Okay, all you experienced winter riders, answer me this: How do you deal with snot?!

[owlice]

My nose runs constantly and LOTS when I'm riding in the cold. (It usually runs when I ride in the warm, too, but not nearly so much.)

I can't blow my nose as I bike, and when I stop, I get cold very quickly. I stopped (as I posted elsewhere) THREE TIMES today to blow my nose (I had to; trust me on this!), and my ride was only 11 miles long!

It's SO much easier to wipe a running nose on a short sleeve; long sleeves aren't nearly so useful for this! I'm thinking of fastening a small towel -- yes, a towel! -- to my upper left arm somehow so that I can use it to wipe my friggin' running nose as I bike!

I snuffle and sniff as much as I can, use my gloves as much as I can, but when it starts running out and behind, clearly I must take other steps!

So please, tell me: how do you deal with this?! TIA!!

[Chicken Little]

I have no answers, but you have my sympathy. The colder it is, the more my nose runs. I developed a snot iceberg on my glove last week. If you don't wash the gloves regularly, the snot dries and get sharp, then you make little cuts on you nose when you wipe too fast.

Gross.

[Grits]

I am sure you will get some lovely advice to this question, but I have the same problem. I just use my glove. Isn't that what the nice cloth part on the side is made for? I tuck tissue in every possible place to use when I do stop.

[KnottedYet]

Bandanas in my thigh pocket.

I'm not good at blowing my nose on the bike, and truly suck at doing snot-rockets.

Honestly, mostly I snort. It's very attractive... :rolleyes: When that doesn't work, I haul out my trusty bandana.

And I only buy gloves with really impressive terry patches.

[sfa]

You have an easily accessible pocket, don't you? How about putting an old fashioned handkerchief in it? If that isn't enough, go with a towel (or my favorite--an old cloth diaper. Those things will absorb almost anything!). As long as it's easily accessible, it shouldn't slow you down much to grab it and wipe while riding.

[OakLeaf]

Glove. Lots of winter gloves have an absorbent patch for just that purpose. When my nose runs because of the cold, it's very thin and drippy (TMI yet? :p) and not suitable for snot rockets. I blow plenty of those in warmer weather...

[sarahspins]

Glove. Lots of winter gloves have an absorbent patch for just that purpose.

Yep, my pi gloves have a large fleece wipey-spot for that very purpose :D

Of course, I ended up having a nose bleed on my ride today and ended up using my sleeve a lot.. I'm sure I looked like some sort of zombie before I got home :rolleyes:

[Becky]

Snot rockets- lots of them!

My nose get way too chafed and raw if I wipe it on my sleeve or glove, especially in cold weather. It took some practice, but I've gotten pretty good at the ol' SR ;)

[shootingstar]

And I only buy gloves with really impressive terry patches.

Yup.
Am lousy at snot rockets and have given up ..in any kind of weather. So I might wipe or blow nose 1-2 times in winter at least at intersections with kleenex. for a 40+ km. ride. Then the terry patch glove works even though it gets loaded after awhile.

[Grog]

Combination of snot rockets and gloves.

[HoosierGiant]

Snot rockets- lots of them!

Ditto! It's the option I most frequently use.

If the wind direction and/or position of other riders does not permit snot rockets, I'll generally wipe with the back of a glove and then wipe that on my tights or wind pants. I'd rather have it dry there than on my gloves, where it irritates my nose as the ride goes on.

Have also tied a bandana around my arm when I'm riding with a cold and know the nose will be particularly cantankerous.

[cosc]

I accessorize my winter cycling jacket with a beautiful bandana tied around my neck to keep my nose dry. Cycling gloves and snot rockets aren't enough for my nose.

[ehirsch83]

also one for snot-rockets and gloves!(any time of the year)

[Melalvai]

I've heard of putting an old sock over your glove as a hankie.
I tuck a hankie in my jacket pocket, but all my rides are 3-5 miles, so I might be drippy by the time I stop & get to my hankie but otherwise ok. I use my gloves too.

[Biciclista]

i get a large cloth handkerchief and stick it in my sleeve... use it lots... and gloves too.

[owlice]

You all are cracking me up!! Snot icebergs, zombies, and nose diapers...!!

I do use my gloves, a lot. Snot rockets are definitely out; I don't know how anyone manages to blow them with such a runny effusion!

Old socks over my gloves is a great idea! The patches on my gloves are nowhere NEAR big enough for what my nose produces; the entire surface of the gloves as a snot-wiper would definitely help. And a cloth diaper, instead of a bandana, would probably be absorbent enough for the great quantities flowing from my nose, so I could accessorize with that.

Thank you all! Nice to know all the athletic socks with the holes in their heels can be put to good use!!

[lph]

My nose can get very sore from too much wiping (and from old stiffened gloves...) but a liberal application of vaseline, blistex or similar around my nose and nostrils in advance helps.

[Becky]

Snot rockets are definitely out; I don't know how anyone manages to blow them with such a runny effusion!

Without going into too much gory detail, the right volume and velocity are key when dealing with thin watery nasal by-products :D

There's a lot of good tips in this thread- thanks for starting it, Owlice! I may give the old sock idea a try...

[Bike Chick]

You have to practice the snot-rocket thing. It's a fine art. Be sure the wind is not blowing in your face and you are alone when you do. But you are right, if it's real drippy, that just won't work. I always carry a bandana with me. I have one in every color to match whatever jersey I'm wearing and they can be bought for $1 each.

[indigoiis]

Learning to properly rocket snot is invaluable! Practice, Practice, Practice!

[OakLeaf]

All right, I have to ask. How do you blow snot rockets when it's really thin and watery, the consistency of tears, and runs right out of your nose without building up a good plug?

