First Frozen Ride

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Comments

  • davis
    davis Posts: 2,506
    and you get added joy of Rice Crispies ALL the way to work.

    You mean frying bacon you dangerous veggie.
    Sometimes parts break. Sometimes you crash. Sometimes it’s your fault.
  • Do you also change pedals to flats as well, I have ice spike tyres for my mtb which has flat pedals, I use this instead of the cx in icy weather, a sort of double indemnity?
  • bompington
    bompington Posts: 7,674
    Do you also change pedals to flats as well, I have ice spike tyres for my mtb which has flat pedals, I use this instead of the cx in icy weather, a sort of double indemnity?
    I would argue that if you're going down, you're going down - being able to get your feet off the pedals 0.3 of a second quicker won't make much difference.
  • itboffin
    itboffin Posts: 20,052
    A bit of this

    Image044.jpg

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    10_01_2010004.jpg

    Image047.jpg
    Rule #5 // Harden The Feck Up.
    Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
    Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
    Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
  • davis wrote:
    and you get added joy of Rice Crispies ALL the way to work.

    You mean frying bacon you dangerous veggie.

    It's that you remember that worries me the most.... :shock:
    Chunky Cyclists need your love too! :-)
    2009 Specialized Tricross Sport
    2011 Trek Madone 4.5
    2012 Felt F65X
    Proud CX Pervert and quiet roadie. 12 mile commuter
  • davis
    davis Posts: 2,506
    davis wrote:
    and you get added joy of Rice Crispies ALL the way to work.

    You mean frying bacon you dangerous veggie.

    It's that you remember that worries me the most.... :shock:

    I'm stalking the stalker.

    (runs away, giggling; I guessed about the veggie bit)
    Sometimes parts break. Sometimes you crash. Sometimes it’s your fault.
  • rubertoe
    rubertoe Posts: 3,994
    I mentioned this last year.... If you keep bikes indoors and it is snowing - go and look at your bike 20 minutes after you have parked it....

    and hide it from the wife if it is on the carpet....
    "If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got."

    PX Kaffenback 2 = Work Horse
    B-Twin Alur 700 = Sundays and Hills
  • qube
    qube Posts: 1,899
    Aye... slippy out in The Garioch again this morning... roads were like a bottle in places. Nearly came a cropper on a few bends. Back wheel skittering about.

    Plenty of snow in The Cairngorms for some climbing this weekend though!!
  • CitizenLee
    CitizenLee Posts: 2,227
    Ok, so it's hit the city now (first pic doesn't show it as much) :)

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    Was actually a really nice ride in.

    I can see me enjoying the coming months commuting :D
    Current:
    NukeProof Mega FR 2012
    Cube NuRoad 2018
    Previous:
    2015 Genesis CdF 10, 2014 Cube Hyde Race, 2012 NS Traffic, 2007 Specialized SX Trail, 2005 Specialized Demo 8
  • The Rookie
    The Rookie Posts: 27,812
    My ride in is usually well gritted so apart from 100m of my own road i don't worry, but in 2012 we had one night when it rained and then froze, I dropped it twice on the one commute, that said I suffered less issues than the circa 15% of car drivers at work who had various 'incidences' on the way to work, ranging from scuffed alloys to 2 write offs.

    I always try and land on the side of my elbow to cushion the fall while not transferring direct to the collarbone and then taking enough energy out that the collarbone survives landing on my shoulder, clearly my old American football training has held up!
    Currently riding a Whyte T130C, X0 drivetrain, Magura Trail brakes converted to mixed wheel size (homebuilt wheels) with 140mm Fox 34 Rhythm and RP23 suspension. 12.2Kg.
  • slowbike
    slowbike Posts: 8,498
    bompington wrote:
    msmancunia wrote:
    Never tried spiked tires - do they actually work? Torn between that or pimping up the MTB.
    Yes. And MTBs don't: by which I mean that knobbly tyres don't really help on ice.
    I've had Nokian A10s for a while - they're the narrowest studded tyre you can get so better for clearance on road bikes. Plenty of other choices if you're happy to go wider.

    I picked up some 30mm studded tyres in Norway last year - heavy going, but cheap and worth it for the few times a year that I need them :)


    The run up to Christmas is when I get to do this:
    E2F334A2-420D-4DD9-A83E-0184C941DD4A.jpg

    and if it snows ....

    snownice.jpg (my friend is on the trike)
  • qube
    qube Posts: 1,899
    a.baa-snow-bike.png

    Much easier.

