TN, BwaaaHaaa. Was 14 F for my 18 miles commute to work Thursday am. Here in the Boston MA area we have had 110+ inches of snow in one MONTH!. Um. No whining allowed. Ever. Pedal or not. There is always bourbon too. At that temp the gatorade freezes.I need to invest in an insulated bottle. Off road is more challenging. Following some dedicated walking/snowshoe/xc ski tracks good. Slightly off track results in wheels sinking 1-3 feet down for a snow angel off trail, not good. There are no bad bike commutes, only poor clothing choices. Choose wisely. Pedal on.

Yeah, figured there would be posts like that. For me to purchase the clothing and equipment required for the type of winter weather Boston has had this year doesn't make sense for the ~2 weeks of sub-freezing temperatures we get here. We've had 3 or 4 (I've lost count) weather systems come through in the past 2 weeks dropping mostly ice, and then snow 2 days ago, which is HIGHLY unusual for this area. Kids have been out of school for 5 days out of the last 2 weeks, also highly unusual.

I've only had 2 rides in two weeks and those were casual weekend rides. I've been running and shoveling snow for exercise. We've had record cold and near record snowfall. Supposed to be a big warm up next week with lots of rain. My last morning commute (23F/-5C) resulted in two flat tires and a call to my boss to pick me up. I'm hoping to get at least a couple of commutes in next week. I'm really looking forward to spring and milder temps. Less layers!

I hate riding in single digit temps. I can never keep my hands warm longer than 10 minutes. Tired of having to wear so much gear to ride. The salty slush constantly rusts my chain and binds if I don't wipe and lube it every other ride. Riding through deep snow requires me to constantly sprint standing up. I can't sit down for a moment or I will loose momentum and come to a halt.

Most days are manageable, but it is those few days that aren't that make me hate riding in the winter and say F that and drive.

i've been riding this winter in 5F-25F degrees this winter in NYC and it's really not that bad, what you have is a mental block.

really, it's all mental. and layering.

layering really needs to be done on the face/head, hands, and feet. two pairs of thick wool socks were enough. hands, two pairs of gloves. head/face: balaclava, skull cap and hood over the helmet. body can be layered but not as aggressively as extremities.

to keep things in perspective, there are people who are riding all winter long in edmonton where it gets much colder. Scandinavian countries. etc.

over snow: studded tires. i plan to get them now for next winter.

a denver cyclist (once from NYC) commutes thru snow recommended this site to check out for cycling in winter conditions:

Icebike Home Page

it's pretty awesome. i've been reading up on more info for next winter.

I'm presently going stir-happy from the weather. More sunlight, warmer temps, snow is rapidly melting, and I've put the studded tires back into storage. I never fully realize how much winter gets me down until spring conditions return.

I got my first ride of the season (but not the year) in yesterday and it felt great inspite of being reminded how much atrophy happened between rides. I wish there was less salt on the bike path and roads, but it felt great to be riding again. I even got to check out my latest light, wooohooo.

No, just another day .. above ground :thumb: .. when it was cold the skies were clear , cloud cover helps retain the heat from the day

& typical winter storms are out of the south .. pacific..

Arctic cold fronts stay behind the Mountains ..