We got our first snow fall on Friday night and had some very cold nights this weekend. Ice everywhere, semi plowed bike lanes and slush everywhere. Now I have to clean all the salt off my frame and drivetrain. Ugh. I might drop out early this year and just ride the bus a little bit more this month. The thought gives me heartburn.

Keep trying. You don't have to ride through all the tough days, but if you make it through a few, you'll increase your ability to endure, and you'll feel proud of yourself.

How long does the frozen stuff usually stay on the ground?

I'm with @noglider. If you take an extended period of time off of commuting it'll be so much harder to get back into it. Last year I took the whole month of February because every morning the temp was -20C or colder. It was not very enticing to go out. Even mornings when I could have gone out because it felt calm enough and roads clear enough to ride I opted to not. The longer I went without riding the easier it was to say, just screw it. I'm driving.

studded tires will make winter riding on chicago's icy streets A LOT less scary.

i think this is now my 6th chicago winter rolling on studs; my ride into work this morning wasn't scary.

If it stays at or below 32 deg f here then the ice just lingers. We would need a couple warmer days for it to go completely. Last year I rode into December and it was a brutal winter. With wind chill temps were regularly below zero. I can deal with the temps now. Even the winds are manageable with my low profile rims and aggressive drop but the damn ice! I run 23cm slicks and I don't want to splurge on studded tires. I also recently had a fall (on a dry day) and it's still in my mind. I'll tough it out guys. I love riding too much.

Think of the inconvenience as a gear-shopping opportunity: a new maintenance-free belt drive IGH cycle and studded tyres.

How do you guys clean the salt off your bikes? I figure it'd be too cold to just use your garden hose to rinse it off your bike - the water might freeze in the hose or plumbing getting to the hose.

When it's cold and icy I use my MTB with unstudded tires but i drop the tire pressure a lot. that gives me excellent grip. Here in town there's a road that gradually climbs from the river then gets steep at a bend as it continues upwards. Sometimes that road gets so icy that cars can't make it up and slide down the hill again. i can be like a pinball machine. weith the MTB tires at very low pressure I can ride up (or down) that same road with no problems and even brake without sliding out of control.

cheers

I never wash my whole bike during winter...I let the spring rains wash it off...The only component which I rinse is disc brakes.

I've used a spray bottle with warm water on jet setting to do it. Then I bring it into the garage to drip dry. Lube. Good to go. Still a pain, but better than nothing.

I switch my steel frame bike for an aluminum bike for winter commute, get some wax the same kind you do on cars and wax your frame whenever you need it, keep lubing the chain like once a week and find studded tires second hand are fine. Wear layers of wool clothes, leave the cotton stuff for when you don't ride your bike. If you feel comfortable wearing second hand cloth shopping in thrift stores saves a lot. And get good LIGHTS for your bike from and rear.
Be safe.

Thanks. I like this idea.

When I first moved to DC, I never rinsed off the underside of my car for the first couple of years. I later paid for it, by having to replace the muffler and other parts that were exposed to the salt used to treat roads for ice - they got corroded. I had the pipe to the muffler suddenly disconnect due to the corrosion while I was driving - the sound of the muffler dragging on the road was loud and unsettling.

So when I was warned about the possible corrosive effect of salt on bike components like the cassette, derailleur, etc. I did not need to be convinced.

Good on you - keep it up and you'll get used to the inclement weather. Studded tires and a wool layer are a must.

I did as well (except for a few days) but here in NYC area it never gets to -20F. I was bailing out with snow on the roads and/or 15F or lower temps. Guess I need to HTFU...

This morning I rode my studded tire bike to work for the first time of the season... turned out I didn't really need them. (and my area had 10 inches of snow on Friday night/Saturday!)

Oh well, I'd rather be safe than sorry.

Salt is a serious problem. It can stay below freezing for weeks which makes rinsing anything off kind of hard. When it gets above freezing is when the snow and ice on the roads turn to slush and even more salt finds it way into the crevices.

I've learned that disc brakes are indeed one place that you need to get the salt out of if you can. The aluminum surfaces on the pistons of my brakes were even starting to corrode. The salt had worked it's way between the pads and the pistons and was causing some issues.

^ +1

road salt on disc brake calipers no es bueno.

the rear disc brake on my winter beast was destroyed by last winter's salt. been meaning to get it replaced. keep forgetting to do it. now winter is here again. crap.

Nah, one has to be a bit demented to ride when it's bitterly cold out.

The key is to not rinse off outside and dry things up in a timely manner.

The thing is, washing your bike off in the winter when you're going to be going through the same stuff the next day is like rearranging deck chairs on the titanic. Your bike is clean for 50 feet then it's dirty again just like it was before. My winter bike has an IGH so that derailler parts aren't exposed, other than that I just don't see how the effort of constantly cleaning my bike more than once a year (in the spring) would be worth it.

While that might true if you had a string of wet/snowy commutes, there are periods when you get a string of days when the road is dry. It'd be a good time to give the bike a quick rinse, clean and lube the chain, etc.

Same reason the car wash is packed every weekend when the weather is fine.

Depends on the climate. Last year there wasn't much snow at all and there were plenty of days with dry roads. The two or 3 years before that the roads within 2 miles of my house had ice and snow on them consistently from the end of December into March. They often don't plow secondary residential streets if the accumulation is under 2 inches so it just gets compacted. Over time that turns into a pretty healthy slab of ice and hardpack that won't melt unless it rains or gets above freezing for an extended period of time.

I get our car washed when it's below freezing and likely to stay there, - harder to do with a bike.

plodding along on my drum brake hub- studded tire MTB for the 25th winter * though they gravel grit Ice here not Salt..

*Snow/Ice at sealevel is episodic, not every year , seasonal .

When the temp is close to or below freezing, I just wash the bike in the basement (with bucket, brush and warm soapy water). Can mop up the excess water later on. Or if you don't have a basement or live in an apartment, then use the tub and/or shower. But this should only be needed in a decent size snow storm or you went through a lot of salt. Otherwise a short wipedown on the chain and bike and relube is usually ok.

...and don't have a spouse.

+1

Basement or tub aren't really an option for me.