Commuting in the snow
Discussion
snake_oil said:
Looks to be a few inches on the ground here in North London. I cycle commute 11 miles into the city.... not tried it in snow before.
Good idea or bad idea? I'm pretty up for it but think I may end up on my arse a few times. Commute on a 29er with Schwalbe Marathons....
Not worth the hassle man. No matter how wide you go in terms of tyre and lug etc you still run a massive risk of stacking it and doing damage to yourself and your gear. I would take the bus or the motor. Good idea or bad idea? I'm pretty up for it but think I may end up on my arse a few times. Commute on a 29er with Schwalbe Marathons....
I'm enjoying riding my commutes this week. I have bail out options with the train, but it hasn't felt sketchy at all so I've just carried on. I do ride nearly all A roads which are well travelled to keep them clear and salted so I don't have to ride on hard pack or anything. I'm using an old klunker of a bike that I don't mind binning too much and 32c marathon plus tyres.
lol....first sign of snow and its - "i need to go on the bus/car/stay at home" 
My Bail out is.... the mountain bike.
There's loads of grip! I was even overtaking cars this morning while they were skidding about and doing 4mph in stupidly long lines of traffic. People were complaining about 1hr plus commutes in cars/buses and mine was about 4 mins longer than normal - a whole 25 minutes. (Ohh gosh darn it!)
(The longer time was mainly to take photos of the winter wonderland)
Meh! Nothing like a bit of adrenaline and some hilarious fun and play in the snow to start your working day!
Dont make me remind you all about veluminati Rule #5....
My Bail out is.... the mountain bike.
There's loads of grip! I was even overtaking cars this morning while they were skidding about and doing 4mph in stupidly long lines of traffic. People were complaining about 1hr plus commutes in cars/buses and mine was about 4 mins longer than normal - a whole 25 minutes. (Ohh gosh darn it!)
(The longer time was mainly to take photos of the winter wonderland)
Meh! Nothing like a bit of adrenaline and some hilarious fun and play in the snow to start your working day!
Dont make me remind you all about veluminati Rule #5....
Edited by BenGismo on Wednesday 28th February 11:34
N+1 is the obvious answer!
I have an old Peugeot singlespeed with studded tyres for snowy commutes. No way I would be out on snow and/or ice without the studs. They definitely increase rolling resistance but you'll get through just about anything.
Here it is wearing normal rubber, just after I finished the build. The mudguards offer a bit of protection from slush but sit proud enough to not get clogged up.
I have an old Peugeot singlespeed with studded tyres for snowy commutes. No way I would be out on snow and/or ice without the studs. They definitely increase rolling resistance but you'll get through just about anything.
Here it is wearing normal rubber, just after I finished the build. The mudguards offer a bit of protection from slush but sit proud enough to not get clogged up.
Edited by Barchettaman on Wednesday 28th February 11:41
OP, the problem is with the wrong combination of snow and tyres, snow builds up under the tread, and you lose your steering. At that point, you either need the reflexes of a cat on speed, or one of those trick riding nutters to avoid hitting the deck, as with any front wheel skid. Normal road bike tyres will do this quite easily.
I'm with Ben though, get an MTB, 2.1" knobblies are mighty fine. I wasn't really on the roads for long this morning...
Steyning Bostal via Newham Lane.
I'm with Ben though, get an MTB, 2.1" knobblies are mighty fine. I wasn't really on the roads for long this morning...
Steyning Bostal via Newham Lane.
Two weeks ago I got caught out on some black ice, been pretty nervous since. my wrist was a right state, bruise spread out of my palm and covered about six inches of wrist front and back.
To top it off, yesterday I had a young lady in a Fiat 500 thinking she could squeeze through when I was taking centre lane. I was in the centre cos there was Ice everywhere! I'm tapping out, ill get the train till Monday.
To top it off, yesterday I had a young lady in a Fiat 500 thinking she could squeeze through when I was taking centre lane. I was in the centre cos there was Ice everywhere! I'm tapping out, ill get the train till Monday.
There are some disadvantages (allegedly)
I love riding in the snow; the rumble of the rubber crunching down the fresh snow; every gear change sounding so much crisper; get your roads right, and there's not a car in site
Even had the wrong tyres on and it didn't matter - perhaps not the best idea running Thunder Burts on the back.
I love riding in the snow; the rumble of the rubber crunching down the fresh snow; every gear change sounding so much crisper; get your roads right, and there's not a car in site
Even had the wrong tyres on and it didn't matter - perhaps not the best idea running Thunder Burts on the back.
