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Its too cold out here for me to ride a bike,instead I weight train.
I tried it, but rode on a patch of black ice and slipped while almost getting hit by a car while causing an accident.
Personally after my experience riding in winter is stupid.
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Try riding with studded tires. Ice (black or otherwise) will no longer be an issue. I rode on ice once without studs and won't ever repeat that mistake again.
I only go out on warm days, where it gets above freezing. As long as it hasn't snowed recently, the roads are ok up here; but it's a pretty rural area.
Its too cold out here for me to ride a bike,instead I weight train.
I tried it, but rode on a patch of black ice and slipped while almost getting hit by a car while causing an accident.
Personally after my experience riding in winter is stupid.
Maybe it is for you but there are quite a few of us who enjoy it.
If you have the appropriate equipment for whatever winter your area suffers from it is a blast.
Definitely a completely different animal than summer but enjoyable in its own right.
Rural, urban, summer, winter. Totally different riding. Hazards different, skill set different, equipment different. You have to be equipped and prepared for the weather, traffic and other hazards.
Troll of the week.
Good times.
I admit I have to re-train myself to ride in the winter again. I have picked up ten pounds. My friend has fixed up my winter bike. I hope to pick it up tomorrow. Sixty dollars to fill up the car is too much! I could be buying bike parts with that money
Gas, .69 cents the price of a can of beans.
Personally after my experience riding in winter is stupid.
Experience it on studded tires and you WILL change your mind. Also, you may find that you REALLY, REALLY like it! :)
... Brad
Its too cold out here for me to ride a bike,instead I weight train.
I tried it, but rode on a patch of black ice and slipped while almost getting hit by a car while causing an accident.
Personally after my experience riding in winter is stupid.
U bedda tay inthide where it's warm, liddle girl. Do you weight train with little pink dumbells?
Troll of the week.
Good times.
Exactamundo.
Its too pavement out here for me to ride a bike,instead I weight walk.
I tried it, but rode on bare rims without tires and slipped while almost getting hit by a car while causing an accident.
Personally after my experience riding bicycles is stupid.
Also, you may find that you REALLY, REALLY like it! :)
... Brad
+1
LOL! Really, OP, that was wicked lame! WAAH! Maybe your ancestors hibernated! When the going gets tough, the tough get studded tires. And maybe some mittens.http://smilies.sofrayt.com/%5E/j0/glasses.gif
I hear you brother!, I do a lot of road cycling and cant help thinking it's reducing my life expectancy!
Who said you can't ride in Winter at all? How about using the weather forecast to help determain what days will be OK and what days to avoid. I personally would not ride even into the Fall without studded tires. You only need to hit a small patch of ice to have a bad day. In the Fall the weather tends to be wet and with the temperatures going up and down like a yo-yo sooner or later you'll be out and come accros some ice. I have been suprised at how much I've been able to cycle. The only time consistant time I've been off me bike was the last two weeks, but it was for two reasons:
First, we had some seriously bad sleet come down two weeks ago somewhat unexpectedly. I could barely walk outside, but things started out OK on the bike. I did have the rear end slip out from under me and hit the pavement pretty hard. My shoulder definitely needed a few days off after that. Considering the roads and sidewalk were covered completely with a layer of Ice I still can't believe the cycling went as well as it did. Walking was pretty much impossible. When I got home my gloves, and bags were covered with a layer of ice. It would have been smarter to call my wife for a ride on that day... hind sight it 20/20.
Second the day after my fall I came down with a good cold and have had a nasty cough ever since. Last week I was completely drained of energy. Sore shoulder + no energy + heavy wind meant staying off the bike a few days.
Over the weekend my head congestion has pretty much gone away and the cough is getting much lighter. I have plenty of engergy again. I also was able to get some swimming in, and have been working my arm a bunch to gently streach it out and work on getting my full mobility back. The pain is almost all gone!
