Well Everybody,

I have survived another ride through the winter months.
I don't know where everyone is from but if you live in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada or 9 hours North from Minneapolis, MN you know how cold it gets. There were a few days that it got down to -45. Very cold, you're essentially riding on 1 gear.

The cold is one of the issue about riding in the winter. The other is the amount of salt the city uses when they clean the streets. If you're like me you want to park your bike in the shed or garage and run inside to keep warm after your ride. Well I did that all winter and now I'm paying for it.

My chain, derailleurs (front and back) cables are all rusted out from the salted snow. Sure it can be re-greased but that will be whole weekend of work. I also noticed my handle starting to rust. The bike will need a complete overhaul.

What's my point? When riding in the Winter take time and wipe all the snow off your bike when your done riding. It will help for the rides in warmer weather.

Or you could do what I finally did after about 40 years of New England winter riding and buy yourself a cheap used mountain bike, outfit it with studded tires and make it an exclusive "winter bike". It was the best thing I've done in years- I could use my regular commuter for those days when the snow had melted and the streets were clear of ice and snow and jump right back on the "winter bike" at the first sign of snow or glare ice.

A big +1 to buzzman's suggestion.

One advantage to there being such a glut of cheap bikes in the USA is tha second-hand cheap bikes are almost free. Don't beat up your good bike(s) when there are so many disposable ones ripe for the picking.

Get yourself a discarded 5 year old Huffy mountain bike, saturate the chain, sprockets, and hubs in WD-40, and have at it. When the winter is done, you can decide whether it is worth the effort to wire-brush it off or simply discard it again and find a better beater next year.

Great Ideas Buzz and JZ. Luckily there's a police auction for unclaimed bicycles tomorrow. Should be a great time.

Thanks all.

I haven't ridden my winter bike in over a month. Decided to clean it up last night and put some summer tires on. I cleaned it several times and still see salt/sand residue. Luckily I kept enough chain oil on it that it didn't start to rust. My front wheel (5 winters old...) packed it in in early February. Started popping some of those rusty spokes.

We had a mild winter this year in Toronto so I was comfortable riding on the clear roads. But oh boy! Spring! Soooo much more fun riding without the layers of clothes, the winter boots and the huge gloves. We are even enjoying a rather sunny and lovely April and I do not want to miss a single chance to ride my bike. Ahhhh! And I only need a sweater or a light jacket.