winter riding

tony m

when the snow arrives do i change my tyres on my road bike(if so which are the best) or just commute to work on my mountian bike .

stevie_90210

I have to admit that with a 20 mile each way commute, and on dark country lanes... my bike will probably rest from November until February.

Would any of you carry on commuting if you were in my position?

stanarchist

stop being such a poof !!! Your not made of sugar and i hardly think you'll freeze to death. L

Wrap up warm and get on with it.

as for the OP - you could just change your tyres to something a bit more touring/trail orientated but its not just the tyres you have to consider. Worst of all is the rocksalt -it detsroys frames and components like a bloody cancer - best bet is to regularly rinse off your bike, fit full mud guards with flaps etc.
The fatter tyres and lower gears of a mountain bike will probably make it easier in the snow - when its proper snow I usually go with the old singlespeed mountain bike. Get some decent lights on and allow abit extra time for your journey and enjoy it - remember howmuch fun it was playing out in the snow as a kid ?

alternatively try this - http://www.dutchbikeco.com/_blog/Dutch_ ... pocalypse/

Mr Plum

I commute through a city. If (when) it snows I might stop for a week. Other than that, the bike stays the same throughout the year.

meanredspider

stevie_90210 wrote:

I have to admit that with a 20 mile each way commute, and on dark country lanes... my bike will probably rest from November until February.

Would any of you carry on commuting if you were in my position?

I do. Only 15 miles each way but snow and ice Nov to Mar and very dark very country lanes.

I do, however, take precautions: studded ice tyres (Marathon Winter, lots of black ice about), good lights (including lid lights for being more visible over crests), good clothes, emergency foil blanket and so on.

MichaelW

MTB knobbly tyres are good in snow, slush and frozen rutted surfaces but for slick ice, only studded tyres work well.

Last winter during the snowy, icy 2 weeks, I used some home-made studded tyres. They won't last as long as ceramic Schwalbe or Nokkian ones but they are good enough for 2-3 seasons and you can always replace the screws.

Most road bikes lack the tyre clearance for snow tyres. A touring/CX/hybrid bike can cope.

cjcp

I use CX tyres on my CX bike if there's snow, but the London roads rarely have enough snow on them to make normal road tyres inadequate.

If I had to commute on country lanes, then I'd get snow/spiked-tyres, more reflective clothing and some seriously powerful lights.

godders1

stanarchist wrote:

alternatively try this - http://www.dutchbikeco.com/_blog/Dutch_ ... pocalypse/

arthur_scrimshaw

Don't worry, over the last three Winters we've had ice and snow and every time I've tried to buy studded tyres there's no stock or the price is stupid. This Summer I've planned ahead and finally invested in a pair of Schwalbe studded ice tyres for my mtb - these are currently hanging in the garage waiting for the onslaught which now almost certainly won't be coming

wgwarburton

tony m wrote:

when the snow arrives do i change my tyres on my road bike(if so which are the best) or just commute to work on my mountian bike .

Snow isn't too much of a problem. Ice is to be avoided: try and stick to gritted roads (school bus routes seem to be a priority).
Avoid bike paths on frosty mornings.

I use the same bike in winter- drop bar fixie on 700c wheels. Usually run 25c tyres, sometime 28c rear or 23c front.

If you're somewhere that doesn't usually see snow (Oxford springs to mind for some reason) expect madness from motorists if it arrives. I live in rural Scotland so the the roads get gritted if frost is forecast and most drivers are used to it. Might be different for you if you live somewhere that it's unusual (Cornwall?).

Cheers,
W.

roger_merriman

I live in london if outer london so it's rare to have to deal with this sort of stuff.

on the whole taken carefully is fine. I have the MTB with soft compound mud spike tyres that is remarkable in the snow and ice, even sheet ice is fine.

But i've yet to need that for the commute!

Initialised

I had around six falls due to ice/snow, it lasted 1-2 months here. Only one of them made me bleed. This year I have Schwalbe Snow Stud tyres hopefully I can stay up. I's recommend getting them in before snow is forecast as they sell out quickly add to that the delays caused by snow and the Christmas rush and you'll be lucky to get them before the snow's melted.

As for warmth, keep the feet, hands and torso warm and the rest will follow.