Today I got back on the bike and it felt SO GOOD! I can't imaging parking my bike for a few months just because it is Winter. If the weather looks bad, I'll take the car for a day. I'll check the weather again the following day. If the weather has improved I can ride again. I love getting out in the Winter.
Enjoy the ride,
André
Studded tires have changed my life and made all my acquaintances think I'm crazy but I have the most fun you can have with your pants on.
Pants on?
Hmmm... I'm gonna try that next winter.
First, we had some seriously bad sleet come down two weeks ago somewhat unexpectedly. I could barely walk outside, but things started out OK on the bike. I did have the rear end slip out from under me and hit the pavement pretty hard. My shoulder definitely needed a few days off after that. Considering the roads and sidewalk were covered completely with a layer of Ice I still can't believe the cycling went as well as it did. Walking was pretty much impossible. When I got home my gloves, and bags were covered with a layer of ice. It would have been smarter to call my wife for a ride on that day... hind sight it 20/20.
I'm really glad you are recovering from your injuries, and back to enjoying your rides. :)
My stepson drove a car when the roads weren't too bad, braked on a little patch of ice and hit a small tree. He was in a coma for 4 weeks with shattered pelvis, neck and humerus along with a ruptured diaphragm and many other internal injuries. It's a miracle that he's even alive. Again this was in a car. The injuries were more severe than yours because a car is usually going faster than a bike (though only 25 mph in my stepson's case) and because your own car is like a weapon against you in a crash.
So sometimes it's hard to know what is dangerous and what isn't. People assume that a bike is more dangerous than a car, but there are no figures to decide that question. It's basically a matter of perception. That's why I agree with the others and you, andrelam. IMO, the OP is full of it.
Its too cold out here for me to ride a bike,instead I weight train.
I tried it, but rode on a patch of black ice and slipped while almost getting hit by a car while causing an accident.
Personally after my experience riding in winter is stupid.
WARNING: Life is dangerous, by existing in this world you are putting yourself at extreme risk of dying. When in doubt stay in shallow end and hold tightly to the handrail.
^^^ Don;t forget your floaty armbands either^^^
Bah been riding virtually everyday for the past 6 years. Here in Toronto no studded tires required, but it gets pretty snowy and icy, especially this year. OP's lightweightidness is embarrassing. Just ride it out, learn to handle yourself on a bit of ice, wussyman.
andrelam.. fall down go boom .. get up.. heal .. go ride. That's the ticket.
Can I stud my own tires?I mean is there a kit?I dont want to spend a lot of money for studded tires because I could buy those cheap tires for $8.00 from the hardware store and stud them,also do those studs grip on those black ice puddles on the street?
Anyone who rides without studded tyres in the winter is stupid and is begging to be retired from the gene pool.
So, best thing is to ride with studded tyres in the winter.
Second best is, just don't ride if you're too stupid to put some studded tires on those wheels.
Worst is to continue riding on ice and snow without studded tyres, thinking you're somehow superman and you won't slip. You will, and you'll slip at the worst possible time, thanks to Murphy.
HTFU, I'm glad you won't be out there clogging up the roads.
Get 1/2 inch sheetmetal screws, with square heads.
Drill holes in your tire's knobs where you want studs from the outside in.
screw the screws thru the holes you made from the inside out.
Add a slit innertube or something like it in the tire, to do like a condom for the tube with air.
Anyways in the past I always used studded tires in winter, this year I've been riding without studs, just a wide knobby in front and narrow in the rear. It's working out pretty well, lightly studded in front would be nice. Despite the lower RR, I certainly don't go as fast as with studs.
HTFU, I'm glad you won't be out there clogging up the roads.
With the gas prices increasing out of control me and many others are going to be clogging the roads in about 20 years or so,you may have seen many years ago when the country of japan and china is overloaded with bicycles,in time the united states will be looking like that.So enjoy your bicycle cars will soon be obsolete or only for the rich.
Anyone who rides without studded tyres in the winter is stupid and is begging to be retired from the gene pool.
If they ride in the snow or ice itself,I dont know where you live,but where I live black ice is a problem if you dont see it on the street in time.
