jaypee

Agreed. I especially love the looks when I ride during the first big dump directly to the bar.

bostontrevor

OTS, I know a lot of people here who prefer geared rides but put them away come winter. Most of them put a fix into active duty. It's not worth it to them for the derailleur that turns into a solid block of ice, and the salt and grime in their drivetrain and throwing off their shifts (when not frozen solid as mentioned before), plus it's a nice addition to the brakes which may be frozen over too. Winter's the perfect time for a FG ride (or an internally geared hub).

Speaking of which, I picked up a Pro Max/Open Pro wheel this spring which I love as much as a person may love a material thing. Am I asking for trouble to continue riding it this winter. I'm not worried about the bearings, they're cartridge so they can be trashed as far as I'm concerned. Most of the winter is dry pavement, but then there are the sort of warm days with the briney slush. Am I going to have a lot of hub body or rim damage? Pitting? Do I really need to build up a winter wheel. Tell me I don't.

PS: there was still quite a bit of snow this morning off the beaten path. I got out there before the temps climbed over freezing and day two was also quite awesome. I really love snow.

lucklust

Ya Tu Sabes

I ran mine all last winter without any problems (although I eventually had to swap in a new axle because the stupid nuts froze in place - as one's nuts are bound to do during Boston winters). So far so good - rim and hub are happy and ready for more winter riding (my stupid dad was in town all weekend so I couldn't get out for a snowy frolic. grrrrr...).

jinx_removing

True. My nuts are freezing right now.

(edit) I couldn't help myself

OneTinSloth

i like variety. i'd get a 5 or 6 speed roadie because i already have a nice track bike, and a winter track bike. i have a really nice road bike, but not a beater roadie. some days it's just too cold to put up with a fixed gear.

it's also nice to have something that you paid $350 for that works and you don't really mind if it gets all jacked up from the weather to ride, instead of your track bike that you spent $1050 on.

i rode a full fendered, 21-speed bianchi eros for a lot of the last winter that i lived in boston because it was just fun. granted, i pretty much just stayed in one gear the whole time, but it was nice to be able to shift for the hills instead of stand up and brute force it. don't get me wrong, fixed on slush and grime and snow is great! it's just nice to coast every once in a while. even here, where it's mostly just one long bland as **** season, i still want to coast every once in a while.

some days, i just didn't want to be chilled to the bone and have to leglock. the cold made my knees feel so much worse when i rode fixed, coasting in the cold was always nice. one of my messenger friends was going to build up a merlin frame with 8-speed dura ace as his winter bike.

another thing abot me is that i'm pretty meticulous about keeping my **** running properly, which involves making sure it gets cleaned at least once a week in the winter.

OneTinSloth

i don't really prefer gears over fixed or vice versa. i enjoy both equally for different reasons.

lucklust

One could substitute lots of words for that "****", most of them funny.

ink1373

when running fixed in the winter, is it better to put the more agressive tire in the front or back? i don't want to pay for a pair of studded tires, but i do want to get the most out of one. common sense seems to suggest putting it in back, but a lot of pictures seem to have the opposite going on.

OneTinSloth

i'm a big proponent of skinnier tires in slush and winter muck in a city-type environment. thinner tires cut through it to the street better. wider tires just ride on top of the muck and slush and slide around.

the point at which wider tires become more useful than thinner tires is when you have something over 6" of accumulated snow, and you have one of those iditabikes with the 5" wide tires to spread the weight of the bike and yourself over a greater surface. 26x2.125s, studded or not aren't going to do a whole hell of a lot on freshly fallen, unpacked snow.

Ya Tu Sabes

I tend to agree w/ OTS that thin tires are just as good in the city. The real danger in super-nasty, icy conditions is that the minute you move your weight away from center in order to turn, the bike just slides laterally and you fall over. Thicker tires don't help with this all that much. However, to answer your question (finally), I'd say put the more aggressive tire in the back, since that's where your power comes from.

Also, notwithstanding everything I just said in defense of skinny tires, I now run 35s, not for winter traction, but because winter snow and sluch tend to hide potholes and other tire-eating obstacles, and changing a tire in 10-degree weather is a pain. Chunky tires make for fewer flats.

HereNT

I'm not sure since I haven't used them, but I'm pretty sure that I've heard that studded on the front works better. The main reason that you would want to use them is more control over steering. The traction on the back usually isn't much of an issue except when you are first taking off from a stop. I'd check in the winter cycling board for more info...

bostontrevor

Put it in front. Nobody cares about being able to sprint off a light if they can't keep the front under them going around a corner.

Ya Tu Sabes

I always want to sprint off a light. Of course, I'm also stupid.

lotek 

nice pics, whats all that white stuff?

bostontrevor

They tell me it's the anthrax.

trystero

Rural legend has it that a guy from a bike shop in Decorah Iowa built a 40 hole Sturmey archer (3-speed) hub on to two 36 hole 26" rims, stretched a 26x1.75" knobby tire across both rims (didn't use and tubes), and mounted the tire on a suspension frame with wide tire clearance by the stays. As many of you may know, with the right washer, a Sturmey archer 3-speed can be converted into a fixed gear. So the obvious solution to winter traction is to build a wheel like the Iowa guy, and throw one of those washers into the hub. As for the front wheel, well you can put whatever you want on there; perhaps even a ski.

Bikkhu

Watery shlosh falling from the sky today... my 3rd winter, this.

What's the skinniest studded ice tire? Nokian makes a 28mm I think

Ya Tu Sabes

A friend of mine makes his own snow tires by putting carpet tacks through a regular tire, then reinforcing the inside with Mr. Tuffys and duct tape. With this method, you could probably make as narrow a studded tire as you wanted.

Bikkhu

cool. Will give this a try

SSSwede

First snow ride today, about 4 inches of powder snow in the woods, realised I need a studded front tyre. But it was very nice, all silent snow swooshing, frose my feet off though. Ended up at the sea and had a cup of real sweet strong coffee

bac

Great pic!!!!!!

bostontrevor

For sure.

As anyone who knows New England might predict, it's been generally really nice since it snowed. I actually can't wait for more, in part because otherwise it's an 8 or 10 mile ride to the nearest decent terrain. At 2:1, it's a little tedious.

BRING ON WINTER!

smurfy

Wow, bostontrevor, beautiful pictures! Nice bike, too.

I'm going to Connecticut for Christmas to see the inlaws but unfortunately I'm flying there so no riding while I'm there.

HereNT

NOAA is predicting snow starting monday night through wed night! Finally!