Originally Posted by
bijan
I haven't had this happen yet. Is it because the snow makes a thin layer of ice that the brake pads can't dislodge? I've had large layers of ice from freezing rain and braking just breaks up the ice off the rim.
You can end up with a bunch of snow and slush collecting on the rim and brake pads. It's snow rather than solid sheets of ice, so when you squeeze the brakes it just gets compressed between the rim and brake pads rather than breaking up and falling off. Result: Little or no braking power for some significant distance.
You may or may not
need discs to avoid this, depending on your riding habits, but on the other hand you won't have to worry about the possibility if you get discs.