Originally Posted by Kodama
I hear ya, while we don't have the California/Flordia/etc endless summer
I love that in PNW one can ride year round. I like the fact that the seasons change and I like the rain. Snow and cold like this seems to only occur in non el Nino/la Nina years and doesn't last long. I haven't had much trouble riding in sub Freezing weather, as I have adequate gear and such. The problem I was alluding to really was the ice caused by the cold. The combination of the busy road and ice was where the stress came from. No ice and busy roads is fine, ice and the familiar trail is fine. Just the ice and dark and the traffic -no fun.
I sure have a lot of respect for you mid West riders, months and months of extreme weather, it must be almost enough to drive one to a trainer. Almost.
Ice is scary stuff especially black ice covered with a thin layer of snow. I went down last year during my commute, I was on the ground before I knew what happened. I been in the situation your described, cold weather, darkness, lamp fading on a partially cleared street you don''t know well enough with drivers who are nervous and don't see you. They don't use ice on the roads out there do they? They do here, hell on the environment, cars and bikes but it clears the streets. To bad the alternative proucts are so expensive, of course if they were used more they would be cheaper.
It is almost enough to drive one to a trainer, almost but not enough. I don't own a trainer, every winter I consider getting one but always decide I prefer riding outside in the cold more. I commute into the high teens and ride my mtb off road when the streets are a mess. Riding in the snow, what fun.
My wife and I are considering relocating to PNW (Portland, OR) this year. What is the riding like in general out yonder. Will I need fenders on my roadie?
Keep on trucking.