Roadies vs. winter ?

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  • DavidBelcher
    DavidBelcher Posts: 2,684
    girv73 wrote:
    What's the deal with road bikes vs. winter?

    I see mention on many threads about people getting "winter" bikes instead of their regular road ride, but I don't know why :oops:

    I prefer mudguards for the winter, and my 'best' road bike doesn't have clearance for them - I've tried Raceblade-type guards on a close-clearance frame and loathed them! I could, on the other hand, just ride my 'winter' bike all year round (which I do for commuting) and take the full-length guards off in the summer [1], but because its geometry is a bit more relaxed in order to take the guards etc., it isn't quite as nippy for racing on during the road/TT season. So there you go.

    David

    [1] "What summer?", I hear you say :wink:
    "It is not enough merely to win; others must lose." - Gore Vidal
  • Dustine
    Dustine Posts: 184
    I did one year take my full length mudguards off at the start of 'summer'... then two weeks of rain later they went back on and never came back off again.

    This spring, having finished putting the bar tape on my latest build, an old skool TT bike, i decided to ride it to work. Skidding on ice (didnt realize it was that cold), i crashed and ripped said bar tape, less than 8 hours after fitting it.

    Thats also why i would tend to avoid using a 'best ' bike during the worst of winter...
  • redddraggon
    redddraggon Posts: 10,862
    jedster wrote:
    The real answer is to have a commuter and a best bike rather than a winter bike and a best bike.

    Nah, the real answer is to have a commuter, a winter bike, and a good bike. (And a TT bike, cyclocross bike, and a MTB)
    I like bikes...

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  • Dustine
    Dustine Posts: 184
    I can see this becoming a 'how many bikes have you got' thread....*

    Bikes are like spanners. You CAN do most spannering with a single adjustable, but its not likely to be as easy or be as successful as if you have ring/ open ended spanners in a range of sizes.

    *Hence i have a fixed commuter, and a REALLY BAD WEATHER commuter/tourer. And a 'best' road bike. And a TT bike. And a singlespeed mtb 'hack' bike, as well as a 'best' mtb. And a BMX for the skatepark. None of them worth that much, but all loved and ridden. Each a tool for a different job.

    *insert own 'tool/spanner' punchline here*[/i]
  • fnb1
    fnb1 Posts: 591
    back iIn the day, your Winter bike was your retired summer bike that had been winterised, e.g. maybe mudguards, maybe lights if you were commuting, maybe a saddlebag if you used it for the occasional weekend away. Maybe even a 60 somehting inch fixed to build strength and cadence for the summer season and for the simple gunge proof mechanicals that came with it.

    The thought of buying a 'NEW' bike for winter use is a much more recent thing that makes no sense at all. But good luck to the retailers getting the sales on them!
    fay ce que voudres

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