Introductions - Hello from Winnipeg

Hello everybody,
I've been reading the forums for a few months, but finally made my first post yesterday.

Since my '84 Volkswagen Jetta heaved its final breath this spring, I've been commuting to work by bike. It was supposed to be a temporary arrangement, but now I find myself putting off the purchase of another car. I'm enjoying the commute very much, and I find the Commuting Forum very helpful in keeping up my motivation. I'll see if I can hold out into the winter (it tends to get a little nippy up here), but so far so good!

Not sure if there are any other 'Peggers on the Forums, but I ride every morning at around 6:30 AM east on Templeton, south down McGregor Ave, over the Salter bridge and straight into downtown (grey Specialized Hardrock).

Thanks!

P.S. I also wanted to give a plug (hope its ok) to my LBS - Gords Ski & Bike (www.gords.com). They know their stuff and are great to deal with.

Welcome to the forums from another Canuck. Best of luck with the commute, and keep it going through the winter! <sarcasm>It's not that cold in Winnipeg in the winter!</sarcasm> :)

Cheers,

Nah..not THAT cold.

Welcome to the forums from this Yank! My tolerance for cold has declined with age so I'm hoping Santa will bring me some training rollers for Christmas. HMMM then I will have to figure out how to make them work on a 'bent. good luck on your commuting. it sure puts a nice spin on the end of a day.

'bent Brian

Welcome to the forums from another Canuck. Best of luck with the commute, and keep it going through the winter! <sarcasm>It's not that cold in Winnipeg in the winter!</sarcasm> :)

Cheers,

Thanks! Ok, it might get cold here but it's a dry cold. ;)

Welcome to the forums.

Welcome.
I have a friend who lives in winnipeg. One winter it was like 0F here and I was complaining it was cold. She sent me a weather.com page with her current conditions and it was -45F. I was like "HOLY S***!"

You know its cold when F = C (-40F/C). I just had something transferred from Winnipeg to Toronto (sax mouthpiece)

You know its cold when F = C (-40F/C). I just had something transferred from Winnipeg to Toronto (sax mouthpiece)

When I used to work in the materials science lab, -40's one of the standard sub-zero temperatures used in our charpy impact tester to test the brittleness of materials and for their transition temperature cause then no one would confuse F with C.

Exactly.

Thanks for the welcome everybody!

My son commutes through the winter. He has nokian studded tires on his winter bike. He finds his hands dont get so cold when he is on the aero bars. I visited Winnipeg 2 years ago (in the summer) - very pleasant city, clean, friendly, plenty of things to see and do.

My son commutes through the winter. He has nokian studded tires on his winter bike. He finds his hands dont get so cold when he is on the aero bars. I visited Winnipeg 2 years ago (in the summer) - very pleasant city, clean, friendly, plenty of things to see and do.

Thanks for tip Andrew, I didn't think my current tires could do the job in snow.

I'm living in Winnipeg and I'm training to go cross Canda/USA to San Diego, CA. Watch those potholes around here, they are nasty.
quinn


Hello everybody,
I've been reading the forums for a few months, but finally made my first post yesterday.

Since my '84 Volkswagen Jetta heaved its final breath this spring, I've been commuting to work by bike. It was supposed to be a temporary arrangement, but now I find myself putting off the purchase of another car. I'm enjoying the commute very much, and I find the Commuting Forum very helpful in keeping up my motivation. I'll see if I can hold out into the winter (it tends to get a little nippy up here), but so far so good!

Not sure if there are any other 'Peggers on the Forums, but I ride every morning at around 6:30 AM east on Templeton, south down McGregor Ave, over the Salter bridge and straight into downtown (grey Specialized Hardrock).

Thanks!

P.S. I also wanted to give a plug (hope its ok) to my LBS - Gords Ski & Bike (www.gords.com). They know their stuff and are great to deal with.

I'm living in Winnipeg and I'm training to go cross Canda/USA to San Diego, CA. Watch those potholes around here, they are nasty.
quinn

Hey Quinn,
That's quite a trip, riding to Selkirk and back is enough adventure for me right now. When are you planning on leaving? What route are you taking?

You're right about the potholes here, they are nasty. But hey, if you can survive these streets you can make it anywhere! :D

Hi there,

We were thinking of going from Minneapolis to San Diego first, but decided to cross west through Canada for awhile instead (leaving Winnipeg). I have some links from other people who have gone from Winnipeg to the Saskatchewan area so we'll be using one of his/hers so that it's not so hard to create a route right from start. From Sask., we planned on heading down south through Montana and Wyom, towards Colorado. We are doing this because we have some maps from Adventrure Cycling Association starting from Colorado and going to San Fran. That route is already planned, again, making it easier. From San Fran, we haven't decided where along the coast we are going to ride. We are still planning it out and training. We plan on leaving the first week of September. Cooler hopefully, but not too cool. The other reason why we don't go straight west then south is because we wanted to drive through some specific states while we are down there... Colorado, Utah, California... from Winnipeg(Minneapolis) west to Colorado, we didn't really care how we went.
Quinn




Hey Quinn,
That's quite a trip, riding to Selkirk and back is enough adventure for me right now. When are you planning on leaving? What route are you taking?