    :D
  • slowbike
    slowbike Posts: 8,498
    I've just told the wife I need one of these .... N+1 :)
  • seajays
    seajays Posts: 331
    Slowbike wrote:
    I've just told the wife I need one of these .... N+1 :)

    Apparently it's a kit you can get for your MTB!:

    http://www.ktrak.es/indexeng.htm
    Cannondale CAADX Tiagra 2017
    Revolution Courier Race Disc '14
    My Strava
  • Big_Paul
    Big_Paul Posts: 277
    Not quite cold enough for ice in Belfast, but I put the spikes on when the clocks go back, for the simple reason the spikes are fantastic for going through wet leaves. I don't think the ice is far away though, think it'll be a bad winter too.
    Disc Trucker
    Kona Ute
    Rockrider 8.1
    Evil Resident
    Day 01 Disc
    Viking Derwent Tandem
    Planet X London Road
  • Seajays wrote:
    Slowbike wrote:
    I've just told the wife I need one of these .... N+1 :)

    Apparently it's a kit you can get for your MTB!:

    http://www.ktrak.es/indexeng.htm

    great for James Bond impressions, digging about, Fat Bikes are far more capable snow bikes. and with out studs would if anything be less good on ice.

    i've had very good results with decent MTB tyres, as long as the ice isn't too thick, off road the load will crack the ice, and grip, it's mostly fine on road as well as long as it's not sheet ice, which is studs only.

    I've found with good tyres that while it's slow, as long as the snow doesn't stop you peddling, it's possible even if it doesn't look promising! and the snow will keep the bike upright for photo's if you stop to throw snowballs for the dog.

    IMG_0694_zps658526f7.jpg

    IMG_0696_zpsc115b734.jpg
  • pblakeney
    pblakeney Posts: 25,599
    Not sure that I could be bothered spinning that gear. :shock:
    The above may be fact, or fiction, I may be serious, I may be jesting.
    I am not sure. You have no chance.
    Veronese68 wrote:
    PB is the most sensible person on here.
  • PBlakeney wrote:
    Not sure that I could be bothered spinning that gear. :shock:

    Unpacked snow does need a few cogs, once it's packed down you can roll along quite well. But that mountain is off the beaten track as you where.
  • Personally I don't understand the excitement of snow on a bike - it's crap. Had plenty of it (one epic 2-hour commute some of which I simply had to push the bike). The only upside to really cold days is that it tends to be still. Ice Spiker Pros are magnificent on ice (not so good in snow) and infinitely better than Marathon W***ers - the Spikers are lighter and the studs stay attached. One of my very few "offs" on a bike was on W***ers whereas I've never had the slightest slip on the Pros. In fact, one of the biggest problem with the Pros is that before now I've cycled across surfaces that I can't stand on in my cycle shoes if I stop! :shock: :wink:
    ROAD < Scott Foil HMX Di2, Volagi Liscio Di2, Jamis Renegade Elite Di2, Cube Reaction Race > ROUGH
  • Popped the spiked tyres onto the MTB today. First few flakes of the year too.

    Brr.
  • I adore snow riding. It feels wonderful.

    This was my Xmas eve ride a few years back. It was sublime.


    135868_10150353919925019_6700452_o.jpg
    My blog: http://www.roubaixcycling.cc (kit reviews and other musings)
    https://twitter.com/roubaixcc
    Facebook? No. Just say no.
  • Initialised
    Initialised Posts: 3,047
    Seajays wrote:
    …and I don't mean the disney movie.

    First time properly below zero today at -2°C coming in to work.

    Unfortunately that meant when I got to work the bike locker keyhole was frozen locked. With some determined friction induced heat I managed to get it open though. :wink:

    Let it go. 8)
    I'm one with the wind and snow.
    I used to just ride my bike to work but now I find myself going out looking for bigger and bigger hills.
  • Cold never bothered me anyway.
    My blog: http://www.roubaixcycling.cc (kit reviews and other musings)
    https://twitter.com/roubaixcc
    Facebook? No. Just say no.
  • Personally I don't understand the excitement of snow on a bike - it's crap. Had plenty of it (one epic 2-hour commute some of which I simply had to push the bike). The only upside to really cold days is that it tends to be still. Ice Spiker Pros are magnificent on ice (not so good in snow) and infinitely better than Marathon W***ers - the Spikers are lighter and the studs stay attached. One of my very few "offs" on a bike was on W***ers whereas I've never had the slightest slip on the Pros. In fact, one of the biggest problem with the Pros is that before now I've cycled across surfaces that I can't stand on in my cycle shoes if I stop! :shock: :wink:

    put simply it's fun, with decent kit.

    On the commute it's less fun, but for a ride, it makes areas more interesting to ride though not unpassable by any means, the limit off road is the depth of snow as long as you can keep turning the pedals the bike will keep going. this is with big wide softcompound tyres they will reach their limit on sheet ice, but fresh snow/compacted snow/ice ruts etc fine.