frndlyfire

I’ve managed about 25 commuting days so far this year here in Chicago. I’ll also ride until about -10c with ski mask and goggles, and the ride is only about 10miles long. However most of it is on the lake front and some days I’ve been stood up practically the whole way home.

My office doesn’t have bike lockers so I have to park on the street. Therefore I just ride an old Schwinn Sports Tourer I converted to fixed to deter the thevies and vandals - so it’s certainly a good work out when the wind is gusting up to 40mph as it has on days this year!

danmar

For whatever reason, I've ridden my bike(s) more this winter here in Minnesota than I ever have in my life. I just clicked into it this year. Through snow, ice, and bitter cold (my low was -12F this year).

Winter biking has a whole different quality than summer biking. Yes it hurts sometimes, but the quiet of winter, especially at night, is remarkable. I'm almost sorry winter is ending.

Archwhorides 

Exactly! And poetically stated as well.

ThermionicScott 

That's how you do it! Just keep solving problems and working your minimum temperature downward.

Save up your pennies for a pair of Pearl Izumi AmFib tights. Those things are wonderful at low temperatures.

wernst

Winter commuting couldn't be easier!

Of course, doing so in Southern California is the key to that.

Jim from Boston

That has been my experience as a decades-long, year-round commuter in Boston. Recently I posted to this thread on the Living Car Free Forum: “Major CF Accomplishment / Milestones”:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim from Boston

I basically equate LCF with cycle commuting. …Generally speaking, overcoming the weather has been the greatest challenge...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim from Boston

…the intriguing challenge of keeping warm is all the planning and innovation that is required…

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim from Boston

… I have extracted this slogan [about winter cycling] from a post by @scoatw of Ohio,"Gear and gumption." Always on bad weather days someone at work will ask me,"You didn't ride your bicycle today, did you?."

When it’s really bad out, my wife will chide me, “You just want to ride your bike today, so you can write about it to Bike Forums."

My initial threshold for riding was about 30°F, and gradually trended down to about 0°.

Solving the goggle fogging problem, and finding studded tires (links) were the most important innovations.

Medic Zero

We don't have weather like that in Portland, but my commute via car can be pretty miserable and road rage inducing, so it's actually far easier for me to cycle almost every day (I have to drive some of them, grrr). Almost every time I drive, I wish I were cycling.



This is usually about as bad as it gets. Even so, I keep that old MTB around just for snow days, even though that's usually only a few days a year. It wears those Hakkapellitas all the time, so if I'm surprised by the snow, I just take it instead of commuter when I roll out from home.



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Tundra_Man 

A lot of this depends on location. Where I live, it is hands-down much harder to cycle all winter than drive.

In our city it's cheaper to build out than up, meaning rather than having tall buildings we spread horizontally. As a result when I want to get from point A to point B I'm probably looking at a minimum of 4 miles, but often more. My work location varies so it's not unusual for my daily commute distances to be 20+ miles.

This last winter we had 30 days below zero. 15 mph is a typical wind and it's frequently blowing harder. Our "winter" starts in November and runs through April (25 degrees and snow falling as I type this.) After 3-4 months the novelty really starts to wear off and winter riding at times becomes wearisome causing me to force myself to get on the bike instead of grabbing the car keys.

My winter bike is in a constant state of rust from the salt and chemicals they put down on the road. I'll generally get a single season out of a set of chain/cassette/rings as long as I keep them well lubed. I average 2 seasons for wheel hubs before they rust in half. Basically anything non-aluminum gets replaced on a regular basis. Even running studs I expect to crash a few times every winter. My good bikes stay parked in the garage to spare them the destruction that winter riding inflicts on a bicycle.

That doesn't stop me from doing it, or make me special in any way. If anything, it probably just means I'm stubborn.

alias5000

Try using a hand-pump garden sprayer ($20) to spray down your winter bike a few times per week with warm water before putting it away (the manual would say here: also dry it afterwards. I didn't really and it was mostly fine). Run a KMC EPT chain (didn't rust this winter at all) and consider replacing all bolts with stainless steel versions (ebay China makes it affordable). That's a one-time investment that should keep your bike happier for quite a bit longer (it seems to be doing that for mine) and you have a nicer ride every day, because the bike actually works.

noglider 

Damn, @Tundra_Man, you are one badass winter bike commuter. I couldn't do that, and some people think I'm tough on a bike.

Tundra_Man 

No heated garage so if I were to spray down my bike I would have a frozen bicycle ice sculpture along with a skating rink on the garage floor. Once moisture gets into the cables and freezes your brakes and derailleurs stop working. Our temps often don't get above freezing for several months on end so there's no chance for things to thaw out, so moisture is my enemy. And there's no way my wife is letting me bring a dirty, nasty bike into the house to clean it so I'm not even going to attempt that.

I have replaced some bolts with stainless steel and that does help.

I do run a KMC rustbuster chain. It's not appropriately named. Less than 200 miles in our chemicals and the links start to bind from the rust. In fact, I haven't noticed much of a lifespan difference between the rustbuster and the regular KMC chains.

Mostly I just resolve myself to the fact that my winter bike looks like it's been through a war and that I'll have to replace components on it frequently.

noglider 

@Tundra_Man, what would happen if you hosed your bike off daily with WD40?

Tundra_Man 

I would probably go broke, and then slip and fall.

alias5000

Nnargh, I forgot that part.

FargoRider

I've been commuting all winter with my fat bike here in Fargo (no, not everyday, but most days). It does great in the snow, and remarkably well on ice too (not studded). Turning too fast and/or sharp on ice will take me for a spill, but icey spots on straightaways are no problem.

I did this nice "spring" ride into the office this morning, and here's how I found my bike waiting for me for the ride home. It actually was about 23° F so not a cold ride home at all. Snow was light and fluffy so I easily blew over it, and booked it home at a decent clip. Yeah, I'm ready for "real" spring, but it was a fun ride today.

danmar

Ok I'm sorry I said I'm almost sorry winter was ending. Here in Minnesota, it's April 6 and the wind is howling out of the north like the middle of January. It was 12 degrees this morning with a fresh coat of icy frozen snow and more on the way this weekend. Winter can actually go away now please.

reidconti

Here in the SF Bay area, pretty much all of the rain for the year has fallen between mid-march and.. today. Coincidentally, all days where my fender-equipped commuter has been out with a broken drive belt, so I'm stuck dirtying up my road bike.. and my backside!