[huskerdont]

Everyone is going to find different solutions that work for them, but for me with my Raynaud’s, I just can’t keep my fingers warm if I use glove liners. If you’re using glove liners and your fingers are still cold, give the ski mittens a try. Take the liners with you and keep them in a warm pocket, and if you feel you need them, you’ll still have them to use and they’ll be warm.

For cold toes, one bit of advice I received once seems to help, and that’s to wiggle them around some every now and then while riding. Otherwise they’re just sitting down there unused so they’re going to get cold.

[huskerdont]

I should add that I think for people like us with poor hand circulation, glove liners inside mittens are counterproductive. Mittens allow your fingers to get warmth from each other and from the rest of the hand; the finger portion of gloves prevents this transfer of warmth. That’s been my experience at least, but everyone is different.

[huskerdont]

@Bill Hole 130949 wrote:

It was 12 degrees this AM when I left the house. Moose Mitts plus Planet Bike Borealis gloves. My fingers were cold within 10 minutes, and were in agony by the time I got to work nearly an hour later. So far nothing works for me in sub-20 degree weather, and the 30s are problematic. I’ve tried the chemical hand warmers but they do nothing for my fingers. I guess the next step (other than Metro) is to try the Jo-Ne hand warmer I got over 50 years ago for use on my Washington Post paper route. I love the smell of lighter fluid in the morning (not)!

Have you tried really good ski mittens? It’s what I use when it gets down to below 10, and they work for even me. My fingers still get cold, but the key is that I can fold my fingers into my palms to warm them up as a ride. The cons are rather obvious, dexterity-wise, but they work if you’re careful and don’t care too much about shifting all the time.

[huskerdont]

@Powerful Pete 130931 wrote:

A vote for the Castelli Estremo gloves. They are fine for up to 1.5 hours or so even in the temperatures we are facing these last couple of days – you feel the cold by the end of the ride, but nothing too problematic.

Those Castellis are beautiful, but under 30 degrees and I have to use lobster gloves or mittens to keep the fingers together. Otherwise my fingers go numb or even white and bloodless (Raynaud’s). One trick I’ve learned is to let the gloves sit in front on the heater vent overnight for really cold days. Today my fingers didn’t start getting numb until after about 20 minutes, which is pretty good for me.

[huskerdont]

@Sunyata 130923 wrote:

My theory is that the winter air is more dense; therefore, more resistance. At least, that is my story and I am sticking to it (almost 2mph slower this morning than I was last week!).

Mine has always been that there’s less friction when it’s warm; therefore, there’s more friction when it’s cold. But cold air is heavier than warm air, so maybe there’s something in that too.

[huskerdont]

14 degrees and got to use all the wintry gear. #10 at the counter, which seems more than previous years at this kind of temperature when I might have been #2 or #3, so perhaps this freezing saddles thing some of you are doing is getting more people out. And that is good.

I have this half-baked theory that cold temps make the bike go slower. It’s not me; it’s the bike. I’m going with that.

[huskerdont]

I usually get about 5000 on my road bike chains and cassettes, and switch them out at the same time to avoid skipping. I use dry lube and relube/wipe off dirt anytime the chain gets wet. For the mountain bike, however, I get a lot less mileage because of all the grit and the fact that I’ve broken chains while mountain biking and it’s not fun.

[huskerdont]

@AFHokie 130838 wrote:

While my bike was at REI they replaced a chain that showed just under .75 wear with the 3.2 park tool wear indicator. With the new chain/old cassette it shifts fine until under a load, (up hills, hard acceleration from a stop, etc) then it jumps or skips. It doesn’t appear to skip with infrequently used cogs, but I’ve only ridden once with the new chain…tonight’s commute home sould be fun.

Did I run the old chain too long and kill the frequently used cogs, or is this something common that needs a few more rides to settle, or an additional cable/derailleur adjustment?

If it helps its a SRAM PG-950 9spd cassette the bike came with & has ~3200 miles.

It’s quite common to have a new chain slip on an old cassette. I pretty much always replace the cassette when I replace the chain after once or twice trying to see if I could get by and finding I couldn’t. Your symptoms are exactly what happened. If possible, leave it in a cog that works and use the front derailleur to compensate until you can get a new cassette.

[huskerdont]

Apologies if I’ve missed this (I did look around), but does anyone know if Arlington will be plowing the Custis trail again this year? I appreciated that last year very much. (I love riding on fresh snow, but the icy footprints and tire tracks after a day or so are the worst.)

[huskerdont]

@Powerful Pete 130823 wrote:

Wait, so you didn’t use your winter cycling gear this AM? 😮

Today was an in-between day for me. Regular shoes, a thin skull cap, and gloves were fine. But 18 degrees is the real deal and I’ll be all kitted up.

[huskerdont]

Bummer, missed the snow on the ride. Probably because I was running late since was #29 on the counter. On the plus side, should finally be able to use some of the winter gear tomorrow morning. Winter boots, tights, hat under the helmet, lobster gloves–here we go finally.

[huskerdont]

Last commute of the year and the smallest cog on my cassette spun loose.* Out with the old!

*I tightened it recently to the recommended 45 nM when replacing the wheel, so I’m not sure why. Will check it out tonight … or maybe next year.

[huskerdont]

Western Bike Works has a ridiculous daily deal on Vredestein Gran Fondo TriComps ($23!). I’ve been riding the DuoComps for several years now on my everyday bike, so picked up a pair of these for my fair weather bike.

https://www.westernbikeworks.com/product/vredestein-gran-fondo-tricomp

[huskerdont]

@Steve O 130574 wrote:

I might also suggest keeping an extra pair of underwear at work, just in case.

I would think Frazz wouldn’t be riding around with his undies under his padded tights, but as the tagline says, I’m new around here.

[huskerdont]

I don’t know about plastic bags, but I can definitely recommend keeping an extra pair of dry socks in the bag at all times. They take up no space and weigh next to nothing.

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