Are you going to ride in snow?

[Stefan Mikes]

Good to know that you will be milking a few more kms out of those winter skins Stefan!

"The situation's developing dynamically" (I love that bombastic phrase, which I used to often hear during my military tactics training as "In the battlefield, the situation's developing dynamically")

Well, nothing special to see to a Canadian in this picture. It reminds me past years when Poland indeed was a winter country...

 

[RandallS]

If I'm riding this morning it will be on snow.
However, if I wait until this afternoon, I'll have options.

It's spring in the foothills of the Canadian Rockies...

 

[mclewis1]

I'm having a blast with the great weather here. Lots of riding (really feels good getting some extra mileage on the legs), and it's going to continue for a few more days. I mentioned above that the decision to remove my winter tires this early was a bit of a roll of the dice. Well I don't think I'll be buying a lottery ticket any time soon. Starting Friday the forecast for the next 8 days is 2.5, 2.8, 7.5, 4.1, 1.9, 2.1, and 1.6 cms of SNOW. Yeah most of it will melt immediately or just won't accumulate very much but I'm still thinking mother nature is messing with me.

 

[RandallS]

Was going to ride today, but it's not looking good. Should be gone by noon tomorrow and the weekend is back into warmer weather again. Saturday afternoon should be +13C and i have a short group ride planned with some buddies on their Analog bikes. There might be something hoppy to make us happy.

 

[RandallS]

And, to be clear, these swings of weather are expected and normal here. Even if I'd left the Ice Spikers on, today would not have been a day for a ride. I am not THAT hardcore. It would be a slushy mess!

 

[RandallS]

Speaking of weather swings - let's have a healthy dose of freezing rain! I've heard reports of an inch thick in the southern parts of the city.

Superb!!!
Always best when you say it with a french accent:

 

[mclewis1]

Randall, You should switch over to "ah magnifique", with the right accent and delivery it may be even more appropriate - there are of course a few others I won't mention here. Hopefully your freezing rain doesn't accumulate for long ... that to me is the worst of winter weather (give me feet of snow over accumulating ice), although I prefer to ride on the ice with the studs.

It's heavy rain, freezing rain, then a little snow here today ... and again Sunday. I will be abstaining from any rides for a few days, and at least until I'm assured that the pavement on the trails is bare (wet is ok). Otherwise I'm just staying home grumbling about mother nature and debating the short term value of putting the studded winters back on the bike. The tire swap is maybe a 30 minute job - or a bit longer as the fenders may need further adjustment, but that all means another swap later on, and the more I think I'll just sit and grumble.

It looks like March is going out like a lamb, but a chilly and very damp lamb.

 

[RandallS]

Randall, You should switch over to "ah magnifique", with the right accent and delivery it may be even more appropriate - there are of course a few others I won't mention here. Hopefully your freezing rain doesn't accumulate for long ... that to me is the worst of winter weather (give me feet of snow over accumulating ice), although I prefer to ride on the ice with the studs.

It's heavy rain, freezing rain, then a little snow here today ... and again Sunday. I will be abstaining from any rides for a few days, and at least until I'm assured that the pavement on the trails is bare (wet is ok). Otherwise I'm just staying home grumbling about mother nature and debating the short term value of putting the studded winters back on the bike. The tire swap is maybe a 30 minute job - or a bit longer as the fenders may need further adjustment, but that all means another swap later on, and the more I think I'll just sit and grumble.

It looks like March is going out like a lamb, but a chilly and very damp lamb.

I am a "Superbe" guy myself, and my days in Montreal set me up for the proper intonation when using it to indicate "sarcastically anything but!".

I also considered taking the time to swap the Ice Spikers back, but the forecast is such I won't. I can't ride today anyway, as I have a flooring contractor in.
When he tried to park on my sloped driveway, his pickup started sliding down into the alley. A quick application of snow-melt and all was good.

Looks like April starts off nice but they could just be trying to fool us.

 

[Prairie Dog]

I finally relented and swapped out the Wrathchilds on the Trance for the stock Maxxis skins today. My plan is to do a road trip tomorrow with a group along the Trans Canada Trail to Lacombe, AB but we have no idea what the ground conditions are going to be like. Just know that I don’t want to be cruising around all day on studs. Single tracks in town are virtually ice free with the exception of a few patches along shady sections. which made the decision to swap tires much easier.

I lost a grand total of six studs since installing the Wrathchilds over a month ago.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I finally relented and swapped out the Wrathchilds on the Trance for the stock Maxxis skins today. My plan is to do a road trip tomorrow with a group along the Trans Canada Trail to Lacombe, AB but we have no idea what the ground conditions are going to be like. Just know that I don’t want to be cruising around all day on studs. Single tracks in town are virtually ice free with the exception of a few patches along shady sections. which made the decision to swap tires much easier.