You're right about the potholes here, they are nasty. But hey, if you can survive these streets you can make it anywhere! :D

hey vision, nice to have another Winnipegger on board. GL with your trip. You say you ride down Templeton, I live on Beeston near Seaforth do you know where that is? near Vince Leah CC.

Hi there,

We were thinking of going from Minneapolis to San Diego first, but decided to cross west through Canada for awhile instead (leaving Winnipeg). I have some links from other people who have gone from Winnipeg to the Saskatchewan area so we'll be using one of his/hers so that it's not so hard to create a route right from start. From Sask., we planned on heading down south through Montana and Wyom, towards Colorado. We are doing this because we have some maps from Adventrure Cycling Association starting from Colorado and going to San Fran. That route is already planned, again, making it easier. From San Fran, we haven't decided where along the coast we are going to ride. We are still planning it out and training. We plan on leaving the first week of September. Cooler hopefully, but not too cool. The other reason why we don't go straight west then south is because we wanted to drive through some specific states while we are down there... Colorado, Utah, California... from Winnipeg(Minneapolis) west to Colorado, we didn't really care how we went.
Quinn
That will definitely be a trip of a lifetime. Not sure sure if you'll have access to a computer along the way, if so you should setup a thread and report on your progress. I'm sure a lot of people would be interested to hear about your progress! :)

hey vision, nice to have another Winnipegger on board. GL with your trip. You say you ride down Templeton, I live on Beeston near Seaforth do you know where that is? near Vince Leah CC.
Thanks CC. I knew where Vince Leah CC was, but I wasn't sure where Beeston or Seaforth were. I checked mapblast.com and it turns out you're about a five minute ride from me (I'm on Ambassador Row). Small world!

Oh and by the way, I'm not the one taking the trip - that's Super Ogg... I do however, plan on living vicariously through him :D

Hello everybody,
I've been reading the forums for a few months, but finally made my first post yesterday.

Since my '84 Volkswagen Jetta heaved its final breath this spring, I've been commuting to work by bike. It was supposed to be a temporary arrangement, but now I find myself putting off the purchase of another car. I'm enjoying the commute very much, and I find the Commuting Forum very helpful in keeping up my motivation. I'll see if I can hold out into the winter (it tends to get a little nippy up here), but so far so good!

Not sure if there are any other 'Peggers on the Forums, but I ride every morning at around 6:30 AM east on Templeton, south down McGregor Ave, over the Salter bridge and straight into downtown (grey Specialized Hardrock).

Thanks!

P.S. I also wanted to give a plug (hope its ok) to my LBS - Gords Ski & Bike (www.gords.com). They know their stuff and are great to deal with.

Hey vision!
I'm from Brandon!! Just wondering, have you ever had a chance to be out Carberry way and ride Epinette Creek, if yes whadya think? If not I highly recomend it!!
Good luck in the winter!!!

That will definitely be a trip of a lifetime. Not sure sure if you'll have access to a computer along the way, if so you should setup a thread and report on your progress. I'm sure a lot of people would be interested to hear about your progress! :)

In the touring section, I've posted this thread:

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?p=534677#post534677

I'd like to set one up where everyone may have a chance to see it. Not sure if the touring section was the place to do it. Made sense at the time... I'll have a digital cam hopefully so I can post pictures somewhere. I'm a hang glider pilot as well so I hope to check out the hang gliding sites while biking. Two forms of transportation are better than one :-).
quinn

Hey vision!
I'm from Brandon!! Just wondering, have you ever had a chance to be out Carberry way and ride Epinette Creek, if yes whadya think? If not I highly recomend it!!

I'm on vacation starting on July 26 for three weeks, and I plan on taking my wife and kids (7 year old on his own bike, 2 year old in a trailer behind me) for a few rides around the province. Thanks for the tip, what is a good starting point and how long does it run?

Thanks,
Andrew

I'd like to set one up where everyone may have a chance to see it. Not sure if the touring section was the place to do it. Made sense at the time... I'll have a digital cam hopefully so I can post pictures somewhere. I'm a hang glider pilot as well so I hope to check out the hang gliding sites while biking. Two forms of transportation are better than one :-).
quinn

I've tried sky diving, but never hang gliding. It's definitely on my "Things to do before my wife has me committed" list though.

