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The Long Cold Winter Commuter Support Thread

111K views 1K replies 199 participants last post by  solarplex 
#1 ·
Who else rides through the rain, sleet, snow, cold and dark of winter? We've begun our decent into the cold, dark months, the headlight is becoming a necessity, and it will be April or May before I am wearing shorts in the morning again. This morning it was 39 degrees...chilly, but nothing compared to what January will be like. I've been doing the year-round thing for 4 years now, and I have had no one to share the experience with. I thought it would be a good idea to have a thread where we could share war stories through the winter.

Personally, I'm out there every day that the roads are plowed. I missed 5 days two years ago due to snow/ice, and 41 days last year because I broke my leg snowboarding. I keep track of my 'driving days' to work, and weather is no excuse (unless I use 4wd to get to work, I should have ridden). I always start to wonder during this time of year how cold it will get, and how long and dark the winter will seem. I also never forget the first day in the spring that the sun comes up during my bike ride to work. Glorious.

Who else has made this kind of commitment, and how cold will your winter probably get? I think the coldest I've done is low single digits...I don't think it's been below zero for me yet, but that's a definate possibility. I have done 4 or 5 degrees a couple of times.

Let the winter begin! Who's in this with me?
 
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#885 ·
Men of nobility wore higher quality, less coarse tights for practicality reasons (horseback riding) in old England; if we had shown them what we wear today, they would have thought us exceedingly rich. And if you google "Meggings", there is a push from the fashion industry to make them more mainstream in more recent days. Jeans and the like historically were also associated with the working class until more recently. Side note... but men wore heels back in the day too, also for practicality reasons.

RE: cold sapping any and all energy, only if the wind cuts through my gear or I'm really, really underdressed over my legs and core. I have some neoprene front, breathing back pants that keep my legs warm, and wear a sturdy though not thermal jacket. I have found that if I keep my core and upper legs warm, even if I don't keep my lower legs or arms warm, I don't have the, "OMG I'm exhausted" feeling. I do have to work harder simply by virtue of blocking more wind & the clothing resisting my movement though - there's always a noticeable speed gain come March when I ditch the heavy duty clothing.
 
#886 ·
You guys are forgetting the fact that I'm the definition of awesome, and I don't care what anyone thinks because I know I'm the man :lol:

I simply wear baggies over the tights so that the punk kids have less to talk about. Saves class time.
 
#887 ·
Student: Why do you wear tights?
Teacher: Because I can, why do you wear your girl friends skinny jeans? Now moving on. Who can tell me what yesterdays main points of discussion were?

Its only a drawn out discussion if you let it become one.


Not sure if it's all that, I only wear a lightweight jacket, gloves, and beanie cap. Anything more and I end up overheating until it gets down to low 30s. Thinking it might have to do with how hard it is for me to breath though when it gets that cold.
 
#890 ·
last time i drove from school was after i got back from a race and it was raining, i couldnt bend over because my back was messed up, and I had a 50 gallon tupperware full of gear and crap that I didnt feel like hauling on my xtracycle along with towing my mtb. I have ridden every day this winter though :). Here in CO it is unusual to get below 10 degrees F, and the snow is usually dry, with the convienience of having the bike path that occasionaly gets plowed also. I usually just rock the addidas, oakley radars, courderouys, a balaclava, a shell with some sort of down layer, and some insulated work gloves. I am usually comfortable. If the bike path is cleared (or there isnt alot of snow and I have to carry a bunch of stuff), Ill ride my Xtracycle, and If there is a bunch of snow and i dont need to carry much I will ride my singlespeed "half-fat." When I go skiing i just wear my ski helmet, pants and jacket (all shells, no insulation).




 
#893 ·
Blech. I need this thread today. 7 degrees (F) this morning, That's up 12 degrees from Monday's low of -4. Actually -4.5. There is snow falling this morning...I think that's the coldest I've ever seen it snow. Very rare for us in these parts to have snow when it's down below the mid 20's. Snow means clouds though, and clouds mean that there must be a warm air mass somewhere... right? The week before this was the same. The snow we got at Christmas is still here. This is getting old.
 
#894 ·
WE had a low in the pacific pumping warm air south down the eastern slopes of the Rockies temps up to 8C....

The forecast had a cold snap down to -20C for one day then the chinook flow would take over with highs up to 8C....

Looks like the cold snap might not happen...

about 10 inches of snow have melted this week, roads not quite bare yet.

See life IS good.
 
#897 ·
-8 F here this morning, and slow going, which meant my feet had enough time to get cold even in the Keen insulated boots. Everything else was warm. The goggles were not as perfect this time, some icing crept in at the top, and I took them off after the 2mi+ downhill where its coldest. A little warmup is expected this weekend, and then a high of 10F on the next commute day, Tuesday. Nice light this morning...
 

