vol

Thanks for taking the poll. Note this is only about weather-related condition, so don't say if you are sick, or your bike has a flat...

Edit: I just realized this should allow multiple answers, but then most people will check several, which is not so good. So please just vote for whichever prevents you from riding the most.

jyl

No amount of rain will stop me, but more than a light snow will. Since that is roughly what the schools here think as well, I checked the "close schools" option.

RGNY

heavy snow (this year's example would be getting over 6" in a few hours) and/or ice.

even with studs it gets too unpredictable for me.

mainly because part of my commute is a 55mph county route with minimal shoulder. around town is still fun though.

wolfchild

So far in the past 6 years weather conditions has never prevented me from riding. I am lucky because I have more then one route to choose from... If worse comes to worse I could always take a public transit, all buses in my city have bike racks.

JoeyBike

Ground-strike lightning will delay my departure to or from work. We never get snow in NOLA.

FenderTL5

I've commuted in heavy rains, garden variety thunderstorms, and freezing rain.
I checked extreme, because it has to be a severe thunderstorm/tornadic (as quoted above) or an ice/snow event that would close schools to prevent me from riding the bike.
In heavy weather, I can shorten my time out in the elements by going multi-modal but it doesn't keep me off the bike entirely.

Matariki

Weather has never stopped me from riding to work, but one day last Winter I chose to leave my bike at work and walk home because snow had made it pretty much impossible to ride. I was tempted to try, but felt that I didn't want the hassle of cleaning the road treatment stuff off the bike afterwards. If I can ride, I will, but I have not been tested by winds over about 30 mph or hail. Sleet hurts quite a bit, so I can't imagine the trauma that hail would cause.

irwin7638

Severe winds and thunderstorms (lightning) will make me stop and wait.

Marc

tsl

I was still a newbie the last time I didn't bike to work. That was on July 17, 2006.

There's been a lot of weather since then.

daredevil

My proudest commuting moment.....

I rode to work early a couple years ago only to find out about an hour after arriving that roads were closed to emergency travel only because of blizzard conditions.

the sci guy 

i won't go in thunderstorms for obvious lightning related issues. but i'm not keen on a heavy rain either since i have no place to shower or dry off excessive wetness at school.
also, when it rains here in knoxville, it freakin rains.

1242Vintage

Heavy rains are about the only thing that keep me from commuting. My shortest commute route is 22.5 miles and getting pounded by rain for an hour and half on the way is no fun.

qualla

More than 4 or 5 inches of snow on the ground that's wet-but-not-slush, or partly compacted can unexpectedly make it impossible to aim the bike. Light or well compacted snow on the ground does not present the same problem, nor does ice (with Nokians). Sleet or hail. I can't see where I'm going with my head down. As long as snow doesn't impair visibility, it's OK - as long as the motorists can handle it. First storm of the year: forget it, I'm not going out. Heavy rain is unpleasant, but not a deal breaker. Ground lightning, severe thunderstorm warning and the threat of tornado, I'm not going out.

asmac

Snow on the ground does it for me. Impossible to control your bike due to slipperiness and esp. hidden ice ruts. It might be fun with studded tires or a fatbike on a trail but it's not fun on a busy city street.

Commodus

There's a certain kind of snow that I can't ride in. It's like wet and packable. I try every year but it never works.

1nterceptor

I don't ride when it's very windy and/or heavy snow,
which in New York City area doesn't happen a lot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PHgafMCE7I

B. Carfree

I've never lived where there's real "weather". 115F, good to go. A bit of ice on the ground, no worries. Rain, wind, lightning, all good. I wouldn't commute in a hurricane, but we don't do those here on the Best Coast.

I must say I am mystified by the lightning responses. A cyclist isn't a much better source to ground than any other point on the horizon, so one's odds of being struck are pretty small. I'm not going to calculate it, but I would guess that the odds of being struck by lightning are far less than the odds of being struck by a motorist, and deadly collisions of that sort are mighty rare.

DX-MAN

I don't live in hurricane country, and tornadoes are blessedly rare here, too; the ONLY other weather condition besides those is what the local authorities call "Code Red Road Conditions" -- you can be ARRESTED for being on the roads, they are so hazardous. It's the only legitimate excuse for missing work my employer will accept, also. A couple years ago, we had a bad ice storm in December, roads went Code Red for two days -- of course, power was out to 80% of the city, too. If there was EVER an argument in favor of gas stoves over electric, THAT would be it. (I hate electric stoves, BTW....)

I have studded MTB tires, clothing for pretty much ALL conditions, and I enjoy the primal feeling of riding in rougher weather.

xuwol7

Only severe lightning will stop me from riding, otherwise I enjoy a challenge.

Bent Bill

I chose other
Fog is what I wont ride in
Heavy snow or rain depends on my mood when I get up
but fog I don't even think about riding in
people around here cant drive in rain or snow
when they can see me
so I wont chance it in the fog

qualla

Just remembered another. It has been a few years since I lived in the Southwest, but, sandstorms. Not good for man nor bike.

hubcap

The snow that is wet, can be compacted easily, and is already slightly rutted up is the worst. As you say, the bike doesn't want to keep going in a straight line. I ride in it, but it is mentally and physically tiring.

tjspiel

Sometimes the snow is piled up on the roads to the point that I can walk or at least jog faster than I can ride. At that point it makes little sense to ride so I don't. Well, usually I don't. I can be stubborn. On days I don't ride due to weather, I'll take public transportation or run.

Severe weather in the summer manifests itself differently than a snow storm. Severe thunder storms, tornadoes, etc are potentially more dangerous but are over with quickly and don't typically occur during morning commute times. So most likely the decision is not whether or not to ride home but when. I'm not going to try to ride through a tornado but waiting 20 or 30 minutes is usually enough for the worst of whatever to pass through.

spivonious

Heavy rain, snow, and storms here. I can do it, but it's not fun anymore.

caloso

I ride in the rain, except that I usually avoid the first rainy day of the season. Drivers lose their minds and all the accumulated oil in the pavement seeps up to the surface.