I lost a grand total of six studs since installing the Wrathchilds over a month ago.

Meanwhile, I'm riding out for the gravel/MTB ride I completed a week ago -- this time as a group ride. I will be testing Johnny Watts during a wet day on trails.

 

[Art Deco]

I ride in the snow. On ice as well. Extreme cold temperatures are dealt with on occasion too. Last Thursday morning the thermometer showed -22F as I trod out the door for my 3 mile ride to my job. My winter ebike, The Bee (see photo) is stored indoors prior to use and the battery is warmed as well. Chemical hand and foot warmer packs are necessary accessories to ensure the misery is kept to a tolerable level. By the time I've arrived at work the grease on the Bee has become pretty stiff and despite my preparation so am I. If the temp drops to -25F or below then I call for a ride.

I'm currently preparing for a ride into town to pick up some groceries and a tankard of coffee. I first hook up the Travoy trailer and slap on the panniers and then look for my Breadski which I consider to be essential and comical facial protection. I think it also compliments the yellow tape job that was applied to the Bee (for visibility issues}. The current temperature is -7F and while that IS cold it is doable. I wouldn't call it comfortable though.

The bike I purchased for my winter transportation has been a pleasant surprise. The form works well for the conditions and it has been dependable as well. If it lasts through the end of the winter season I'll consider it money well spent.View attachment 79020View attachment 79023

There is one thing that I'd like say about winter e-biking. It beat the heck out of trying to pedal a regular grease-stiffened bike in ultra cold conditions. Never again!

Since the season is over here, I wanted to know how the Bee did. Make it through the season OK ? Are you switching back to your Vado now?

 

[Prairie Dog]

What a difference a day makes. Woke up to this and it’s still coming down. Classic Alberta weather.

 

[Art Deco]

Had enough snow for this year yet? It has hit beautiful spring weather here ... daffodils, flowering pink trees, song birds, ... and almost daily rain ...

 

[RandallS]

What a difference a day makes. Woke up to this and it’s still coming down. Classic Alberta weather.
View attachment 85054View attachment 85055

We've the same here. If anything, it's snowing harder than hour ago. No ride today, although the roads are just wet as it's melting on the asphalt since the frost is out of the ground now. Would be fun riding out there but i can wait a day or rwo.

 

[MrCaspan]

I rode my bike all this winter commuting to work in Ontario. I refused to ride it on icy and wet days because even with fenders I got soaked and salty water and lots of it all over the bike is bad. I got a pair of gloves that had warmers in them but really in -15c weather it really only take the edge off but it's really manageable and your hands don't feel like they are frozen. Maybe I need a better pair but most gloves I found had warmers on the back only so the back of your hands felt great but the fronts suffered a bit. It would be really nice to have warmth on both sides. Trying to keep a bike clean is almost impossible. In the winter there is no real outside running water so you'll have to have a hose inside you have to hook up each ride. Or have a frost free outside tap and you bring out a hose each time. Its almost impossible to keep salt or water off your bike or get ready to spend 20 minutes after each ride cleaning your bike. Your chain and Casey you can almost kiss goodbye each year and just replace. I might almost suggest a belt system would be better for winter road ridding. I personally wore full snowboard gear for my commutes. I have a nice warm helmet and goggles, nice coat and snow pants. It's actually quite warm but you can feel it's cold out going 40km/h on a road with windchill! I thought about getting a heated Milwaukee jacket or sweater for under but I'm starting to get tired of charging all these small accessory batteries for mitts and sweaters etc. It would be nice if you could plug into your battery so you didn't not have to worry if you forget to charge your glove batteries 2 min before a ride or you left them on and they are dead. Anyways that's my winter ridding setup

 

[Art Deco]

Yes plugging in all the rechargeables gets old fast, and having to put on all the layers of warm clothing takes a lot of time. The manufacturers could have heated handlebars and seats (like snow mobiles and cars) or even a decent USB to recharge them as we ride. But not much interest. Someday?

 

[Art Deco]

As the OP, I am surprised by how many comments there are and how many people really like riding in snow. And although noone really likes riding on ice, several of you do it regularly with proper tires. I'm impressed.

 

[tomjasz]

Unbelievable winter in SE MN. Only a dozen slippery days. Weird winter. Heating bill was 15% less than any previous winter 2007 through today.

 

[RandallS]

As the OP, I am surprised by how many comments there are and how many people really like riding in snow. And although noone really likes riding on ice, several of you do it regularly with proper tires. I'm impressed.

I will admit that the best ride of 2021 so far were the ones that @Prairie Dog filmed and published here.
Packed snow and ice with studded tires can be a hoot, and the terrain we got to enjoy that day (as well as the comradery) were second to none.

 

[Prairie Dog]

Hard to believe that was a little over six weeks ago. A good time was had by all and the conditions were prime for studs.