spivonious

It felt super windy this morning, but the weather report said it was only 10mph. I guess 10mph constant headwind after a holiday weekend is tougher than I thought.

KCBikeCommuter

First commute of the year for me as well. Around 20F when I left the house, which is the coldest commute of the season for me thus far. I was actually a little over-dressed, and had to unzip my outer layer to keep from getting too sweaty. Otherwise a nice commute.

I had a little over 4,000-miles of commuting in 2015, and would like to duplicate in 2016. However, my job will likely have a bit more business-travel this year, so it might be difficult.

tarwheel 

First commute of 2016 and we had nice weather for a change. Hopefully that's a sign of things to come. It was also my coldest commute in a while, with temps in the low 30s F, but rather mild for January. We are supposed to have our coldest weather of the winter so far this week, with temps dipping to the low 20s over the next few mornings. Unfortunately, I won't be able to ride to work tomorrow because I have an out-of-town meeting for work and won't get back until midnight or so.

I've decided not to set any commuting goals, other than riding as much as time and weather permits. I set a goal of 5,000 miles commuting in 2015 and fell about 200 miles short due to all of the rain we had. We finished the year more than 12" above normal and had the highest number of rainy days on record. If the weather is more favorable, I could easily top 5,000 K, but rainy weather really cuts into my riding time.

Hermes1

A bit wet, was happy to try out my new Showers Pass Elite jacket in the rain. I have used it as a windbreaker on cold early morning commutes, first time in the rain and it kept me nice and dry.

mcours2006

First commute for me in 2016 as well. Damn cold: -17C with a windchill. Made a bad call this morning not using the chemical hand warmers. Fingers and toes were in bad shape after 25 minutes. I got to use a neoprene balaclava with ski-like goggles. The goggles worked okay, and I was surprised that they did not fog up with the balaclava. I had this problem with glasses and balaclava when I run with them in extreme cold.

Also, after a two-week break with no riding at all, I didn't feel quite as strong, but that could be the cold, or the 35mm studded tires. Either way, it didn't matter. I got here safely and on time. Mission accomplished.

RidingMatthew

someone said that it was snowing outside! in NC i am pretty excited about it!

7rider

Wet, but mild.

Daniel4

It's always a good day to bike. I got my skin lotion ready but didn't use it. It was borderline. I will tomorrow. My bag was packed with week of clothing and bath towel to start the new year.

dcb23

oh man was it cold. 16F/-9C with a mild headwind. Had the full winter ensemble on including a new pair of Merrill boots my wife got me for Christmas. Overall I was warm but my toes did get a bit tingly. Had to stop to open my water bottle since it froze up.

rhm

Cold.

According to my phone (which gets its information from the tower or something) it was 10F when I rode to the station this morning, -6F with wind chill. And it was painful. By the time I got on the train my core was warm and my fingers and toes were cold. At first the train seemed warm, but over the hour that I sat on it, it seemed to get colder and colder. By the time I got on a CitiBike for the last stretch of my ride, I was freezing again.

Oh, and my office is cold, too. I don't usually complain, but today seemed like a good day for it.

mgw4jc

Yesterday's ride home was windy. Temp was in the upper 30s, but the wind made it feel a bit colder. I was okay riding, but at a couple of stop signs I could feel it. I can already tell it is staying light just a bit later, or maybe it is just because there were no clouds making it dark early.

About 22F this morning, quite a bit colder than yesterday. I added an extra base layer and felt okay. My toes got a bit cold, but they're alright now. Beautiful clear, blue sky this morning.

esmith2039

Heavy load this morning.. have errands to run after work. Temp wasn't too bad and I didn't over dress for once. Got held up by a damn train but I guess it was a good but cold break.

volvostephen

It was very cold in Burlington, Ontario yesterday for my first commute. I dressed well and it was great for the ride in. On the way home, I got a flat.... I don't think I called my wife all year last year to help me out (commuting every day) and this year, on my first commute - it was so cold that I didn't bother try changing my tire. I glad I didn't too as it was a hard to find very small piece of wire stuck in the tire. So - I don't have to worry about holding off calling my wife or worrying about not talking about flats as I have accomplished both on my first official commute!! WooHoo. I suppose it will only get better. Ride in today was equally cold but I still enjoyed it.

