Cold weather advice thread

[Greenbelt]

I did a thread on this topic last year but too lazy to bump it so starting new.

I get a lot of questions on this, so here are some ideas, and others can add in/refute etc.

1. Slow Down a Little. My main advice for new winter riders is to add a few minutes to their commutes, on purpose. Just give yourself that extra 5 or 10 minutes so you can take your time when it’s cold or the weather’s poor. I’ve found that my main problems in winter usually have stemmed from trying to be in a hurry. Trying to ride too fast I get too sweaty and then chilled if I have to stop for a flat tire or something. Trying to be in a hurry and go too fast over an icy patch. Trying to be in a hurry around brain-frozen drivers who don’t expect cyclists when it’s cold because they would never go out in the cold like that and didn’t even bother to clear the frost off their windshield because it was cold and they’re late to drop their kids off at school, and so on.

2. Good Gear Pays Off. On short commutes, you can just throw on a coat and tough it out, but on longer commutes (especially if you’re as old as I am) having good quality gear is essential to being comfortable, which is, in turn, essential to being able to slow down a little and enjoy the ride. A “Buff” or two for face and head and neck, good boots or at least shoe covers (buy at least one size larger than you’d think), wool ski socks and base layers, extra-large bulky gloves that are easy to get on and off to grab a phone call or turn on your lights etc. I don’t usually use a winter jacket — I just use my windbreaker with lots of layers under. Generally a wicking layer (or two) a wool base layer, a fleece, then a windbreaker is plenty on top for me. Winter ride tights usually sufficient for legs. On really snowy or cold heavy rain days, I have Gore-tex rain pants and a Gore-tex jacket.

3. Get Dry and Stay Dry. At work, having a good place to dry your gear and shoes is pretty critical. Shoe inserts can help; boot warmers can help; lots of coat racks that you can hang gear on in a warm place somewhere at your workplace. Putting on still-damp clothes for the ride home is super chilling and just sucks. Always try to either bring dry gear or get it dry while you work. A sub-point on the dry thing, I usually bring a change of dry clothes even for group social rides, so that I don’t get chilled at the stop. Maybe I’m a bit over the top on that, but I could ride all day in the coldest weather if I could change into dry clothes often enough.

4. Hydrate. The air loses humidity in the winter, and just by breathing I seem to lose a lot of fluid. Insulated water bottles can keep room temp water from freezing for quite a long time. Mixing in some warm tea is also kind of nice. On the other hand, frozen water bottles are pretty worthless for hydration.

5. Don’t Suffer! If it’s too nasty, and you’re not feeling the whole adventure of it, better safe than sorry. Freezing Saddles is won by teams who don’t get sick or injured. So please don’t get sick or injured! That includes maybe hopping on the bus or Metro or working from home when it’s really horrible out. (But still get in your 1 mile sleaze ride, because that’s just essential…)

6. Practice your Snot Rockets in advance, on flat dry level ground, so you don’t swerve, with no one around. Check the wind. Please be polite around other cyclists — no one should ever see you shoot a rocket, it’s a private thing, never to be seen or heard by others. Or even see evidence of. A mis-shot snot rocket frozen stuck in a blob on your shoulder is sort of a mark of incompetence, not a badge of honor. So practice, practice, practice!

What else? -Jeff

Topic

[Greenbelt]

@hugopatacon 183982 wrote:

What about black ice? any suggestions?:confused:

Goes back to suggestion 1 I think, just take your time and slow way down. I had to ride over quite a few icy patches this morning — all the puddles and overrun from last weekend’s rain froze over on trails and in some parking lots on my route. Any attempt to lean or steer or brake or hard pedal on wet ice is going to be futile. So don’t resist, just try to glide or soft pedal slowly very straight and level and you’d usually get through upright. Lower tire pressure helps a little. Studded tires are the only real way to get grip on ice, but if it’s that bad I turn to suggestion 5 and just ride over to the Metro or work from home, although not everyone has those options.

In sum it’s often better to glide upright and straight over a patch of ice even if you run off a trail than to go down trying to steer or brake. Except when it’s not, of course, and the alternative to staying right side up up is riding into a river or barrier or something! -Jeff

[mstone]

@Greenbelt 184042 wrote:

Goes back to suggestion 1 I think, just take your time and slow way down. I had to ride over quite a few icy patches this morning — all the puddles and overrun from last weekend’s rain froze over on trails and in some parking lots on my route. Any attempt to lean or steer or brake or hard pedal on wet ice is going to be futile. So don’t resist, just try to glide or soft pedal slowly very straight and level and you’d usually get through upright. Lower tire pressure helps a little. Studded tires are the only real way to get grip on ice

I love studded tires. If you ride mainly on trails they’re great fun. On streets, the question is whether the cars around you will lose control.

