I haven't been on a bike since the 31st, and probably won't be 'til this weekend. I'm good with riding down to about 10°F/-12°C, but I'm less inclined below that.

We're scheduled for -15 or so, with wind chills to -40ish, should be a fun ride....I will be out!

The biggest problem I had was when my bike quit working around 30 below. This year I got some low temperature grease for my rear hub, so I'm not expecting the same trouble.

Here in balmy Boston, we salute you Mid-westerners. I left the house at 17ºF downtown to arrive 14 miles later at 10º in the suburbs. I don’t really assess wind chill when deciding what to wear, just the ambient temperature, since we get a wind chill anyways on a bike. I say “wind chill is for wimps,” though I do honor the effect of wind, especially a headwind.

Once when my wife was chiding me for riding on a seemingly bad winter day, she said, “You just want to ride so you can write about it on Bike Forums.”

We're in a cold spell here in Souther Ontario. Temperature is around -17C, and -30 with the wind factored in. I've given up the notion of riding under such extreme conditions. As someone wrote, any problem you might have, mechanical or otherwise, would be magnified under these conditions and would present a major obstacle. Having just recovered from a bout with influenza doesn't help my resolve this endeavour either.

As much as I miss riding I will wait until conditions improve before embarking on the bike again.

i basically go on the ambient temperature as well other than when they are talking about wind chill advisories or wind gusts. I have had the wind hit my right side and I felt it push me more into the lane of traffic and a car was approaching.

That might be a part of her logic.. she is trying to keep me humble.

I also don't carefully consider windchill when dressing for a bike ride any more either.

For at least four decades I considered wind chill important, and even used a thermometer with a wind chill chart on it. I stopped paying attention to wind chill a few years ago. All I do is make sure there is no exposed skin when appropriate. On the bike I always use a wind breaking layer on the top and just modify the layers of fleece underneath. I have also learned that an extra windbreaker over a windbreaker really is warmer. I ride with a thermometer on my bike most of the time. When I feel comfortable I look at the thermometer to see what the temperature is, and then consider what I am wearing. That's how I learned what to wear at what temperature.

I dress almost perfectly for any weather before I leave the house. In winter I carry an extra windbreaker and either warmer or colder gloves/mittens, depending on if I think it will get colder or warmer.

Your wife is very smart. :)

I don't pay attention to wind chill. I prepare myself according to the ambient temperature at that time. My record low is -14/-25c. Last year my lowest was -11f/-23c. Tomorrow they're calling for -5/-20c or thereabouts. And I'll be chewing at the bit to get out in it. Taking advice from folks in Canada and Alaska has enabled me to ride in those temperatures. That and being a big fan of the Iditarod Trail Invitational and trying to figure out what they wear from the photos I see on their website. But you get the right gear and a gumption to do something like that and your asking yourself "why didn't I do this 20 years ago".
But our record low in these parts is somewhere around -22f/-30c and that was quite awhile ago. So temperatures that low are rare where I live.

0f wind chill on the way home today. Should be around -10 on the way in tomorrow. The only problem I usually have is frozen derailleur since I do multiple water crossings. Yes the water is still flowing at those temps. This morning my front brake caliper froze. I've never had that happen before.

I'd be worried more about some sort of mechanical cold related failure than losing digits to frostbite. Did a -10 actual temperature morning commute last Wednesday. It was otherworldly. When my freewheel started to not engage it brought my thoughts into the moment right quick.

Years ago, I got soaked in a cold rain with temps hovering above freezing while backpacking in the mountains. When we finally reached my car, my hands were so cold that they totally lost their function. I couldn't even turn they key to unlock the door on my car. I finally was able to open it by using both hands and a lot of effort. That really open ended my eyes about the dangers of exposure.

It's -4F with a windchill of -26F. There is no bad weather, just bad clothing.

Marc

“Gear and gumption” is a nice catchphase of what it takes to do extreme winter riding, but this activity elicits anything from admiration to skepticism to outright hostility from non-cyclists. One of the best replies to explain myself I have read was stated in this post, ”When does Hardcore become Stupid”

Also see these current threads: ”Winter Commuting The safety story you tell yourself’ and ”Solo Riding in Winter conditions - stay safe!’

