Just had to get out today but all the mates I invited decided to stay in bed. But thermal vest- warm long sleeve jersey- Duvet jacket- and a warm top coat. then the knickers- tights- Ski mask and mittens over thermal gloves and I felt fine. So did Ross but he only put on a warm tracksuit over all the warm clothing he had.

20F when we left home and out to the woods. Plenty of ice on the roads and no problems till we neraly got to them. Ross went over and so did I. The fall shot from the ground is me sitting on my backside while Ross tried to stand up. Not much snow in the woods as it had mostly melted- but with below freezing temps it had turned to ICE---Everywhere. That pic of me on the wide muddy track is not mud. It is Ice.

So Just a few pics of my ride to show that the Mountain bike still has its uses

I'm glad to see that I'm not the only one falling down lately!

Thanks, Stap, that brought back some happy memories.

I used to go mountain biking with a group of guys every Saturday morning no matter what. One of the good things is that, when it gets icy like that, it means that it's cold so you're wearing a lot of layers and you have a lot of padding when (not if) you hit the ground. I used to wonder at how quickly I could go from vertical to horizontal when I found some ice. We used to ride early in the morning and try to get out of the woods before the temperature rose, took the frost out of the ground, and made it muddy.

no studs?

First time in snow for me.

Just a test of a small video shot from this mornings ride. Thefirst one remember was still on ice and Ross was riding one handed. The drop over the ditch was from where I stopped on the first video.

Great videos. That kind of snow/ice condition is very deceptive. Remember taking a walk in the woods and stepping on what I thought were just damp leaves then immediately slamming down on my backside as my feet went out from under me. Don't know how you were able to manage the bank at all.

As you can tell- very slowly. That sort of ditch is not normally a problem but It still had water in it and the ground was hard. I did not want to fall off.

Loved the video and pics.

A freind just bought a new mountain bike and we're planning to hit some local mountain bike trails soon. Guess I better get mine ready for some winter riding

This is a great pic to use over in the Winter Cycling forum for the people who ask if knobbies are good for ice.

Uh, no. Get studs.

Glad you had fun and didn't break anything!

There's a phrase -- Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the noon day sun ... and the winter ice.

[QUOTE=tsl;10169627This is a great pic to use over in the Winter Cycling forum for the people who ask if knobbies are good for ice.

Uh, no. Get studs.

Glad you had fun and didn't break anything![/QUOTE]

For the one day a year when we could get weather like this- I should have had more sense and stayed in bed. But it was great to get out and match your skills to the elements. The pic must show that I am still a mountain biker at heart.

The mad dogs didn't appear and not many people about either----Except when I fell. Then it seemed as though they crawled out of the woodwork. No nurses though and no blood.

Great videos and photos. Over the past 37 years of commuting to work by bike, I figure I average about two crashes per year, mostly due to riding on icy streets. I'm sure the number would be higher if I were not on a fixed-gear bike, although a couple of the crashes were very early on with a front-brake-only fixed gear. I learned very quickly that you need two brakes on a winter fixie!
One year I experimented with studs on the 25mm tire, but the roofing nails just caused internal punctures, so I gave that up, although the initial results (control on ice) was pretty good. Now I just use plain 23mm tires and develop monster bike handling skills.

- L.

On that Ice on the roads--------

It rained last night- while the temp was below freezing. 6 am and I was out to the car early knowing I would have to defrost it. I live in a cul de sac and it is on a slope. Walked across the road and it was as smooth as glass. Defrosted the car and negotiated the road down to the main road. I did not touch the brakes and I did not slow down. Well it is a bit difficult when the car is sideways. Main road and No salt or grit had been spread. 10 mph for about 3 miles and then I hit the traffic jam. One slight slope and cars were all over the place. I gave a gap to all the cars in front of me and let them clear. Drove up it with no trouble. 10 miles further down the road and Hit the big hill down into the County town of Lewes. This had been gritted but no traffic at all coming the other way. Apparantly they had gritted the main road but Lewes has lots of hills. No- one could even get to the main road.

Bit further on and road still icy but it started raining.It just hit the road and froze. Later reports stated that although the air temp was just below freezing- the Road temp was -10 C. OK-- take it very steady but I only saw one other car going in the same direction, westbound, as me for about 2 miles. Traffic in the other direction,eastbound, was being stopped about 5 miles further on and diverted off into the country side. There was a section of road for about 15 miles that the Police had closed due to accidents and abandoned cars.

From where the police had closed the road to Eastbound traffic-I was going west- the road was clear. Air temp was around 40F and the only problem was the rain. Got into work- to listen more fully to the traffic reports. In our little part of the UK- it was alsmost as if someone had put a line down the middle of Sussex. It was a solid line and everything to the east- was gridlocked and roads covered in Ice. To the west of that line it was warm but rain all day.

So just a warning to any of you contemplating coming to the UK. Don't. If it snows- we are gridlocked. If it rains the drains can't take it and if we ever do get any of that sunny weather I keep hearing about- the roads melt.

No place is perfect.
My first wife was (is) English from Kent and I worked 5 years for an English company headquartered near Portsmouth - I love the south of your country (don't know the rest of it well).

Ice - no problem. Braking on ice - problem.

A few years ago I was in the woods in the winter. Came to a big stretch of ice (a small pond). Went across, no problem. Came back across, and thought "What would happen it I hit the brakes?". Bam! I just laid there laughing, thinking to myself, "You stupid $*#&!!"

I really need to get back out on my mtn bike this winter. Also, I usually hit the deck about once each winter on my road bike. The extra clothes are appreciated.

Looks like fun!