Anyone who rides without studded tyres in the winter is stupid and is begging to be retired from the gene pool.
So, best thing is to ride with studded tyres in the winter.
Second best is, just don't ride if you're too stupid to put some studded tires on those wheels.
Worst is to continue riding on ice and snow without studded tyres, thinking you're somehow superman and you won't slip. You will, and you'll slip at the worst possible time, thanks to Murphy.
Dude. Some of us don't have conditions that require studded tires. Denvers tends to turn into compacted snow instead of ice. That and it melts in a day or so. Knobbie tires are generally good enough. However, I have the advantage of riding on trails and rarely play with cars in winter weather. Too many transplants here from California and Texas. :p
If they ride in the snow or ice itself,I dont know where you live,but where I live black ice is a problem if you dont see it on the street in time.
And black ice is exactly why you need studded tyres.
By the way, I live in Finland.
Anyone who rides without studded tyres in the winter is stupid and is begging to be retired from the gene pool.
.
Not if the streets are cleared. Since i don't have studded tires i just don't out on days when there is snow accumulation. In a day or two the roads are plowed and i go out.
This has got to be the worst winter cycling thread since the "nobody needs winter clothes" incident last year.
I don't know. I don't understand how can one argue he/she doesn't need studded tyres for winter cycling. Either it's winter (sub-zero temperatures) or it isn't. If it's winter, you're bound to run into some kind of ice and snow. If you only cycle when the roads are kept clean from snow, there's still the ice. If you only cycle in plus-zero temperatures when you're sure there won't be neither ice nor snow, then it's not winter cycling.
Anyway, it's your neck, not mine. I stand by my assertion that cycling in winter without studded tyres is a good way to remove yourself from the gene pool. The more you oppose this view by actually cycling on ice and/or snow without studded tyres (to prove me wrong, 'cause that's important, you know, to prove someone's wrong on thar inerwebs), the quicker your demise. But, do as you wish.
In the last few weeks about 90% of my commute involved riding over ice , most of it rutted and uneven with few sections looking like a pavement was covered with glass.
Studded tires are a must have item along my commuting route in winter, riding without studs would be stupid and foolish. The studs are also great along singletrack that is hardpacked and frozen.
Its too cold out here for me to ride a bike,instead I weight train.
I tried it, but rode on a patch of black ice and slipped while almost getting hit by a car while causing an accident.
Personally after my experience riding in winter is stupid.
Winter riding might be stupid for YOU, but I've been able to handle it for years. A tip ... avoid the black ice.
I don't use studded tires and can get through an entire winter without bailing due to black ice. I have fallen before where studs would have helped but these times are exceptions not the rule IMO.
And black ice is exactly why you need studded tyres.
Have you ever ridden studded knobbies?I hate knobbies they are hard as hell to pedal,I run mostly slicks pure slicks.
I do have a pair of airless tires that I can stud,but the problem with that is trying to pedal those airless tires.I bought them last year and will never buy them again.
Have any of you ever tried to pedal those airless tires?
Yes knobbies are hard to pedal. That explains why I hit 23 mph on the flats today with my knobbies.
I don't use studded tires and can get through an entire winter without bailing due to black ice. I have fallen before where studs would have helped but these times are exceptions not the rule IMO.
Yep, me too.
When I was commuting to work year round on a bicycle, I rode a mtn bike. During the winter, I simply lowered the air pressure in my tires from about 50 psi down to about 30 psi so they were a bit squishy. This gave me extra traction on snowy or slightly slippery sections. However, most of the time in that city, they cleared the roads so they were usually bare and dry no matter how cold it got ... and it got COLD.
Now my mtn bike is out of commission, so I only have road bicycles here in Canada ... therefore I pick and chose the days I ride outside in the winter. I can usually still ride outside 12 months of the year, it's just a bit less in the winter. And again, when I ride my road bicycles in the winter, I deflate the tires a bit too.
