UK members: The WORST wind direction for where you ride ?

JimmyK

I am based on the Ards peninsula in Northern Ireland .

I have checked the BBC weather website to ascertain which wind direction is the one that makes a journey feel like you are riding through superglue. The wind at the coast was howling today and my legs are definitely reminding me of the fact I did 45 miles on my bike .

The outward journey was ok, I could feel the wind , but 19+ mph average was no difficulty at all. Then heading back to the where I started from couldnt have been much different. It was like pedalling away whilst you were towing a caravan and very very frustrating indeed, needless to say my average pace at the end wasnt worth a damn and I was vexed that strong coastal wind can simply wreck a ride. :x

I logged onto the bbc website and it said that todays wind where i was riding was West by South West and I am going to keep an eye on wind direction in future so as I can make an educated guess as to which routes are going to be best on a given day with 15 mph + winds to contend with.

What about where you go riding ?

JimmyK

Gr.uB

Just think of it as resistance training. A direct head wind is better than a cross wind anyway. Plod on, get a rhythm going and you will be rattling along in no time. Pray it doesn't change direction while you are at work and then on the way home you have a bonus.

JimmyK

Gr.uB wrote:

. A direct head wind is better than a cross wind anyway. .

why do you say that. The stiff head wind is like a hand in the middle of your forehead pushing you back.

JimmyK

appleday

I live in London. You are very trusting because I have found that the BBC weather forecast is most inaccurate and unreliable here. It is better to look out the window and hope.

I have found that the wind is mostly from West to SW here - it's something I never noticed until I took up cycling again. It is rare not to have some wind, usually is is around 10kph.

Now that I cycle through parks I have also noticed that many trees tend to grow bent towards the east/NE.

Usually I travel west in my outward journey so I am riding into the wind partially or fully, then I zip along home eastwards because the wind is at my back. Of course then I think I am a super fast cyclist!

Gr.uB

JimmyK wrote:

Gr.uB wrote:

. A direct head wind is better than a cross wind anyway. .

why do you say that. The stiff head wind is like a hand in the middle of your forehead pushing you back.

JimmyK

At least with a constant force in your face you can build up momentum and get into a rhythm. With a cross wind the buffeting from the side makes it harder to maintain. Plus with a cross wind the sudden differences of gaps in hedges or buildings can be a real eye opener when you are thrown 2 metres sideways, suddenly.

Nuggs

IME there is nothing but a head wind!

markos1963

Out here in deepest North Norfolk we tend to have a persistant wind from the N/NE, which starts somewhere near Norway and hits us next

shoei

Gr.uB wrote:

Pray it doesn't change direction while you are at work and then on the way home you have a bonus.

Thats what i tend to find.
Living next to the sea in sunny old morecambe, its a head wind going to work and head wind coming home from work!
Getting used to it now though.

appleday

It's great to have the wind at your back but riding into the wind, especially strong ones, on flat roads helps you to ride more easily uphill.

See this recent article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/19/fashi ... ref=slogin


A quote:
"But if you live in a flat area, listen to local weather reports and note the direction of the wind. A strong head wind can simulate hill climbing, Mr. Vaughters said. “You need to push hard into the wind,” using “a big gear, for at least six minutes and no longer than 45 minutes” once or twice a week “to get the aerobic benefits of climbing big hills,” he said. (In recompense, you get a tail wind all the way home.)"