BenGismo said:
lol....first sign of snow and its - "i need to go on the bus/car/stay at home"
My Bail out is.... the mountain bike.
There's loads of grip! I was even overtaking cars this morning while they were skidding about and doing 4mph in stupidly long lines of traffic. People were complaining about 1hr plus commutes in cars/buses and mine was about 4 mins longer than normal - a whole 25 minutes. (Ohh gosh darn it!)
(The longer time was mainly to take photos of the winter wonderland)
Meh! Nothing like a bit of adrenaline and some hilarious fun and play in the snow to start your working day!
Dont make me remind you all about veluminati Rule #5....
I had exactly this today! Work colleagues telling my I'm crazy for riding in and in the next breath moaning about taking 45mins to drive 3 miles...My Bail out is.... the mountain bike.
There's loads of grip! I was even overtaking cars this morning while they were skidding about and doing 4mph in stupidly long lines of traffic. People were complaining about 1hr plus commutes in cars/buses and mine was about 4 mins longer than normal - a whole 25 minutes. (Ohh gosh darn it!)
(The longer time was mainly to take photos of the winter wonderland)
Meh! Nothing like a bit of adrenaline and some hilarious fun and play in the snow to start your working day!
Dont make me remind you all about veluminati Rule #5....
Edited by BenGismo on Wednesday 28th February 11:34
I also ditched the single speed commuter for my hard tail MTB. High gear, low revs and knobbly tyres (26x2.1 Conti Explorers) with c.20psi in them! Great fun, great workout and only 5 mins extra on the ride in - winner winner chicken dinner!
I rode in from north London to the City this morning and was fine until I hit the Hackney council boundary. They'd obviously not gritted the roads; there was an obvious transition as I neared Newington Green where slushy, wet but grippy tarmac became icy, sketchy, slippery tarmac. With 7 miles already ridden, I wasn't going to turn back, so I did the last couple of miles at granny pace, bike squirming around underneath me. I also rode home. The roads were a bit better, but it was snowing quite hard so visibility wasn't great. Quite satisfying pulling into the driveway at the end of the day having "survived". Doubt I'll risk it tomorrow though, with all that snow having had chance to freeze overnight.
snake_oil said:
Looks to be a few inches on the ground here in North London. I cycle commute 11 miles into the city.... not tried it in snow before.
Good idea or bad idea? I'm pretty up for it but think I may end up on my arse a few times. Commute on a 29er with Schwalbe Marathons....
Its a bad idea. Enjoy falling over. It will hurt. Good idea or bad idea? I'm pretty up for it but think I may end up on my arse a few times. Commute on a 29er with Schwalbe Marathons....
Cyle lanes were very this morning (By Monument at least)
I clock around 200 miles a month commuting and I have used the tube for the last three days. No way am I going out in the snow. A Brompton really isn't suited for it and I don'#t like falling off.
I thought I'd have a go at my 10km commute this morning. Made it 8km before decking it in the road on a corner. I should have known better really but the footpaths near home were still black when I set off. Conditions did deteriorate quite rapidly and I considered turning back, but it was at the point I hit main roads instead of cycle path and they looked good. I was correct for a couple of kilometres. Then the black lines started to disappear. Overall I wasn't helped by my heavier pannier on one side (although this also stopped the bike being damaged) and the wind. Gatorskins, even in 32mm, probably aren't the best either...
I have about a foot of powder up at mine, and once in the ruts created by cars my pedals were touching the sides of the ruts. Buses were off and the roads were empty (Edinburgh).
Fat bike commuting is great though, because as well as being able to plough through things you've got a much wider footprint so things are more forgiving when the tyre starts letting go. I'm beginning to think that I need a lower gear though, as my lowest is 30-40 and I was needing it on the flat in places.
I don't generally stop biking when the weather gets worse, I just adapt with more clothing or a different bike. I saw someone out struggling on a roadie with slicks this morning, which I think is just an accident waiting to happen...
Fat bike commuting is great though, because as well as being able to plough through things you've got a much wider footprint so things are more forgiving when the tyre starts letting go. I'm beginning to think that I need a lower gear though, as my lowest is 30-40 and I was needing it on the flat in places.
I don't generally stop biking when the weather gets worse, I just adapt with more clothing or a different bike. I saw someone out struggling on a roadie with slicks this morning, which I think is just an accident waiting to happen...
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