Interestingly, when I took a tour out to Fraser Island off the coast of Australia, I was fascinated to note that the bus driver deflated the bus tires when we landed on the island. Fraser Island is completely sand ... deep white sand, and the roads are no exception. The tour bus deflates the tires for extra traction on the sand, just like we deflate our tires for extra traction on the snow. :)
I don't know. I don't understand how can one argue he/she doesn't need studded tyres for winter cycling. My brother lives in San Diego. Not a studded tire in sight there. :) Granted, when the temp drops to 40 degrees it's "too cold" for the locals.
There are also areas in the US that are cold in winter, but very dry. The problem isnt' cold per sae, it's cold plus water. Take away one or the other and you don't need studs.
My brother lives in San Diego. Not a studded tire in sight there. :) Granted, when the temp drops to 40 degrees it's "too cold" for the locals.
There are also areas in the US that are cold in winter, but very dry. The problem isnt' cold per sae, it's cold plus water. Take away one or the other and you don't need studs.
I don't know if you read the whole of my post. If not, here's the gist of what I said: it's either winter cycling or it isn't. If you don't have wintery conditions, it's not winter cycling. So if we talk about proper winter cycling, how can one argue that he/she doesn't need studded tyres.
The main point is, I meet even in Finland, tons of people who complain that it's impossible to cycle during the winter, and that they fell once, and since then they never rode a bicycle during winter time. Then I ask them "did you have studded tyres when you fell?" and they'd say no. What I don't ask (but I wish I did) is, what the fsck made you think you would NOT fall cycling during the winter without studded tyres? Did you think you're some kind of superman (or -woman)?
I'm lucky that I am humble as a pie - I know my skills aren't worth ****, so I don't push my luck. Wear a helmet, don them studded tyres, have brake pads in order etc. The more skilled riders I know don't do most of what I have listed. Some of them get hurt.
here's the gist of what I said: it's either winter cycling or it isn't. If you don't have wintery conditions, it's not winter cycling. So if we talk about proper winter cycling, how can one argue that he/she doesn't need studded tyres.
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada has wintery conditions ... but I was still able to commute for years without studded tires. I've never had studded tires. As it happens, despite the fact that the temperature in Winnipeg can drop to -40C, and there can be a massive amount of snow, it doesn't get particularly icy there, and they are very good at clearing the streets.
Denver has a winter as well but we have very little ice. Why in gods name would I run studded snow tires without ice? Just because wroomwroomoops says so?
That would be a waste of money.
We mainly have two situations here:
1) Early to mid winter: stays cold enough that the snow stays compacted. Knobbies work fine in this situation.
2) Mid to late winter: warm wet snows that melt the next day.
Just looking at the climate numbers, it appears that in much of the interior of the North American continent it is so dry that it can only be processed at the intellectual level for us West Europeans. I mean, if the moistest you get in winter in Manitoba is far dryer than the dryest you get in winter in Finland, no wonder you start talking at cross purposes. I for one admit to having internalized the need for studs in winter on an emotional level, no intellectual processes needed. And I'm right in doing that, as long as I ride here.
I don't use studded tires and can get through an entire winter without bailing due to black ice. I have fallen before where studs would have helped but these times are exceptions not the rule IMO.
Let me due the math:
On my recent fall due to ice (rear studd tire was not as good as the front) - One week of serious shoulder pain, I even had a hard time getting a shirt over my head. Second week the pain started to subside, and after 2.5 weeks I could finally contemplate getting back on my bike. I don't think 3 weeks of pain is worth going without studds.
Put an other way. I probably should have gone to a Doctor, but I descided to just wait and see. If I ould have gone it would have cost me $25 deductable. He would have ordered an X-ray, add an other $40. He then probably would have sent me to a specialist to look more closely, for an other $40. Chances are high the specialist would have told me to wait and see for a few weeks to see how things heal and then come back for a followup for an other $40. I think $100 for a set of Nokia stuff makes sense anywhere you can see icy road conditions. Snow doesn't scare me that much... but ice does. You only need to avoid one fall to make the tires worth the extra cost and added cycling effort. I use the same calculation to easily justify snow tires on the car. 90-95% of the time the roads will be perfectly clear, and even after a major snow fall it only takes a few hours for the crews to get the roads back in good order. Even so, for that small percentage of time, I am VERY glad to have too tires on both my car AND my bike.
