Is anyone else looking forward to the cold snap?

Kieran_Burns

We've got dire warnings about serious sub-zero temps (for the UK) for the rest of the week.

(and snow... CX tyres, CX tyres...)

Am I the only one looking forward to the ride in when it's guaranteed to be lung shatteringly cold?

Wandering into the office with a healthly glow, sweating slightly and trying to cool down while everyone else looks like a big furry multi-coloured snowman.... then you get the inevitable "You cycled in THIS?????" :shock:

I LOVE cycling when it's freezing me.

SimonAH

Right with you there Mr Burns, although I've not got a grippy tyred bike yet this year.........ice 'n snow are going to be fun.

But i LOVE riding in the cold!

Matt the Tester

well im on a road bike so it's a different story to you since i don't live in a majjor city lol, but i really do enjoy riding in Freezing cold weather, i feel better and i can give it the Beans abit more then usual cos of the brisk air

gtvlusso

Don't really care, as long as I am not stuck in traffic......

May have a day working from home though :oops:

Agent57

The cold is fine. I'm less keen on the black ice. Or normal ice, since it mostly appears towards the side of road, and there are a few pieces on my route along the A6 which force me to ride almost along the centre lane markings to avoid riding over ice. Oh, and ice with rain on it. Slippery as all hell.

I do have some studded tyres to whack on my old MTB though, and they should help.

Nifer

So how safe is a MTB in snow and ice? The thought actually petrifies me, but if I can have faith in those nobbly tyres then I'm good for flying down the Wells Road.

Mr Plum

I don't mind the cold at all, but I hate icy roads

Kieran_Burns

steady rider wrote:

well im on a road bike so it's a different story to you since i don't live in a majjor city lol, but i really do enjoy riding in Freezing cold weather, i feel better and i can give it the Beans abit more then usual cos of the brisk air

I live in a village and cycle TO a village when commuting - it's ALL country lanes for me, so I will have to be very wary when riding in, but the thought of the crisp clear air.... 8)

Mr Plum

Nifer wrote:

So how safe is a MTB in snow and ice? The thought actually petrifies me, but if I can have faith in those nobbly tyres then I'm good for flying down the Wells Road.

I came off on nobbys last year, got a nice scar in my ankle now. I guess there's a lesson to learn there somewhere...? :?

ride_whenever

Nothing other than studded tyres grips on ICE, but in hard pack snow and deep snow proper mud tyres work a treat, you can still come off though. The best thing to do is head out to somewhere quiet and ride around, riding in the snow and on ice are great for improving your bike handling skills.

Ironically it was after the snow melted last year and I pumped up my cx tyres that I came off badly and ended up getting stitches in my knee :roll:

gbsahne001

have to be very bad to keep me off the roads; missed one day in Feb due to the snow. This year I have a MTB to ensure that this doesnt happen again.

notsoblue

I don't mind the cold, or the wet, but I hate ice Its no fun having to cross your fingers or appeal to a deity every time you take a corner!

Agent57

Nifer wrote:

So how safe is a MTB in snow and ice? The thought actually petrifies me, but if I can have faith in those nobbly tyres then I'm good for flying down the Wells Road.

Snow is generally fine, I find. Ice is far more tricky, and knobbly tyres won't help; potentially, they could be worse than having slick tyres as there's less rubber in contact with the ice.

Last winter, during the really cold bit of Jan or Feb whenever it was, I rode on knobblies OK though - slightly underinflated, to try and increase the contact patch. Trying not to steer on the ice helps (large, smooth turns if you have to); and if you have to brake, use the rear as a rear-wheel skid is a lot easier to control than front.

If there's frost on the ice, that seems to make it quite a bit more ridable, but rain on top of ice is lethal. Riding over frozen slush can be a challenge, too - other bikes will have caused channels in the slush, and once its frozen the channels will dictate where your front wheel goes...

Stay away from the gutters even more than you would normally, as run-off water gathers there, freezing overnight. Out in the centre of the lane is better; it'll either be gritted, or at least more likely to be cleared by the heat of passing motor traffic.

camerone

looking forward to work at home days that include a lunchtime blast over the local hills on the MTB in thick snow.

gtvlusso

Nifer wrote:

So how safe is a MTB in snow and ice? The thought actually petrifies me, but if I can have faith in those nobbly tyres then I'm good for flying down the Wells Road.

It is sketchy and you get stuck in the really heavy, crappy, dirty snow on the sides of the roads.....

Used to take me an hour to do 6 miles up the A38 when it was really bad. However, nowadays, I would just work from home.

And I sold my MTB last month....

Cuchulainn

I'm just hoping that the worst of it doesn't arrive till Thursday - I should have my Marathon Winters from Germany by Wednesday! Then I'm at least a bit more protected from ice!

unixnerd

Am I the only one looking forward to the ride in when it's guaranteed to be lung shatteringly cold?