”http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/19/fashion/19fitness.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all&oref=slogin

nasahapley

On almost all my rides I head out north and return home south, so northerly is the best type of wind for me (don't seem to get it that often though). I live in a very hilly area so don't see strong winds as an opportunity for some pseudo-hill training, just a complete pain in the arse!

on the road

The wind I fear most is a SW, because of the shape of the coast it means which ever direction I travel in I'll always have a tail wind going out and be riding against the wind on the way back.

appleday

It's interesting that the predominant wind direction varies so widely in the UK.

hisoka

I find any wind with even the smallest amount of easterly direction in it causes me trouble. Mostly as two sections I ride on near my home are long straight wind channels which go up hill ever so slightly. When there is no wind, it is great, wind going west helps you up the hill amazingly, but as soon as anything east in the wind it is a gale blowing down those channels. Yesterday was amazingly tough at one point, wind REALLY picked up, rain was horizontal directly into my face. It was only half a mile but my legs were burning by the end and that was just to keep moving along the road!]
But it felt great in ways, the "I did it" feeling I thinkw as the best.

giant_man

Fukcing hate wind. Don't mind rain, or snow come to that, but wind is a bar steward

JimmyK

giant mancp wrote:

Fukcing hate wind. Don't mind rain, or snow come to that, but wind is a bar steward

I totally agree with you.

Ive gone out in the pi55ing rain and not given it a second thought . What really gets my goat is when you are on a personal best or a really hot time , and a change of direction into wind just flushes it straight down the bog, and what do you get out of it........nothing !!

JimmyK

aracer

Gr.uB wrote:

A direct head wind is better than a cross wind anyway.

I disagree. At least with a crosswind you can get shelter riding down roads with nice tall hedges, and in general it's not quite so much like banging your head against a brick wall.

I used to really hate riding in the wind, but now I'm older I do just philosophise it as resistance training. This change in attitude also coincides with me having no bike computer on my winter training bike. It's only when you start obsessing about distances and average speeds that it becomes a problem - otherwise you're still out riding your bike, just going a bit slower.

appleday

You've got to be careful in parks in really high winds - trees have been known to fall down. In a recent windy time three very large old trees uprooted in Southwark Park (where I often ride) but I think in winds of those speeds, JimmyK you may find the wind more than just a "hand in the middle of your forehead pushing you back"

always_tyred

Unfortunately, we live in the windiest country in Europe.

You Londoners should try the North Sea coast. Pan-directional howling freezing wind at all times.

Lagavulin

I hate crosswinds more than headwinds. Living on the coast it is a complete bitch when the wind is straight off the North Sea. This isn't Bocage country either. It’s straight off the sea and in traffic things can get a bit scary.

p.s. gusts are evil.

Ghengis

Get out onto the Pennines, it feels like the wind is coming from all directions. Nothing worse than pushing hard downhill when you should be having it easy. I'd take the rain and snow any day - without the wind!

aracer

Always Tyred wrote:

Unfortunately, we live in the windiest country in Europe.

No - most people on here live in England.

always_tyred

Sigh.

I really don't miss England. As I recall, its pretty much full anyway.

JimmyK

when I was last out , there is a stretch of road that is a steep decline and its easily 1.5 miles long. On an ordinary day speeds around 35 mph arent a problem. The south westernly wind was blowin hard on that day and it seemed to be coming straight up that stretch of road. It blew so forcefully that i was still pedalling away and only hitting 17 mph..................that cheeses me off massively.

JimmyK

NWLondoner

appleday wrote:

I live in London. You are very trusting because I have found that the BBC weather forecast is most inaccurate and unreliable here. It is better to look out the window and hope.

I totally agree.

The worst wind for me is a Northerly. This is the direction of my journey home from a good ride and my legs are almost shot. 9 Miles in a northerly headwind is NOT my idea of fun.

holmeboy

I lives in Scotland and there are many different types of wind up here (no surprises there then), but the worst is reputed to be the North Wind. Not only strong and fresh but would freeze the balls of a brass monkey (and thats in the Summer). But the one I hates the most is the type that can't make up it's bloody mind wot direction it's coming from, Left right or staight at you, changing all the time! Oh to live in a windless flat Country, bliss for us fat boy's.I think any cyclist under 13 stones should be banned then maybe I wont be last up EVERY hill, beaten by people having the cheek to Wiegh only 10 stones.Any way enough hot air (pun intended) from me, it was meant to be about just the wind.
:twisted: