Coldest so far was this week here in Salt Lake City, UT on my 6.5 mile commute. It was four degrees Fahrenheit when I left the house Monday morning. On top I was wearing a thermal baselayer, long-sleeved jersey, hooded sweatshirt, and a jacket as a windbreaker. On bottom I had cycling shorts and a pair of Bellwether cold weather cycling pants. To keep my feet warm I wear thick wool socks and Merrell hiking boots that are a size too big. In the winter I wear a thin balaclava under a Bern snowboarding helmet that has built-in earflaps. On really cold days like Monday I add the ski goggles. Snowboarding mittens keep my hands functional, although I do end up bunching my fingers up at the stop lights to keep them warmer. I have been really surprised at the performance of my Schwalbe Marathon tires in the snow and ice. I planned on buying studded, but didn't get around to it, and so far they have served me well. I did throw a Kenda MTB tire on the front when the snow was deeper this week, but the rear is still sticking surprisingly well.

-16*C. Friday is supposed to be -22*C. The wind had been 50-70km/h or so.

Winner!

Absolute coldest was -5F (-19C) for 11 miles.
I'm accustomed to riding in temps down to about 5F, and am quite comfortable with those temps. Once it hits 0 and below things start to change.

When in Calgary, I walked 3-4km to work and did so down to -43F / -41C.

+1
I knew sixty would take this one!

Do I get a t-shirt that says HTFU ?

:)

Was 47 F here today and short of Florida we were one of the warmest places in North America today.

I could have worn shorts.

28 degrees F

I did it just to see what it's like and I do have to say...it sucks!!!

haha!

Wait, there is a jedi master in a far far away galaxy : Digibud

Rode this morning at 530am and it was... 13F. Needless to say, my fingertips were freezing by the time I got to work. At least I was awake!

It depends on the wind and the accumulated heat as well.
I have noticed that it takes me usually around 1 hr to really feel the cold weather and with that the need to had another layer to my legs but in windy days it takes less time to reach this threshold. The wind doesn't make thing colder but make things reach the outer temperature faster.
When there isn't much wind, for a ride under the 1hr threshold the temperature hasn't as much effect on me. I believe it is due to the warmth brought with me from home or from wherever i am. The same thing happen with nordic baths when naked people jump into half frozen water.
I usually use this accumulated heat with my rear lights which are unable to handle below freezing temperature and my extremities hands and feet by staying indoor a few minutes with my lights turned on and my clothes on before leaving in order for my lights, hands and feet to gather enough heat before going outside

I see a shirt:

"It's not all that bad if you dress for it" ;)

stick with it stella, it's all about finding the right gear! there's a winter cycling thread with great info

I've been commuting since May. So far, the coldest has been in the middle 20s F.
The most challenging was Monday afternoon in the freezing rain and sleet.
The temp was just below freezing (30-32 F) but the accumulating ice on the bike made the ride difficult.
I took these photos after arriving home (left work early - glad to be home before dark for a change)

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=293870http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=293871

I have had some truly crappy commutes that did not involve temperatures that were even remotely as cold... add some freezing rain and wind and I can barely stay warm.

Give me -15 C and dry and I will be a happy man.

To add to the previous, the base temperature was -52 F and with the wind chill the temperature was something like -61 although when you are on a bike and completely covered this is not a factor, it is pedestrians and people on the street that are hard core as frostbite can happen in seconds at these temperatures.

I certainly would not ride for fun in this kind of weather although I once took my road bike out for a test ride on a dry clear night when it was -40. Was not wearing anything more than I needed to prevent frostbite on my face and hands and only rode a few miles before I realized someone would have to pry my hands off the bars.

ooooh, that looks horrible.

For me, the coldest was -38C with wicked wind chill on top of that. That was in Edmonton. Luckily, it was only a 4km commute, otherwise I did not have the gear to keep fingers and toes from freezing!

I can't beat -38c (that is pain crazy) but when I lived up in Mass on the South Shore I had some pretty chilly single digit plus windchill (both wind and bike reoduced) commutes, then add in some rain or snow. I actually carried a spare 'cross tubular since it was easier to pop that on a clincher rim and get moving than it was to fix a flat.

-24C here this morning... lets just say the car is warming up as we speak.

:)

-20C 14km one way and -20C with snow and wind on the way back. Not a pleasent day! Took me a good few hours to get the core temperature back up after that one.

Moving up the list! My commute this morning was nine miles at -9F (-29F windchill). Truth be told, I had work off today for MLK Day. I manufactured somewhere to go just for this thread. That still counts though, right? The ride wasn't bad-- my toes got cold and my glasses kept fogging up from a nose guard I made out of electrical tape.

Coldest commute was -4F last winter. Only 6.5 miles, but it felt longer since I wasn't dressed quite as well as I should have been.

Living in the DC area, I can't compete...that said, today was my personal best for cold weather, with my Garmin showing 14.6F. Added to that were 20mph winds, bringing the wind chill close to 0F. My previous low was 17F, but there were no winds that day. It's pretty rare for DC to get into the teens, so I wouldn't be surprised if today and tomorrow are the coldest days of the entire winter. **knock on wood**

Coldest ever: -23C Today: -18C

I live in London, Ontario, Canada. London is located in a warmer part of the Country near Toronto and the US border.

Because I try to ride year-round, I have all the gear I need to stay comfy. Best advice I've got is ski/motocross/snowmobile goggles. Taking good care of your eyes makes all the difference in terms of comfort in the cold. Truly cold wind seems to dry/burn eyeballs in a really awersomely nasty way.

Yep. +1. Dry and cold beats wet and near freezing every time for me too. My -18C ride today was totally enjoyable.

This morning was the coldest ever for me. 2F, with a wind chill of -4F. Garmin gave me a low battery indicator 20 minutes into the commute, was fully charged. Warm weather it should last about 6 hours. :-O