What do you do when winter comes?

Scrappaman

Hi All,

Having bought my first road bike a couple of months back, I have truly caught the bug and I am out on the bike most evenings.

Friends that I ride with tell me that in winter, when the rain and the cold arrives, they simply put their bikes away and turn to mountain biking or other activities.

I am loving road biking and I want to do it all year round; both for my fitness and the fun.
As such, I don't like the idea of packing up for winter.

Can people tell me what they do for winter? Do you fit grippier tyres, do you get onto your turbo trainer, turn to other sports, or plod on regardless?

The turbo trainer idea tempted me but many people have suggested that if I were to use a turbo trainer and also want to ride outside then I would need to look at getting a spare tyre at the least (for use with the turbo) or a whole new wheel preferably. This is a lot of effort!

I lack the funds for buying spare wheels with a turbo trainer and certainly lack the funds for a winter bike - am I the only one?

Thanks in advance to anyone who shares their winter practice with me!

Matt

rolf_f

Old school touring bike for most of early and late Winter (components cheap to replace and mechanically simple plus bigger tyres and mudguards) and MTB with studs for the ice season.

Crud Racer'd Carbon No2 bike for nice days in Winter (ie no recent salt about etc)

No time for a turbo trainer as still too busy cycling outside in Winter!

anto164

I tend to get out on the mountain bike every weekend in the winter. Much fun can be had sliding about in the mud! Sure, you get absolutely filthy, but hey, that's the fun of it!

Road bike comes out if my mates don't want to play, but my winter roady riding gear is limited, so i tend to just go on the mtb more.

briantrumpet

I just keep on going. Commuting carries on as normal (on the commuting bike), and the posh bikes come out for odd hours, and the longer ride when the weather's not too horrid. If you watch the forecasts and have some flexibility about when you go out, it's surprising how many miles you can get in without having to MTFU too much. Just wash the bike off after every ride, especially if there's been any salt on the roads. Watch out for sub-zero conditions though - I just don't (outside of town) if there's any risk of ice - it's not worth it. Nothing changes from the Summer on the bike, though I might fit some Crudguards this winter.

Kit-wise - a pair of bib-tights, some decent gloves, neoprene overshoes, a skull cap under the helmet, and a decent base layer (or two) does me - I just wear my short-sleeved jerseys over the top. Three layers keeps me toasty warm.

Stone Glider

+1 for the 'Old Skool' tourer idea, 28mm tyres, mudguards, plus a relaxed front fork provide you with a stable platform and steady friend for windy days and sludgy roads.

P.S. a decent quality 'softshell' jacket and 'Roubaix' tights helps keep the cold at bay.

danowat

Mainly Audaxes and commuting.

Steve_b77

Commute continues with nice warm winter type clothes.

If it's anything like last year, my road bike went away in October and didn't come out until April.

Even the geared MTB hardly saw the light of day until Crimbo when all the snow made it easier to ride with gears instead of SS

sloppyschleckonds

Bare in mind the very limited daylight hours in Dec/ Jan/ Feb so unless commuting its weekend riding only

Bozman

First bit of salt on the road and i'm off to Maui

mallorcajeff

i take the wilier out when the wetaher is ok in winter (fortunately in spain thats often) and then when its bad I take the MTB just looking for a new one now ready for winter. I tried the turbo route and managed just under an hour before I literally died of boredom and sold it.

If you get decent lights the dark isnt a problem just take extra care. Get a used mtb for 300 ish will see you through winter on a budget and when you jump on the road bike after it feels like a ferrari

madracer

Ride my French bike.......in France

rolf_f

SloppySchleckonds wrote:

Bare in mind the very limited daylight hours in Dec/ Jan/ Feb so unless commuting its weekend riding only

You know you can get lights for bikes!

thiscocks

Mudguards, lights and warmer clothes and away you go

lemoncurd

A combination of:

- Good lights
- Overshoes & gloves
- Mountain biking
- Turbo

Pross

Just keep riding. Slightly more robust tyres maybe, some mud guards, lights and away you go. Just wash and re-oil after each ride and your bike will be fine despite what some people would have you believe. Club riders will get their base training miles in over the winter and some fools will even keep racing!

merak

Just keep riding. Windproof jacket, bibtights, gloves and overshoes and you're fit to go. No need to change tyres - something like Conti GP 4seasons are good all year round. Many people have a winter bike - I have one for the mudguards, but if you wash your bike after rides the winter won't damage your bike. Turbo as a very last resort. (BTW, It's a myth that you need special tyres or wheels on a turbo.)

Monty Dog

Winter is an essential part of year round cycling, 'bank' the miles in winter and you can be assured of good quality riding in summer. Nobody's mentioned CX which is great for fitness and bike handling. Races are less than an hour so barely enough time to get cold and it can be pretty furious at the front if you want, but no one takes it to serious. CX on snow is also a great experience as long as you don't mind crashing (lots). Long rides and cafe stops in winter is probably the most enjoyable part.