As the only cyclist where I work I was the only one who was never late due to snow. But standing around waiting in -10C is not fun so make sure there's somewhere nearby you can keep warm.

dilemna

From years of cleaning salt and crud off rims and deraillieur and chain ring transmissions from riding in severe winter conditions I would say any new bike MUST have disc brakes and hub gears with a full chain guard protecting the chain, spocket and chain ring from becoming covered in salt and crap thus drastically reducing performance and lifespan if frequent cleaning and re-lubing is not carried out.

cyberknight

Unless it is really bad i just keep going all winter on my 23 mm slicks .I only stopped when one section of cycle path i have to use (or its the roundabout of death) became an ice rink of frozen compacted snow last winter when it was lower than - 10 for a long time.

Layers are the secret to keeping warm.

As for not freezing to death it is possible ! i had a double blow out last winter and only 1 tube (doh ) and the glue was not setting , had to get the wife to come and get me , 40 mins later i am getting hypothermia as i was so cold i had stopped shivering .Thank feck it happened on a lit section of my commute because if i had eneded up in a ditch in the unlit parts i could have never been found .

meanredspider

cyberknight wrote:

As for not freezing to death it is possible ! i had a double blow out last winter and only 1 tube (doh ) and the glue was not setting , had to get the wife to come and get me , 40 mins later i am getting hypothermia as i was so cold i had stopped shivering .Thank feck it happened on a lit section of my commute because if i had eneded up in a ditch in the unlit parts i could have never been found .

That's by far my biggest worry. I can do at least the first 7 miles of my commute not seeing a soul. If I had an "off", I could definitely end up in locations that no-one could see me. That's why I carry the emergency blanket and featherlite jacket in my belt bag.

jedster

I use the same tyres in winter but I dont cycle if there is snow on the roads. This means I miss a handful of days in a harsh winter. I can live with that.

zenistar

I am reading this with interest as we get a lot of snow from December onwards and i really want to continue commuting by bike.

I'm thinking of using the old Rockhopper with studded tires, it just means reverting back to V brakes and no suspension.

The thing that worries me most is that the first half of my commute is offroad or on forest trails with absolutely no salt / clearing.

meanredspider

zenistar wrote:

I am reading this with interest as we get a lot of snow from December onwards and i really want to continue commuting by bike.

I'm thinking of using the old Rockhopper with studded tires, it just means reverting back to V brakes and no suspension.

The thing that worries me most is that the first half of my commute is offroad or on forest trails with absolutely no salt / clearing.

My experience of MTB winter tyres is that they only work in up to 3" of snow before they start to lose traction. They are at the optimum, IME, in about 1-2" (studs and knobbles work but aren't a hinderance).

A lot of people say a narrower tyre seems to work best in deep snow which makes some sense. When I ran into trouble, it seemed as though the wide MTB front tyre was creating a lot of resistance as it compressed the deep snow - more than the traction at the rear could overcome. This year I'll be on 35c Marathon W***ers so will be able to report back on the difference.

ride_whenever

Once there is a hint of snow the ice spiker pros go on the mtb. As long as it isn't freezing then I'll stay on 23mm tyres until it freezes and I'm onto the studs

On snow, upto about 1/2way to hub depth then 1.9" mud spikes (trailrakers or swamp things) work well. Deeper than that and it's really hard work and you ideally want a pugsley

Ice requires studs of some description

ex-pat scot

stevie_90210 wrote:

I have to admit that with a 20 mile each way commute, and on dark country lanes... my bike will probably rest from November until February.

Would any of you carry on commuting if you were in my position?

Yes - me.
I've been off on black ice once each winter for the last couple of years, but ridden all the way through what has been rather hard conditions.

zenistar

I was just looking at the Ice Spiker Pros on Wiggle and am wondering if 26 2,10s will fit on my old Rockhopper which currently has 26 1,90.

A pair of those plus lights and some crud catchers should see me to work once the snow starts - once it gets to a meter or so deep i think i will have to change route or get on the train again.

matt-h

you wont catch me riding in the snow where i live. The drivers are incapable of controlling their vehicles and i dont want to be another statistic.

Shame, as i reckon it could be quite fun

Matt

andrewlwood

I would keep going, except in snow/ice. No room for two bikes, and I can live without it for the few days the roads are iced over in London each year.

DOes make me think I need a house with a bigger garage and room for a nice hard tail MTB though....