Based on the various forum descriptions, it appears that the touring section is the place to post your updates. I wish you luck, I'm looking forward to reading about the trip! :)

I've tried sky diving, but never hang gliding. It's definitely on my "Things to do before my wife has me committed" list though.

Based on the various forum descriptions, it appears that the touring section is the place to post your updates. I wish you luck, I'm looking forward to reading about the trip! :)

Yah, I've done sky diving as well. Too scary for me though. You can hang glide a couple of places in Winnipeg. Let me know if you are interested. I'll certainly post progress throughout the trip.
quinn

I'm on vacation starting on July 26 for three weeks, and I plan on taking my wife and kids (7 year old on his own bike, 2 year old in a trailer behind me) for a few rides around the province. Thanks for the tip, what is a good starting point and how long does it run?

Thanks,
Andrew

Andrew,
The web will have better directions than I can give... As for the trail itself, it's three linking loops of 7 14 and 28 kilometers, take your pick!!!! Probablly not entirely suited for the youngsters but the first part along the river would be a nice ride for 'em.

Happy Trails!

Trevor.

Andrew,
The web will have better directions than I can give... As for the trail itself, it's three linking loops of 7 14 and 28 kilometers, take your pick!!!! Probablly not entirely suited for the youngsters but the first part along the river would be a nice ride for 'em.

Happy Trails!

Trevor.
Thanks Trevor!

Nah..not THAT cold.

Hottest temperature I ever experienced was driving from the US border to Winnepeg - it was 105.

bkr

Hottest temperature I ever experienced was driving from the US border to Winnepeg - it was 105.

bkr

It doesn't get hotter than 105 in Hawaii?
quinn

I don't think it has ever been over 100 (recorded) in Hawaii. 95-100 is about the absolute record high level. Even 90 would be VERY nasty - people complain about the heat if it gets over 85. Kind of like a New England summer. The ocean moderates the temperature, and humid air is harder to heat than dry air. (for various reasons including opacity and cloud formation) In the summer you may notice that the Dakotas are one of the hottest parts of the US - dry air.

bkr

Check out my site for details Vision:

http://members.shaw.ca/quinn_cornwell/bike_tour/

The route should be there. I still have to update it. I leave in a week or so.
quinn

Check out my site for details Vision:
The route should be there. I still have to update it. I leave in a week or so.
quinn

Cool site, I'll be keeping an eye on your progress. Hopefully it won't snow in Manitoba before September (what a crappy summer! :rolleyes: )

Good luck and have a safe journey!

Welcome to the forums.

A word about Winter riding:
It is best if you take it one day at a time, and works especially fine if you have access to alternate transportation. Then you take your bike because you want to ride instead of take the bus, not because you must.

I would also suggest you read the Icebike site (http://www.icebike.org). Lots of info, though a little too much about trail rides rather than urban rides. But a few links up there are worthed:
- Edmonton Bike Society: similar weather and concerns, though forget their info on how to make your own studded tires and go for the Nokians.
- Peter Hickey: the guy is from Ottawa, but just read his page...
- Icebike list: It is a great mailing list, and many posters have queries and info on commuting.

Thanks Michel, I appreciate the info.

Hey Vision,

Both me and Michel are part of the phred biking list (I'm almost sure it's the right michel). Check it out:

http://www.phred.org/

Great biking stuff on that page. Lots of informative discussions and archives.

I haven't been training too much because the weather has been so bad this summer. Glad I'm heading South :-)
quinn

[QUOTE=Vision-]Cool site, I'll be keeping an eye on your progress. Hopefully it won't snow in Manitoba before September (what a crappy summer! :rolleyes: )

its true our summer has been terrible:(

In the touring section, I've posted this thread:

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?p=534677#post534677

I'd like to set one up where everyone may have a chance to see it. Not sure if the touring section was the place to do it. Made sense at the time... I'll have a digital cam hopefully so I can post pictures somewhere. I'm a hang glider pilot as well so I hope to check out the hang gliding sites while biking. Two forms of transportation are better than one :-).
quinn


Hey Quinn, Actually your thread for logging your tour should be in the "Hosted Travelogues" part of the Touring Forum. http://www.bikeforums.net/forumdisplay.php?f=212 There are several other tourer's logues there. It is great to have you share the adventure with the rest of us!

Thanks for the info. I'll post it there. I didn't get a response from anyone from my original post so I thought people were not actively involved with the bike forum in the touring section. Perhaps I'll get a better response from the other thread space.
quinn

I just tried to post a travel log but it says it's not accepting any new posts :-(
I might post my site once more in the touring section for anyone who wants to see it. That's all I can do.
I'll only be able to update my site. It would take me too long to start updating multiple areas unfortunately.
quinn

Finished my trip. ~2600 miles.

http://members.shaw.ca/quinn_cornwell/bike_tour/index.htm

I'll be updating the rest soon.
quinn