Yes, I rode today.

The ride home will be into the wind.

smart man. when there is a judgement call I often play back my sisters words: "don't take any unnecessary risks" I rode yesterday even though I like riding in the snow. I had a good swim and soak in the hot tub instead :-)

Same forcast basically here on Cape Cod. I do have the week off (use'm or lose'm hours) but if scheduled I be on the bike. Wind is always 20-25 mph from some direction or other on this little sliver of land jutting into the Atlantic. Rode home maybe 2 weeks ago with this same wind forecast, mostly crosswind, but last 1/2 mile was into the wind. Nastiest ride was a 13 degree, steady 30-40 mph headwind with 60+ gusts. All but stopping one dead in your tracks. Just glanced outside noticed the utensils on the BBQ blowin' around, gotta go...

check this out. (scroll over to the right side of this big live looping radar image) anybody riding a bike on the eastern end of long island right now?

http://radar.weather.gov/Conus/full_loop.php

southern CT is gonna be a drag in an hour or so ...

Generally speaking, I'll ride unless I think the wind may knock me over. That hasn't actually happened yet, but once it's a little over 30 MPH it seems to get close and the ride can be a little skittish at times. If I'm going to be on snow and especially ice I'm a little more cautious and would probably drive if the winds were much over 20 MPH. I'll often ride just the last quarter of my commute, around 1.7 mi and safer, if I read about 40-50 MPH gusts, but even then I haven't been knocked down. I take direction into account too.

As someone else said, in windier conditions I'd probably prefer my heavier bike (my Swobo Dixon) instead of my road bike, but I'm not convinced it makes much difference. Anyone care to elaborate on this point?

Wind speed is only one factor. Wind direction, temperature, precipitation, etc., also go into the decision whether or not to ride. The other thing that's kept me out of the saddle lately is a cold & sore throat although..... after riding today my throat feels the best it's felt in over a week.

Tarwheel,

Hello neighbor, I'm in Raleigh as well. Man, the wind today was to my advantage, I rode from NCSU to downtown, or should I say "the wind carried me to downtown". Riding home is gonna be tough, leaving work around 8PM, I think the winds have died down since this afternoon. I sure hope so.

Wind, icey conditions, and sub 15 degree F are the three things that will keep me off my bike. Ice = dangerous. Below 15 I have to put on too many clothes to be comfortable. Wind just takes the fun out of riding.

There hasn't been a day this winter that I thought was too windy -- SLICK, yes, several times.

Last winter, there was a day that was +5F with winds of 35MPH+, and the windchills well below zero. Rode that day...oh, was it painful. But I don't regret it.

Phil Keoghan, host of The Amazing Race, came through town as part of his Ride Across America for charity last year. Before the ride, he told us a story about riding across the Southwest, where the crosswind was so severe he was forced to lean into the wind at a 45deg angle to stay up and straight on course. As it turned out, that day was a lot like that -- I cut the ride short due to 40+ crosswinds that almost put me into truck traffic on the highway.

That was a special day; for everyday commutes, wind would never be a factor.

I hate high winds. A 50 mph tail wind is fun, a 50 mph headwind is painful and a 50 mph crosswind is potentially deadly.

That said, I don't decide based on wind alone. Rain + Wind = no ride. That's just miserable. (If we had snow here I'd add that too.)

I recommend:
- learn to ride in winds of 10, 15, 20 mph before you tackle 25mph.
- make sure you do your commute route on all these and make notes of the effects of where the wind and gusts tend to be the worst.
- think about alternate route that may offer some sort of wind break.

You are facing a 25mph wind. There may be occasional gusts perhaps up to 45-50mph.
This is probably do-able (I've certainly done... many times), but only if you have the personal experience of having done similar situations and only if you know how to handle the bike in those conditions.

I don't know if i would ride in heavy winds now, but i have done my fair share when i was deployed to Iraq in 2007, mainly cuz i didn't have a choice. The worst was riding in a sandstorm from where i worked on the flightline to the dining hall fighting a wicked bad headwind the whole time. I had a junker MTB that didn't like changing gears, so i had to stand up the entire ride to make it there. I probably would have been better off walking it, but i was determined. Luckly it was only about 2 miles from point A to B, but i was definitely outta breath and sweaty when i arrived.

I've ridden in really strong winds (40-50 mph gusts) the main problem is blowing debris and then, as others have pointed out, large trucks getting buffeted and going off course. I'll ride on really windy days very cautiously but would prefer to avoid it, if possible.

Also worth remembering that a steady cross wind on a marginally busy road may as well be gusting; every car that passes you will block the wind just enough to monkey with your balance. That said, even with those 50 mph gusts, if they were quiet roads, I would have given it a shot. Some things are just worth the story.

I don't find 40-50mph gusts too troubling, though they do make for a lot of spray when I'm riding I-90 across Lake Washington. Steady gale-force winds are depressing if they're headwinds, invigorating from behind, and annoying from the side, especially mixed with rain.

When I lived on an island, winter winds over a moderate gale would sometimes cause trouble on low-lying roads, nothing like riding through cold saltwater up to your ankles to make someone appreciate that hot shower at the office.

I'm in Kansas. 'Nuff said.



Truthfully, it's not very comfortable, and if winds like that are combined with other weather hazards, I might skip that day. However, Springtime around here gets a lot of that, along with lots of nasty T-storms, so wind becomes the least of my concerns.

Wichita commuting, what a blast! The wind always seems to switch directions, too, so you get the headwind going in and coming home.