How windy is too windy?

andylaw79
andylaw79 Posts: 28
edited April 2008 in Commuting chat
I'm pretty new to biking it to work, 3 weeks into a 16mile round trip, apart from one ore two days when the rain has been horizontal.

Today I though what the hell and went for it into a 25mph head wind. Needless to say I was knackered by the time I got to work but had only taken an extra ten minutes than usual.

Don't know how I would have coped if the wind was stronger, which begs the question how windy is too windy to ride?

Comments

  • secretsam
    secretsam Posts: 5,120
    If it's lifting up cars and flinging them at you, I'd say that's an indication that you might want to reconsider

    I live in the only place on earth with a headwind in every direction... :evil:
    It's just a hill. Get over it.
  • Adamskii
    Adamskii Posts: 267
    Riding into an headwind is good for you, it makes you stronger :wink:

    Very windy days also help improve your bike handling skills!
    It's all good.
  • Shadowduck
    Shadowduck Posts: 845
    SecretSam wrote:
    I live in the only place on earth with a headwind in every direction... :evil:
    If I ever get a tailwind I'm going to start looking around for a pot of gold, or maybe four blokes on horses...

    Headwinds are a pain, but as others have said you just treat them as horizontal hills and use them for training... Just leave a bit earlier! For me, wind gets to be a problem when you start getting those huge gusts out of sidestreets that knock you two feet sideways - all you need is some twunt passing you with 18" of space and you're geography.
    Even if the voices aren't real, they have some very good ideas.
  • Jon8a
    Jon8a Posts: 235
    There's no such thing as a tailwind, just rides where you feel fit and fast.
  • Matteeboy
    Matteeboy Posts: 996
    I usually give it a miss in anything over a force 8.
    Two Stumpjumpers, a Rockhopper Disk and an old British Eagle.

    http://www.cornwallmtb.kk5.org
  • Belv
    Belv Posts: 866
    Too windy to enjoy is anything coming at me above about 20mph i suppose.

    Too windy to commute? Blows me over on the way to the shed!
  • cee
    cee Posts: 4,553
    SecretSam wrote:

    I live in the only place on earth with a headwind in every direction... :evil:

    Unless you live in Edinburgh, there are now at least two places of which this is true :lol:
    Whenever I see an adult on a bicycle, I believe in the future of the human race.

    H.G. Wells.
  • Alibran
    Alibran Posts: 370
    cee wrote:
    SecretSam wrote:

    I live in the only place on earth with a headwind in every direction... :evil:

    Unless you live in Edinburgh, there are now at least two places of which this is true :lol:

    Also the southwest of Cornwall.

    I've cycled home into 30mph wind with 60mph gusts before (according to met office forecast) and it was tough, but it's the crosswinds I find scary. I nearly came off a couple of days ago when I was hit by a crosswind at around 30mph on the A30. Very frightening moment, and I'm a bit more careful in the wind now.

    I also think it's quite funny when you're in a crosswind, and you look down to see your bike isn't actually under you any more because you're leaning so far into the wind. Just hope it doesn't stop suddenly .....
  • Greggyr
    Greggyr Posts: 1,075
    crosswinds are VERY scary. My commute is south to north, meaning strong westerlies blow me out into the middle of the road in the morning...I therefore have missed several days over the last 6 weeks when it's been blowing hard...
  • pete236
    pete236 Posts: 204
    Headwinds are a right pain. Going down the Bath Road (A4) in Slough the buildings just funnel the wind both ways along the road even if its a still day! Once I did get decent tailwind and was 10 mins quicker than usual! Paid for it on the way home though!
    You know theres a good crosswind when you bunny hop over a deep pothole and land on the pavement! Blown a good 2 feet sideways! :P
    One fine day in the middle of the night, two dead men got up to fight. Back to back they faced each other, drew their swords and shot each other.
  • pjh
    pjh Posts: 204
    has anyone else noticed that it seems to be the bottom half of the bike that gets blown in crosswinds?

    almost like that wheels get blown out from under you ... very scary :D

    have to watch out for the gaps in hedges too ... they catch you out :twisted:

    It's great to be .....
  • Matteeboy
    Matteeboy Posts: 996
    Alibran wrote:
    cee wrote:
    SecretSam wrote:

    I live in the only place on earth with a headwind in every direction... :evil:

    Unless you live in Edinburgh, there are now at least two places of which this is true :lol:

    Also the southwest of Cornwall.

    I've cycled home into 30mph wind with 60mph gusts before (according to met office forecast) and it was tough, but it's the crosswinds I find scary. I nearly came off a couple of days ago when I was hit by a crosswind at around 30mph on the A30. Very frightening moment, and I'm a bit more careful in the wind now.

    I also think it's quite funny when you're in a crosswind, and you look down to see your bike isn't actually under you any more because you're leaning so far into the wind. Just hope it doesn't stop suddenly .....

    Where do you live? Lots of us here are part of the Cornwall MTB club, based around Truro.
    Two Stumpjumpers, a Rockhopper Disk and an old British Eagle.

    http://www.cornwallmtb.kk5.org
  • baggsy
    baggsy Posts: 44
    Pete236 wrote:
    Going down the Bath Road (A4) in Slough the buildings just funnel the wind both ways along the road even if its a still day! :P

    Have you tried the Eton rowing lake? last week when we had some gusty winds, the downwards leg increased by average speed from 22mph to 32mph. heading back up into it though I was just touching 14 in places but when a gust came I was sub 10!!

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