Happy riding,
André
I don't know if you read the whole of my post. If not, here's the gist of what I said: it's either winter cycling or it isn't. If you don't have wintery conditions, it's not winter cycling.
I think there's some value in referring to cold riding in a place like Denver as "winter" even if there is no ice. Many of the other similarities apply: short daylight hours, cold weather and the need for special clothes, freezing water bottles, etc. It's wintery enough to call it winter riding. I'd consider studs just another tool for the cyclist's toolbox to be deployed when that tool is necessary, winter or not. If for some reason there was a need for me to don the studs in summer I would (for example, if the entire trail was made of wet polished wood or teflon.) Like any tool, if you venture in to conditions where you need the tool but don't have it then there will be consequences.
With studded tires (Nokian extremes front and rear), I can't tell the difference between bare pavement and black ice, because the bike performs just as well on either. I can only tell the difference between thick white ice and bare pavement if I try to brake or steer unusually hard suddenly. It's a HUGE improvement.
Have you ever ridden studded knobbies?I hate knobbies they are hard as hell to pedal,I run mostly slicks pure slicks.
I run slicks in the summer. When I switched to aggressive Nokians it slowed me down by one (1) gear on my mtb that I use. That's about how much I should slow down to watch the road anyways. Yes it's an increase in rolling resist, no it's not insurmountable, float the gears to keep your cadence and relax, you aren't in a time trial against anyone, and if you were, they'd all be using the same knobby studded tires as you were anyhow.
I run slicks in the summer. When I switched to aggressive Nokians it slowed me down by one (1) gear on my mtb that I use. That's about how much I should slow down to watch the road anyways. Yes it's an increase in rolling resist, no it's not insurmountable, float the gears to keep your cadence and relax, you aren't in a time trial against anyone, and if you were, they'd all be using the same knobby studded tires as you were anyhow.
My experience matches yours. One gear difference with the studs instead of slicks. That's on dry pavement, of course, and I think you would lose more speed on a road bike than a mountain bike.
Here, the main roads are cleared soon after a snowfall. But the side streets are icy almost all winter. (If you get a lot of snow, side streets stay icy even when they're plowed because there isn't enough traffic to break up the ice.) That justifies studs for the type of winter riding I do. But I could do 80% of my riding without studs if I skipped the side streets (or pushed my bike on them).
On solution is to have a spare front tire with studs mounted, and switch it if you want to ride on ice or packed snow.
On solution is to have a spare front tire with studs mounted, and switch it if you want to ride on ice or packed snow.
Do they make bike chains? :)
I don't know. I don't understand how can one argue he/she doesn't need studded tyres for winter cycling. Either it's winter (sub-zero temperatures) or it isn't. If it's winter, you're bound to run into some kind of ice and snow. If you only cycle when the roads are kept clean from snow, there's still the ice. If you only cycle in plus-zero temperatures when you're sure there won't be neither ice nor snow, then it's not winter cycling.
Anyway, it's your neck, not mine. I stand by my assertion that cycling in winter without studded tyres is a good way to remove yourself from the gene pool. The more you oppose this view by actually cycling on ice and/or snow without studded tyres (to prove me wrong, 'cause that's important, you know, to prove someone's wrong on thar inerwebs), the quicker your demise. But, do as you wish.
Wrong. I rode this winter on slicks without a single problem. As i said, they do a good job of keeping the roads clear.
Wrong. I rode this winter on slicks without a single problem. As i said, they do a good job of keeping the roads clear.
Wrong. (what bull**** thing to say) Then it's not winter cycling.
Your post only mentions sub zero temps as being a qualification for winter. Nothing about ice or snow.
Just sayin...
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