Tundra_Man 

Posted yesterday's commute in the 2015 thread. Doh! It's over there for anyone extremely bored or suffering from insomnia.

Being that yesterday was the first time on a bike in 17 days (was gone on a trip over the holidays), I woke up this morning with my legs a bit sore. Kind of funny how fast you lose fitness. I could have used it as an excuse to drive, but instead decided a little "hair of the dog" is exactly what I needed to get back into shape. So I rode.

Uneventful commute to work. 19 degrees with a pretty stout south wind, which meant I had it at my back. The winds are supposed to pick up through out the day so I'll get to fight a good headwind on the way home. If there has to be wind at all, I prefer to fight it on the way to work so I have an easy ride home. Not today I guess.

Sounds like next week the temps will be dropping below zero for the first time this winter. Usually we'll get those starting in late November or early December. We've had single digit days, but overall it's been pretty warm for our area this year. Right now I'm working from a client's office so my commute is half of what it normally is (4 miles each way instead of 8.) I don't mind that so much during spells of sub-zero weather as it makes the decision to ride a lot easier. In extremely frigid temps 4 miles is relatively easy while 8 miles can become a test of endurance.

Phil_gretz

I drove this morning. After yesterday afternoon's chilly headwind, I was pooped and lacked the desire to pack the bike to face an apparent 5 degree "feels like" for the morning commute today. Bottle froze, huh?

EDIT: "Wimped", with an M

mcours2006

Fingers and toes fared better this morning, but just. Goggles, and then glasses fogged up on very stop, sometimes requiring a minute or two of riding to clear. Eventually ditched them both. Another issue that needs to be addressed before tomorrow.

STI shifters on rear slow to respond on upshifts. I am guessing the extreme cold is the cause. Not sure how to address this one yet other than taking a different bike.

tarwheel 

Tough ride home last night with a strong headwind out of the north. It started snowing several times during my commute but it wasn't cold enough to stick with temps in the mid-30s. I had to drive today due to an meeting out of town, so I missed what would have been my coldest commute since last winter, with temps in the mid-20s. I should be back in the saddle tomorrow, however, with temps forecasted to be in low 20s.

arsprod 

18F with a little headwind. I guess it really is winter

Gezman

Last night was a bit nippy seemed a better ride than it was going to work even though it was colder, I think maybe 28F give or take . Could be worse but at least there is hardly any traffic when i get off at night. Still finding it amusing when people see me roll up at work saying its to cold for all that yada yada yada... they don't even know lol

TexMac

30 degrees cold, my power meter died and picked up a $20 on the grass

spivonious

Rear brakes froze right out of the garage this morning. Must be some water in the cable housing.

brockd15 

Hey neighbor.

Yesterday I had rain on the way in but dry on the way home. This morning the roads were soaked but just a drizzle coming down and fairly warm temps compared to the last few weeks.

PatrickGSR94

First commute of 2016, and of course, I overslept. Left the house at 6:40 instead of my usual 6 AM. 26°F this morning. Went with 3 layers up top, 2 layers down below including bib tights. Wool socks and full shoe covers - toes still froze. I think battery or chemical warmers are going to be my only solution to being out in sub-freezing temps for 80 minutes at a time. I've tried everything else and simply nothing works.

First commute running a GoPro camera. Still have some kinks to work out with the camera mount as it kept slipping and pointing down some throughout the ride. Need to get a larger memory card as a single 32GB card won't cover an entire round trip commute... at least not when running 1080p/60 It's all about that smooth motion video.

timvan_78

yesterday was unpredictable: some sections were icy, some snow covered, some clear, some wet.

I was wet at the end of the commute and my toes were cold.

Today it was raining (just above freezing), and I was happy to see the rain because it provides a predictable riding surface!!

mr geeker

This morning it was absolutely cold. It was so cold that car exhaust was freezing out of the air and hitting me like it was flurries. Not cool.

If I remember right, it was 16° F with a wind chill of 6°F.