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#898 ·
Right there with you on the hooker boots Bedwards... they're good to go down to the upper teens. At these temps I'm wearing my neoprene socks with them and the toes are still numb upon arrival. They're warmer than the mtb shoes with toe covers though...

Sweet, now we have a 'freezing fog advisory'. At least there's a little diversity. :lol:
 
#899 ·
Right there with you on the hooker boots Bedwards... they're good to go down to the upper teens. At these temps I'm wearing my neoprene socks with them and the toes are still numb upon arrival. They're warmer than the mtb shoes with toe covers though...

Sweet, now we have a 'freezing fog advisory'. At least there's a little diversity. :lol:
Google Image Result for https://brimages.bikeboardmedia.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Shimano-SHMW81-winter-cycling-shoe-600x367.jpg
 
#911 ·
Snow rollers?! Mind blown! Cool pic mtb, thanks for sharing.

Wind chill is currently at -31F, should dip down to -40F by my commute tomorrow. I'm tempted to ride just to say I did. I think my gear will be adequate. The plan is to get up early and leave 10 minutes earlier than normal. If its brutal I'll simply turn around and take the car. I'll post the results tomorrow!
 
#913 ·
Wind chill is currently at -31F, should dip down to -40F by my commute tomorrow. I'm tempted to ride just to say I did. I think my gear will be adequate. The plan is to get up early and leave 10 minutes earlier than normal. If its brutal I'll simply turn around and take the car. I'll post the results tomorrow!
Brrrrrr! Stay warm if you try it, But don't worry, it usually doesn't get brutal until the halfway point :eek: ;)
 
#914 ·
Interesting! The ice balls look like some eggs laid on the shoreline. I thought our snowrollers were just snowballs, not donut-like but looking back at the pic I can see they do have some "holes". Last night when I walked the dog, she alerted to something in the field. It disappeared quickly over the ridge, but it looked like a snowroller in motion. it dropped down to single digits though, so it probably wasn't picking up any more snow.
 
#918 ·
Nice pic @ -11F, Jag. Sadly, those temp signs seem to have mostly disappeared around here.

Rodar, just a couple days a go I saw a NatGeo special on those rocks, and the research on how they move and leave a mysterious trail in the sand, fascinating! Saw a good crop of snowrollers today while driving, some with the holes.

Had the day off and drove over to Kingdom trails in the Northeast Kingdom (of Vermont) for some great fatbike singletrack with sick sidehill thrills.
 

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#919 ·
^^^awesome. That trail looks great. I talked to East Burke Sports today about their rentals. I need to get some friends out on fatbikes so they are convinced to buy one....so I have someone to ride with. Why can't everyone be as impulsive as I am...oh right...they gots kidz.
 
#920 ·
I have a pic I took of a big 'ol dead piece of farm equipment out on the playa with a trail behind it in the weather-checked, dried out ground. Same concept as the sailing rocks.

Never seen the snow rollers. Trip.
 
#922 ·
You guys are amazing. Photo at -11°, yeow! I've never lived anywhere that ever got that cold.

I had my coldest ride ever into work today, at a meager 12° F this morning. I was thankful for a full face balaclava I got over the weekend, but overdressed my torso and was a bit damp once in the office!
 
#923 ·
I'm sure it's been discussed already, but can I get some suggestions for a good "proper cold weather" commuter set-up? I'm in Philly and this week is the first read cold snap we've had in a long while (temps in teens in the morning, wind chill single digits). Decided to ride today, put on synthetic longjohns, scarf and an ushanka and I was sweating through my sweater 1 mile in. Way too hot. Than I swapped my ushanka for a regular winter hat and it was pretty rough. What's a happy medium?
 
#928 ·
I'm sure it's been discussed already, but can I get some suggestions for a good "proper cold weather" commuter set-up?
Welcome aboard, Roma.
Yes, discussed constantly, but that`s a good thing. If you get tired of reading here, you can check out some more really nice tips at Icebike Home Page (although some of it is a little bit outdated).
 
#924 ·
^^ Well first of all, I don't ride in anything I'm going to wear at work. I stash clothes at work, and carry underwear/undershirt in my backpack.

For temps in the teens/single digits, I wear either tights or leg warmers and shorts, covered up by waterproof (which means windproof) light pants. On top I wear a light moisture wicking shirt, covered by a softshell jacket. 2 layers and you're done... the critical part is having windproof stuff. I have Pearl Izumi Lobster gloves for the hands at those temps, and I've used regular mtb shoes with covers, but now I have some decent winter cycling boots. On the head I wear a thin 'clava under the helmet.
 
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