PS: Soon after posting this, I was listening to a radio talk show and the host (a Montreal native) was ranting about public timidity in the face of cold weather (about 0ºF this morning), especially in the context of school closings declared, and coddling children. I called in as a year round cycle commuter. My comment was that if you stand up to the cold you become tolerant.

BTW

Fellow central Ohio commuter here, my first winter commuting and I'm getting a taste of everything this week! Finally putting the studded tires to use and getting some nice cold temps.

I agree with some others that windchill is pretty much irrelevant on the bike since you shouldn't really have any exposed skin when the temperature drops below zero.

It was effin' cold yesterday, and I think it's colder today. Not sure exactly how cold; probably about zero degrees F. My shift cable was frozen solid yesteday, so I did my commute in single speed mode. Hands and face literally in pain from the cold, and I can deal with that, but for the last few days I've had a constant sunburn-like sensation in my face. And yes, I'm wearing a balaclava!

Brought my bike into the kitchen overnight (after the rest of the family had gone to bed), let the slush melt off it. Checked the gears this morning; shifting was back to normal. Headed out into the dark, and the gears were frozen up again within a half mile. Oy! I might swap in a single speed wheel.

And this is in New Jersey. I know you midwesterners, Canadians, etc, have it worse. Ride on!

Has anyone ever have to fix a flat tired in the cold like this? How did you do it? I don't think I would be able to do one before my fingers become useless. Where I ride, help isn't immediately available.

I made it to work OK. My thumbs were getting achy, but they came back in 5 minutes.

Can anyone recommend a cold-weather grease? (I think someone mentioned it upthread.)

I was out for a recreational ride on Jan 1. It wasn't this cold; right around freezing. Had a serious mechanical issue that involved a half hour of futzing with the rear axle with bare hands. Cold metal really sucks the heat out of your hands! No fun.

Similarly, my last flat tire it wasn't this cold. Still, I had to do as much as possible with gloves on. I had a spare tube, so I didn't have to mess with the patch kit, and that was good. But the valve on the new tube turned out to be defective, so I had to take the valve core out of the old tube and put it in the new one; that required bare hands work. Not good.

i drove today ;) It was 8 degrees. I think I could have ridden but 11 miles one way probably would not have been fun in 8 degrees. plus I have to get home quickly for a date with my wife.
Traffic was actually lighter than usual today i guess people did not drive to work today.

anyone know medically know why they get achy when they get cold? I think someone just called it "cold weather grease"

Lubriplate Mag-1 is a popular choice, although any NLGI Grade 1 grease with an arctic formula will do. i couldn't get the Mag-1 delivered to canada in anything smaller than a 500lb barrel, so I settled for Lubriplate Aero. It's meant for garage door openers, but so far my bike is doing nicely with it. Can't wait for some really extreme cold to see how the stuff performs.

the steering got a little... interesting, as it often does below about 25 or so, so apparently Phil Wood grease isn't going to cut it for the headset.

I've ridden down to -25*F actual. No idea what the wind chill was. This week I've got stuff to haul most days so I only got to ride on Monday. I should be back in the saddle next week though.

The only real challenge is getting full coverage on the face. Hands, body and feet are relatively easy to deal with.

I've never gotten a flat in 10 winters of riding. I am riding with such thick studded tires that I would have to ride over a sharpened spike or something to have a flat. Also the snow cushions the tires from most pointy things.

It's cold, windy, and snowy. That's January in Minneapolis (and other places). Of course it's easy to say when I'm 1,000 miles from home and it was 70 degrees where I was at today.

I'm sitting at the airport and will be back to the grind tomorrow morning. So one commute this week, then I won't ride again until Tuesday. Looks like a warming trend long term and January is over half done.

Winter is practically over. ;)

Did see some cycling related products at CES this week including some wearable tech that measures vitals while you ride. They had an Olympic cyclist crank it up to 900 watts while we watched her vitals change. Also saw the Kickstarter product that integrated a light, turn signals into a set of handlebars plus gave you directions.