worse in certain bits of roads. You can even make a reasonable guess about melting times. When you cycle through these sorts of conditions and are cycling along you have reference marks to compare. You think ah such and such a road has this much ice on it so it that probably means that road x will be not as bad as this or road y will be worse than this.

I would have thought that unless it was another 20 or 30 year weather event winter in the UK, that in London, unless you're using very quiet, non-gritted roads with localised problems known for being worse for ice that on the whole you'll be fine. There may be 2 or 3 days with serious problems of which you can make a contingency plan.

 

[Nicola P]

Is anyone looking forward to winter cycling? I sure ain't.

I just LOVE it, exhilarating !!

 

[DCLane]

I'll be aiming to commute all through the winter on my new (winter) Raleigh Airlite 100 - on 700x23's or the 'Lethal Impact' bike, which I use on Mondays due to lack of safe storage, and has 700x25's.

For the bad days it'll be back to the Python Impact DD, possibly with the old Kenda knobbly tyres on instead of the current Schwalbe Land Cruiser's. Alternatively I'll keep the Land Cruiser's since they've been impressive so far on almost every surface I've tried them on, except snow/ice - which I've not tried yet.

 

[Marshmallow_Fluff]

Got to say, I tried and failed to ride in the snow last winter - I'd read on tese very forums that it would be no problem riding on snow, so pushed bike out, got on, pedeled, nothing happened. Wheels went round I stayed where I was.

..That's good! Do you know how much money people pay to have the exact same effect using turbo trainer?

 

[postman]

Hate it full stop.

 

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

First proper night ride last night and loved it. Cold on the hands without gloves on but it was a lovely calm night for it. First proper test of my new lights(which were exceptional enough that my mate turned his "be seen" front) light off.

Same again tomorrow night. Refreshing and liberating - just waiting on some snow to point the MTB at.

 

[fossyant]

I look forward to the Winter commutes, then look forward to summer. Must be better prepared with moisturiser this winter, really suffered last winter, my face was really dry.

MTB is getting Trans Pennine Proofed, spiked tyres and essential full mudguards