Cycling over winter can be tough. It’s even tougher if you are trying to do it alone. — Imagine having a group that helps you do that every week.
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32 Comments
I’m putting studded tires on my bike
I have been commuting for many years and we have some rough winters. You’re right,it’s a mind set.
The winter game changer for me was getting a helmet with a face plate. If my head is toasty (yet still ventilated) and my face mostly out of the biting wind, the rest of me feels much better. Plus the face plate is tinted so I'm not squinting in the bright sunlight and reflective snow (and there's enough room under the plate to wear sunglasses too for extra protection).
For a few decades, apart from public transport, my bike was the only way I got around in Cumbria and SW Scotland. There were no mountain-bikes or special tyres for winter…I fell on my arse walking more often than coming a cropper on the bike, running 28s. It’s the drivers you have to watch even more than usual, with fogged-up, rain-smeared windows and the determination to travel at truly mind-boggling speeds for the conditions.
I've been mainly using an indoor trainer but it gets boring after a while. I've been layering up and trying to get back outside again.
I have a spin bike in my Insulated gym, log burner, Internet and indoor cycling videos 😅
Sorry, i enjoy cycling too much to risk getting blasted by a car that cant drive on wet roads, or to risk serious injury myself from sliding out on a patch of unseen black ice or even wet leaves.
Why risk life and limb when you can pop on a perfectly safe trainer at home (i have a Garmin TacX) and bang out some quality miles in the safety and comfort of your home.
Enjoy wearing 4 layers of clothing , i’m in my bib shorts and an old t-shirt climbing a mountain in Austria or cruising the Pacific Coast Highway in SoCal .
It is the weather, it’s dark, it’s cold , it’s dangerous
The hardest part about riding in winter as a heavier rider is finding clothes.
Sod that. California winters are the way forward.
I'm getting ready to transition from my longer summer rides into my winter routine. I like to combine riding with off-trail hiking and exploring. I'll do a 30mi/50km ride and in the middle, I'll stash the bike and head off trail for some exploring or GeoCaching. Since I need to ride with extra layers, I take advantage of the long tights to break trail through the brush and explore new areas. Last winter, I found a whole bunch of wrecked cars, old abandoned roads and buildings. Need to dust off my notes and get a plan in place for the upcoming winter.
Nice to meet you yet again at the gridiron car park. 👍
winter road riding is grim, especially when the roads are icy/salty but mtb is still fun
I couldn't even sit on my road bike in early Sept. Yesterday I done 35 kms and loved it all .my road bike always saves me from getting down .good video 🎉
I have to disagree with this video and content. It's 100% NOT my mindset. It's 100% the cold and wet (dangerous) conditions. I would LOVE to cycle year round! I don't enjoy freezing my face, ears, toes, and fingers off. The cold makes the ride miserable and the snow and ice make it dangerous. Wider tires are not snow tires. Lowering tire pressure in the wet is the correct move, widening your tires is not. Sports cars have wide tires and drive terribly in the snow and ice. Narrow tires work great, you just need to lower your tire pressure. Your video has zero content on how to dress to stay warm during the cold winter months which is the primary reason I decided to watch this video in the first place.
Turbo Taşkent here thanks for the shout-out, great content, loved the video 👍
In winter I ride local trails on the MTB they are shorter but keep me motivated and use the road bike on longer rides when conditions allow . Keep the videos coming 👍
January to April is the worst time for me. Your January challenges have motivated me for the last few years! This year however, I'm getting my cataracts done and the recuperation and recovery period takes me all the way from October to Christmas, so I'll really be flagging come January. That'll be the time for will power to step up, drag me out of the 'valley of despair' and re-energise!
Snow in Canada , makes it challenging fun .Road bike in the summer , Mountain bike with good wide tires in winter .you can do it have fun . Be cool 😎
The dark makes me want to stay indoors for sure! Just as the increasing light when spring gets going makes me want to get out there, it's only natural isn't it? But hanging on to cycling and forcing yourself to go in winter, once you've got going you'll be glad, over the years I've learn't that staying in and not riding at all is just not an option for me.
There is no winter in the UK
Winter cycling is the best fitness workout you will get year round. The cold and cardio works double as your body burns calories to stay warm and while riding. Cool, crisp air gives you deeper breaths and lung capacity, giving you more oxygen to your body. It's a win/win.
If you love eating food and going to soup kitchens and going through dumpsters nothing can stop you from that …A great ride is the one where you leave the house around 3 in the afternoon and come back around midnight….hit 3 or 4 different towns .. If you can do that you're mentally tough.
"Character building"😂🤣. My dad used to say that to me when he would require me to do hard, laborious work. Looking back, it was indeed character-building, but I couldn't see it at the time, as all I wanted to do was bugger off on my bicycle and see my mates.
Top tip = sell your car , I did several months ago . Now it's walk or ride , including the 10 miles to work.
Today, in november, I did a 90km ride with 35mm slick tyres, yes on tarmac, but with lots and lots of leaves on the path (so always a bit slippery), some mud holes, and no not super fast, but most in zone2. Around 8 celcius, and a third in darkness (with lights on, of course!). No rain, little wind, no hills. Just saying "yes you can!"
In Colorado, my biggest concern in winter is black ice…especially in older areas be the trees are so large and blocks the sun which allows the ice to stay in longer on the trails
Burrrrrr… winter.
Yesterday was a disaster. A typical winter ride. Every group had either a fall or a puncture. The fallen leaves are proving to be a hazard. Very dangerous. Also they hide other things like glass etc.
Used to ride winters. No more. Too risky. Ice. Slush. Cars unable to stop. Process takes too long and too much bother to get dressed/undressed. Hard to pick clothing for conditions. Too much time doing laundry and cleaning bikes. Smart trainer and a good app such Zwift or Rouvy. Structured training, hills, flats, competitive rides, group rides. Realistic resistance. You can do it all. Just throw on bib shorts and shoes and away you go.
Rule number 1. Don't stack the bike.
I keep riding through winter but I do a lot more running – you only need an hour or two for equivalent of several hours on bike. You warm up quickly whatever the weather and there's no bike and kit to clean afterwards!