Shannon-UT

I mean are you commuting to work for exercise, or just road riding? What about mountain bikers, are you riding trails or forest service roads?

I personally can't see riding trails especially in my area, and forest service roads tend to be tracked up with foot prints and skis tracks. It really wasn't that much fun last time I tried riding in the snow on tracked up forest service roads. And I can't see doing that 3-4 days a week like I do in the nice weather months.

So what's a MTBer left to ride? Roads?

Forgive me if the answer is obvious to most of you, but I'm trying to decided what I'm going to do for winter. I've got a recumbant stationary bike at home, or I could take some spin classes at a club for $30/mo. or just commute to work. The stationary bike is nice because it's convenient, but not fun. I hear the spin classes are a little more exciting.

Gojohnnygo.

I ride mostly on the road for my commute.I do take the mtb out on hard pack snowmobile trails or some single track with less than 5" of snow.I find that anything deeper is a real bummer.

Buzzbomb

Around here what has happened the last ten years or so, with a couple of notable exceptions is that it gets cold and doesn't snow a whole lot, maybe a few inches at a time. Bikers get out on the trails, and they get packed down and freeze real hard at night. Excellent riding if you have studs. When the snow gets deep, I give it a rest, and the snowmobiles get out and pack it down.

cyclezealot

I might stray over into Arizona. Certainly no further north than Santa Barbara, Calif. Of course, some friends like to go south for January and re-visit summer.
A group of about 10-15 take off from Mexicali, Mex. and for about 15 days go ALL the way down Baja. They complain it gets too hot once they get south of Mulege, Mex..... The group calls this their Supertour and it has been going on for a dozen years or so.
They say it used to be so undeveloped it was safe. Now cities like LaPaz are said to be huge with awful traffic.
I would love to do this. Narrow roads and big trucks have caused me to say no. Have always wanted to see Cabo. Think they say it is like 1100 miles. Sometimes they go earlier and spend New Years in Cabo.

Jay H

I commute in the summer to work on MTB trails (fireroads mostly) so I am basically MTBing in winter but since I live in northern NJ, the snows here are usually sporatic and only a couple inches at a time. Most winters, we'll get a few inches and then it'll melt and then it'll snow again, and melt, etc. etc. Last winter was a rare event where it snowed a huge amount and then remained cold enough not to thaw. I don't like road riding in winter because of the lack of shoulders and bad drivers...

Jay

MichaelW

If you're in N Utah, you may as well ski the trails. Ive ridden the roads during a fairly mild spell (-10C) but only to get around town. I didnt find any particular problem, but my bro who lives there says that in a cold spell, its too cold to bike.
I did take a trip down to Moab one Jan. There was a dusting of snow, but the conditions looked perfect for some serious MTBing.

shokhead

Same place i ride in the summer.

mrfix

same place as summer also, different clothes and Nokian studded tires.

Shannon-UT

Yeah, I cross country ski after work at this near by canyon if there's enough snow on it. That's a pleasant workout. However, most of the trails I ride in the summer are on much too steep mountain sides to be taking a bike on when there's snow.

So fireroads it is, if they're not too tracked up. I'll probably do that spin class for 2 of the cold months.

Juha

I am still working on a solution to get me to commute during winters (I have a shower at work, but no lockers). I do all my shopping and errands by bike during the winter. I have an older beater bike for winter, with Nokian studded tyres and platform pedals.

--J