From one Mr. Burns to another I can assure you it's been bloody cold up here in the Highlands for a while now, skiing season started two weekends ago and I got snowed on whilst cycling last night. Great fun :-) Nothing is better than cycling in falling snow at night off road.

Agree with you about icy roads though, just finished putting a new bumper on the winter car due to a patch of black ice on an untreated road.

Must go and get the cross country skis sorted out for this winter.....

ride_whenever

I've got some ice spiker pro's coming hopefully tomorrow... rather excited about this...

fnegroni

Kieran_Burns wrote:

Am I the only one looking forward to the ride in when it's guaranteed to be lung shatteringly cold?

No.
Ironically, I was about to post about same last night: keep looking at BBC weather forecast and waiting for the Snow forecast icon to appear so I can justify mounting knobbly tyres and not feel too bad about going about 30% slower on my commute.

OTOH, I really don't want it to snow at the weekend when I go out with the club on best bike.

P.S.
My tip on riding on ice is to lower the saddle and not use clipless pedals: infact, it helps riding with one foot hovering the ground when going down a gentle slope covered in ice and snow.

Agent57

ride_whenever wrote:

I've got some ice spiker pro's coming hopefully tomorrow... rather excited about this...

I should have got those, but the price difference over the standard Ice Spikers was too much. I might decide it would have been worth it if the standard steel studs in my tyres have rusted to hell by next winter.

Kieran_Burns

fnegroni wrote:

Kieran_Burns wrote:

Am I the only one looking forward to the ride in when it's guaranteed to be lung shatteringly cold?

No.
Ironically, I was about to post about same last night: keep looking at BBC weather forecast and waiting for the Snow forecast icon to appear so I can justify mounting knobbly tyres and not feel too bad about going about 30% slower on my commute.

OTOH, I really don't want it to snow at the weekend when I go out with the club on best bike.

Sleet Wednesday and Snow Friday for Derby... you might want to check locally.

CiB

I'm so looking forward to it that I've booked the car in for a service on Thursday so that I have to ride in. All of my commute is back roads & country lanes; I'll let you know how it is if / when I make it. Trouble is wife has offered me her car for the day, which sounds like a daft idea now but at 6:50 on Thursday morning might be quite appealing....

Nifer

gtvlusso wrote:

Nifer wrote:

So how safe is a MTB in snow and ice? The thought actually petrifies me, but if I can have faith in those nobbly tyres then I'm good for flying down the Wells Road.

It is sketchy and you get stuck in the really heavy, crappy, dirty snow on the sides of the roads.....

Used to take me an hour to do 6 miles up the A38 when it was really bad. However, nowadays, I would just work from home.

And I sold my MTB last month....

Hmmmmmmmm....

Last year - before I got into cycling - I would walk to work (my car has rear-wheen drive and I live on a hill, so it would be unused for days and days), but even in the snow & ice I would fall over! All that and I would be the only one in the office because everyone else is stuck at home!

I might not bother this winter...

rhext

I've always looked forward to cold weather, and I still love the clear, cold mornings, plus the smug feeling when people say 'you're not still cycling in this are you?'.

But as I get older, I find the trips home more and more of a ball-ache. I guess it's because I'm more tired, don't go so fast, and the cold gets into my bones. So while I still feel that sort of 'little kid' excitement at the thought of cold weather and snow, I know that when it's actually here, and actually falling, I'm going to wish for spring again!

fnegroni

Last year I was the only person, including people who take trains and walk, not to get stuck when it snowed heavily.

Even pedestrians take far more risks walking than me cycling.

And let's not talk about drivers who would rather risk hitting someone else with two tons of metal, feeling safe inside their tins.

ride_whenever

I overtook a land-rover in the snow last year 8)

Ordinary off road mud tyres and was loving it!

UndercoverElephant

ride_whenever wrote:

I overtook a land-rover in the snow last year 8)

Ordinary off road mud tyres and was loving it!

I scalped a snow plough on road-slicks. Was also loving it! :twisted:

Alphabet

i get to use the kona - woo!

although only if this stinking cold goes away. normally i will cycle through it, but this afternoon i'm sorely missing a big does of MTFU and will be leaving my bike in the office before shuffling home on PT

wgwarburton

Nifer wrote:

[...my car has rear-wheen drive and I live on a hill, so it would be unused for days and days...

Rear-wheel drive works great in the snow, as long as you have the engine at the right end of the car.

Cheers,
W.

beegee

I have heard that winter tyres can make big difference even to rear wheel drive. Is this true? Or would the only difference I notice be in my bank account ?

And I love the cold air.

Agent57

I'm considering getting some of these for my wife to keep in the car: http://www.autosock.co.uk/