Esbjerg same Temperature?



FWIW, my latitude is lower .. Lat: 46.15694°N

55° 40′ 47″ n, 12° 34′ 33″ e

I start questioning my sanity when temps get into the teens (F) and I'm riding my bike to work. The warm car is simply too tempting. Also, the gear required for 20 and below is a step up to the next level, which is only a couple days a year around here, so the investment is not really worth it.

My coldest commute so far has been about 15 F and I've done that several times. However, temps are supposed to drop to the single digits tonight with wind chills in the -5 to -10 range, so I will probably drive. I am not convinced that my gear -- mainly gloves and shoes -- will keep me warm enough in those conditions. Temperatures are supposed to be a little milder with no significant wind on Wednesday, so I do plan to ride that day and perhaps I'll set a new personal record low.

-7F actual this morning, with gusts driving windchill down to -30/40 range. For my 1 mile commute, my gloves proved inadequate even with chemical warmer inserts. Tomorrow is supposed to be colder yet.

-23 this morning with windchill -45. I put my bike in my van and drove to work, where I park about a mile away cause it's free. I got on the bike and was doing fine untill about a block from my work. My freewheel started freewheeling in both directions and I walked the bike the rest of the way. I'll see if it will hook up on the way home.

Last year, in similar temperatures, I noticed a gap between the top of my ski goggles and the bottom of my balaclava and that really hurt (like a "brain freeze") when it got cold.

I was out walking in -2ºF the other day. I'm going to see how I like cycling in cold weather. I was just out cycling in the rain at about 40ºF.

The pawls on your freewheel aren't engaging. It's happened to me too in extreme cold. That and other funny things can start happening when riding at those temperatures.

I don't have a fixed gear mountain bike, but IMO that is the way to go if you can handle the commute on one and you are going to be subjecting yourself to those kind of temperatures routinely. Almost nothing there that can immobilize you if it freezes.

I had some water trapped in my rear hub earlier this year and it froze up my hub, just like what you are experiencing. I pulled it apart, flushed it out with some alcohol and repacked the bearings. So far it's worked well down to -20F.

My freehub on my MTB did the same right before the holidays. It would go in and out in the cold until it never came back, even after warming up. I just got a new wheel as the old wheel had several other issues in addition. Tomorrow will be the first ride with it at -10. I would hate to have the same issue with a new wheel. My fixed gear commuter has had no trouble in the same temps as suggested by others. I should just get a fixed wheel for my MTB....

Super Cold
 

Tonight and Tues., it is to get down to -25F. Add in any Wind Chill you may make by riding and that number could drop dramatically. How low can you ride?

For me... -52 F.

YMMV

For folks who are unaccustomed to snow, ice, and cold, winter cycling can be really difficult when you don't have the right gear or a bicycle that just is not equipped.

The studded tyres went on to my bikes in November and I have several bicycles set up for winter cycling... synthetic grease in the hubs, freewheel / freehub, and bottom bracket keep things running at extreme cold and in the case of my three speed, synthetic oil in the hub will keep it spinning smoothly at any temperature I could conceivably ride in.

Braking is also affected and you have to watch for ice build up on brake pads / rims... take a warm bike into a deep freeze and moisture will condense / freeze on the rims... my winter bikes rarely get warmed up and stay cold all winter.

Tomorrow morning will be my first commute in single digit weather. Mid-teens in previous winters were less than comfortable but nothing I would choose to avoid. I'm a bit worried about the equipment functioning well though. I have a 5 sp IGH that has not yet shown problems in cold weather but not as low as it will be in the morning. Should be interesting and in any case, is far better than having to sit down in a cold car seat - I hate that!

Everything's relative, isn't it? My coworkers think I'm some kind of hardcore extremist suicidal madman for cycling 1 mile just below 0F. When I tell them I'm a lightweight when it comes to cold weather cycling... I don't think they believe me.

Did 30 mi in -17F today (wind chill -43F).

Nah, just kidding. brrrrrr.

Yesterday: 3 above, icy slick streets. No go.

This morning: 22 above, ice mostly melted, game on!

Just rode in.

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=358478

Yesterday felt colder due to the winds. 0° and calm wasn't too bad for 6 miles.

9 degrees when I arrived at work this AM, a personal low for me. Roads were dry, just a bit of wind, and less traffic than usual. Other than my toes getting a bit cold, everything else was toasty.

An interesting note: Schools here had a 2 hour delay. My wife, who teaches, says that it's because they didn't want the kids to be waiting around in the cold. Obviously they didn't think this decision through:

1. Temps increased from 10 to 15 in that 2 hour period. Winds also increased causing the wind chill to be worse than earlier.

2. If parents can dress their kids for 15 degree weather, they should be able to dress them for 10 degree weather.

3. The buses have to contend with more traffic with a 2 hour delay, so the kids may have to wait at the stop longer.

I suspect the decision to delay was less about the kids and more about perception of potential liability or some such nonsense

I should have ridden today, despite the -19*F temps, it took me over an hour to dig out the driveway (again, shovelled for 2 hours twice yesterday, it just keeps drifting shut). The commute by bike is around an hour on snowy roads so I would have been to work before I got my driveway cleared.

I had to clear it so the rest of the family can get out anyway though.

My commute this morning is probably just a typical winter morning for you northerners but it was a record low for me. 26F with a wind chill in the teens. When I rode to pickup some lunch it had warmed up to 31F. My coworkers think I'm nuts but you people up north are really nuts!

-21 when I left for work yesterday. Had I had my act together and left 30 minutes earlier like I was supposed to, I could have rode at -23 which would have been a personal low temp for me. Ah well. ;)

I am somewhat surprised at the big deal being made out of this cold snap, - at least locally. It's been this cold here many times before and it will get this cold again. Seemed like it happened fairly regularly when I was in high school but lately triple digit temps are more common than the -20s. I think it's been 4 or 5 years.

I wimped out today and drove because last night my hands got really cold. I don't know what the temp was last night, but it didn't seem that low. I have ridden pretty far with the gloves I was using, and a previous pair of the same kind of glove got me to work in <-20F weather a batch of times. But the thumbs weren't working that well. I went and got some bar mitts for my road bike, I like to be comfortable.

This morning it was 8 with a wind chill of -1 when I hit the road. One of my leg warmers worked its way loose in my rain pants, which was a downer. Then I had to yank off the bandana I had over my mouth, as it was fogging up my glasses. After that, it wasn't much worse than riding in the 20's or 30's.

It was 28F here yesterday... 6F today.

Supposed to be 34F by the end of the week.

I drove in today because I couldn't leave with my family still snowed in. It took over an hour to dig out the driveway despite having spent 4 hours shoveling yesterday. By the time I finished that, screw it, I just drove. 75 minutes of shoveling before breakfast at -19*F was about all I wanted to do. Also, I'm really quite sore.

4 this morning, and only 11 on the way home. Good thing we have the subway. I didn't see anybody on bike today anywhere.

It's all relative. We see morning temps in the 20's infrequently here and I have never enjoyed commutes at that temp until today. My afternoon ride home at 24 F felt like a ride on a balmy Spring day compared to the single digit temp this morning.

You Hogtown folks don't see many freezes, but I do recall a few occasions of snow when I lived in G'ville.

Still too much ice on my street. I guess I could walk my bike out of my neighborhood.

I found myself biking home in the dark, with a -34F windchill last night. It wasn't so bad except on my thighs, plus the battery on my flashlight must not have liked the cold so much.