Duffer65

Wrap up me and the bike and just keep slogging away, and noticing that there are a lot less cyclists about than there were in the summer!

sagalout

SloppySchleckonds wrote:

Bare in mind the very limited daylight hours in Dec/ Jan/ Feb so unless commuting its weekend riding only

Our Tuesday and Thursday night club runs continue throughout winter. Tend to do about 30 miles at a decent pace. A group of bikes with lights is pretty safe, although we go into the unlit countryside and moors, so it's handy to have at least a couple of people with really good front lights!

Ben6899

As soon as Winter arrives, I accept that I won't get in many miles during midweek; it's dark when I get home and I don't like using lights.

So I run through the week and ride at the weekend with Crud MKII fitted to my Cadex and, in really bad conditions, my single speed. I also accept I might put on a couple of extra lbs... if I didn't accept that, I'd go crazy as I'm a bit funny about keeping trim.

As long as your bike is equipped and you are clothed in the appropriate gear (warmth over dryness to be honest), then you'll be fine. And you'll notice far fewer cyclists!


A very wet and cold January 13th this year. All good.

keef66

I have an all year round bike so I just stick the mudguards back on and fit the lights. Roubaix bib tights, decent gloves, thicker socks, wind / shower proof top. Must get some overshoes.

MrChuck

merak wrote:

Just keep riding. Windproof jacket, bibtights, gloves and overshoes and you're fit to go. No need to change tyres - something like Conti GP 4seasons are good all year round. Many people have a winter bike - I have one for the mudguards, but if you wash your bike after rides the winter won't damage your bike. Turbo as a very last resort. (BTW, It's a myth that you need special tyres or wheels on a turbo.)

+1, although I'll stay at home if there's ice about- just not worth the potential damage to you or your bike. Other than that just get a decent jacket, gloves and some tights and off you go.

rubertoe

keef66 wrote:

I have an all year round bike so I just stick the mudguards back on and fit the lights. Roubaix bib tights, decent gloves, thicker socks, wind / shower proof top. Must get some overshoes.

This will be my first winter commuting - i plan to do the above and ride the whole winter except of its snowing or really icy.

Must get some overs too (its raining now and i fear the soggy feet on the way home)

MrChuck

rubertoe wrote:

Must get some overs too (its raining now and i fear the soggy feet on the way home)

You might well still get soggy feet, but they'll be warm soggy feet.

Monty Dog

Apart from when there's ice and snow on the road, I'll try and keep riding all year. With modern lights, if you stick to riding on unlit roads it's probably safer than riding the same roads in daylight as you can see the lights of approaching traffic. Because of the power of modern lights (but not blinding oncoming traffic) they aren't sure of the size of your vehicle and tend to give way more - particularly on narrower lanes. Whilst I do have a turbo, I prefer to get a blast on the open road. Off-road night rides are also good fun.

Paul E

I will be getting some crud road racers this autumn mainly to keep the cr@p off my bike more than me

hammerite

Combination of spinning, night time MTB rides, CX and long rides see me through the winter. I have a turbo, but rarely use it - planning to take it a bit more serious this winter though.

Regardless your first winter of riding will cost you money whether you go down the turbo trainer route, or the carry on outside route. Obviously the turbo trainer costs, as does a spare tyre/wheel - being lucky I have a winter bike, so I use the normal road bike and change the tyre when I start to ride outside on that bike again.

If it's the carry on outside route you'll want clothes that can help make riding in winter a bit more comfortable. Getting frozen on a ride is no fun and quite dangerous. Winter gloves, socks, overshoes, tights, jacket, baselayer/thermals, hat etc...

LeicesterLad

My Biggest mistake last year was putting the bike away in october, and digging it out again in april, I started the old 'oo, weather looks bit naff today, ill get the bus', before long it didn't matter what the weather was doing, i couldn't be arsed to get the bike out, i got miserable, and depressed, i missed cycling, but couldn't be arsed to cycle, sounds weird but thats how it was. This year im determined to MTFU, spend a packet on decent clothing, and do more winter miles than ive covered this summer.

carl_p

As said it is best to avoid snow and ice - I bust my shoulder in January on black ice, still not recovered fully. This winter it will be out on non icey weekends only, spin classes and hitting the gym to rebuild the muscle I lost through injury

smithaay

rugby.

briantrumpet

Carl_P wrote:

I bust my shoulder in January on black ice, still not recovered fully.

Sorry to hear that - I wouldn't be surprised if it was Sunday 9 January. I did some horizontal riding that day too, but got way with a graze or two - though it would have been different had there been a car or lorry coming the other way.

I hope I've learnt my lesson. It's just not worth taking the risk.