[TwoWheelsDC]

I recently purchased a set of Twin Six Winter Bib *Pants* and holy shit they’re amazing. I’m generally not a fan of Twin Six apparel, but these are definitely an exception. Warmer and less constricting than my other cold-weather tights, and they fit over winter boots, which my other tights do not (the exception being the Amfibs). Highly recommend.

[ChristoB50]

@TwoWheelsDC 184056 wrote:

I recently purchased a set of Twin Six Winter Bib *Pants* and holy shit they’re amazing. I’m generally not a fan of Twin Six apparel, but these are definitely an exception. Warmer and less constricting than my other cold-weather tights, and they fit over winter boots, which my other tights do not (the exception being the Amfibs). Highly recommend.

Like the look of those very much! Not a full-on skin-tight lycra look, but not floppy pants either…
Glad I tell myself that my budget resets on Jan. 1 — the amount of wish-list gear this one thread has been generating for me to ponder, could break the bank

[Steve O]

@hugopatacon 183982 wrote:

What about black ice? any suggestions?:confused:

I wrote a long post on riding on snow and ice previously. Feel free to refer back to it.

[Tania]

I picked up a pair of the REI Co-Op softshell pants – they’re similar to the TwinSix ones above but on clearance they were only $35. (And no bibs – bibs…yuck)

[TwoWheelsDC]

@Tania 184086 wrote:

(And no bibs – bibs…yuck)

[IMG]https://media1.tenor.com/images/9f23ec9925904db8ccecf57659e8c44c/tenor.gif?itemid=5109282[/IMG]

[huskerdont]

I haven’t worn a onesie since I was a toddler and I’m not going to start now.

[amym2410]

What tips do you have for biking on ice? There were lots of ice patches on Mtn Vernon this week in the morning, I was lucky and didn’t crash. But, last year I had several wipe outs. Do I need to get better tires?

[Paytonb33]

@amym2410 184128 wrote:

What tips do you have for biking on ice? There were lots of ice patches on Mtn Vernon this week in the morning, I was lucky and didn’t crash. But, last year I had several wipe outs. Do I need to get better tires?

I’d suggest coasting over ice. Don’t lean the bike. I’d even suggest to not pedal. This has worked for me.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[ltierstein]

Got an email from Jan Heine/Bicycle Quarterly/Compass Cycles today, rating tires for winter use. Worth reading. He basically concludes that the only thing that really works on ice is studded tires. I tend to agree.

Also: re: pedaling over ice. It’s tough, because any unevenness in your stroke could cause the bike to slip. The thing that helped me most learn how to cycle over ice/slippery surfaces was riding a fixed-gear bicycle — it really evens out your pedal stroke.

@Paytonb33 184284 wrote:

I’d suggest coasting over ice. Don’t lean the bike. I’d even suggest to not pedal. This has worked for me.

[ChristoB50]

Not specific to ice here (though perhaps just as slippery as ice can be)…
I took my first spill on the bike last week, when my rear tire slid out from under me as I was making a pretty broad and thankfully slow turn (picture a U-turn on a dead-end street) — and the rear tire crossed over a wet manhole cover.
My front tire just barely skirted the perimeter of the manhole cover, staying on the asphalt — but should’ve planned an even wider berth to ensure the rear tire would clear the cover also; it did not!
Lesson learned – down I went, hard onto the pavement on my left side, with a doozy of a knot in my left shin, where the bike frame clobbered my leg.

[Steve O]

@ltierstein 184286 wrote:

Got an email from Jan Heine/Bicycle Quarterly/Compass Cycles today, rating tires for winter use. Worth reading. He basically concludes that the only thing that really works on ice is studded tires. I tend to agree.

Bet he wants to sell you some, too.
I’ve never owned studded tires, and I don’t think they are really necessary in the DC area. But if they are the difference between riding and not riding for you, then I encourage you to get some.

[LhasaCM]

Speaking of studded tires: because I’m a sucker for Kickstarter, I’m awaiting the arrival of my reTyre ONE modular tire system (hopefully next month) that’ll include studded winter zip-on skins. Will report back on how they work when they arrive.

[PaulH]

@hugopatacon 183982 wrote:

What about black ice? any suggestions?:confused:

I put my studded tires on in mid-December and take them off in mid-March. For decades, I used Nokian Hakkapeliitta W106, which are the most durable. After changing offices to one primarily served by a rutted MUP, I switched to Schwalbe Marathon Winter, which deal with ruts better, roll easier, but wear more rapidly. Still, with use only a quarter of a year, they still last at least 5 years.

[Author]

Replies