[arielmoon]

Snot rockets and then my glove. I wash them lots.

Even with that I am distracted by my runny nose and my breathing is interrupted by it but it is just something I have to deal with when it is cold!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

All right, I have to ask. How do you blow snot rockets when it's really thin and watery, the consistency of tears, and runs right out of your nose without building up a good plug?

My nose runs watery like that. I just sniff it in. I believe in recycling. :p

[7rider]

Snot rockets are definitely out; I don't know how anyone manages to blow them with such a runny effusion!


What can be snorted in, can also be shot out with equal effectiveness.

I have a magical speed required of 18 mph. At that speed or higher, I'm okay to clear on the move. Otherwise, I wait for a stoplight or stop sign. That's always fun to gross out the motorists who are waiting beside me! ;) So genteel and ladylike, ya know? Just be sure to leeeean away from the bike, lest you get anything on any part of you or the bike you'd rather not see crudified (like jacket shoulders, arms, or panniers). Apply one finger to close one nostril, and BLOW out the open nostril! :eek: Clean up with the glove, give a wink to the motorist beside you, and smell that cold winter air!

[arielmoon]

7rider LMAO!!!

[HoosierGiant]

What can be snorted in, can also be shot out with equal effectiveness.

I have a magical speed required of 18 mph. At that speed or higher, I'm okay to clear on the move. Otherwise, I wait for a stoplight or stop sign. That's always fun to gross out the motorists who are waiting beside me! ;) So genteel and ladylike, ya know? Just be sure to leeeean away from the bike, lest you get anything on any part of you or the bike you'd rather not see crudified (like jacket shoulders, arms, or panniers). Apply one finger to close one nostril, and BLOW out the open nostril! :eek: Clean up with the glove, give a wink to the motorist beside you, and smell that cold winter air!

Too funny, and oooooh so true! (Although I have finally mastered the fine art of the double-barrel snot rocket, so it remains a hands-free endeavor.)

[OakLeaf]

Hmmm. I have no trouble blowing a snot rocket when it's just allergies and has some stickiness to it, but in the winter it just isn't happening.

It reminds me of the time I got sneezed on by a baby elephant at a petting zoo when I was a little kid. :eek:

Guess I'll keep washing my gloves after every ride...

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I grew up in NYC seeing old drunks do this on the subway (think AquaLung) and skidding on pools of spit everywhere... so anyone blowing their snot out on the ground in plain view of others, or where people might chance to walk will always seem a gross and disgusting display of lack of manners to me. Heck, you might as well just squat and poop while you're at it! :eek:
Guess I'm just hopelessly 'old fashioned'! :D

[Librarygirl]

BleeckerSt_Girl, I totally agree with you - I was reading and thinking 'Am I the only one who finds the idea of expelling nasal contents in the general vicinity of others quite disgusting?' I find it so unladylike too - I guess I was just brought up that way! :o

[SadieKate]

It's all about the time and place -- and whether you can hit your intended target (and not me).

[OakLeaf]

So this is the thread that separates the jocks from the ladies... :D:D:p

[Owlie]

Gloves. I washed mine after every ride I went on this winter because my nose turns into a faucet if I ride below 55 degrees.

[Melalvai]

I don't do snot rockets but I can imagine a day where I might. But when I biked to Omaha and back, each half-day saw me with fewer inhibitions about when & where I peed, and how far away from the road I would go!

Guess I'm probably not a lady! :D Don't know how this reflects on my mother...she was absolutely horrified when I told her about peeing on the side of the road. Of course, so was my daughter. Maybe it skipped a generation!

[7rider]

It's all about the time and place -- and whether you can hit your intended target (and not me).

Yup.
And for the record....the motorist is never my target. And 99.9% of the time...they're not looking at me anyway. Too busy texting, putting on make-up, shaving, eating....whatever. So although I may say I do it for their "benefit" - I really don't.

[HillSlugger]

What can be snorted in, can also be shot out with equal effectiveness.

I have a magical speed required of 18 mph. At that speed or higher, I'm okay to clear on the move. Otherwise, I wait for a stoplight or stop sign. That's always fun to gross out the motorists who are waiting beside me! ;) So genteel and ladylike, ya know? Just be sure to leeeean away from the bike, lest you get anything on any part of you or the bike you'd rather not see crudified (like jacket shoulders, arms, or panniers). Apply one finger to close one nostril, and BLOW out the open nostril! :eek: Clean up with the glove, give a wink to the motorist beside you, and smell that cold winter air!

I've ridden with her; she good! :cool: :rolleyes:

[shootingstar]

So this is the thread that separates the jocks from the ladies... :D:D:p

I'm a lousy spitter. So I've given up trying to do that too.

Part of my need to use kleenex, terry snot wiper on glove...probably stems from the fact that my mother is an incredible spitter....at home into the toilet or garbage can. Real peasant style, folks. Real loud. Like what you see/hear in Chinatown sometimes. Except she never does it public. Thank goodness.

And it's what you hear about from travellers in certain areas of Asia.

Joyful. Sorry folks. To me, it's a public health issue when I've noticed alot of snot releasers and spitters on elevators, staircases, etc. after seeing gobs. And seeing young children spit anywhere out of sheer bravado.

Should be done discreetly and into the grass/bush/outdoors/well you know.

Brand me old-fashioned, but my reasons/inhibitions are abit different.

[RolliePollie]

Snot Rocketeer here. But I only do it when there is no one around...no other cyclists, no cars, and not in front of houses where someone inside might see me, etc.. It's very gross, but it's effective...and my nose runs like a faucet. I am much better SR-ing with my left nostril, which is a good thing because that one runs about 75% more than the right one.

I also use my glove. If you wipe your nose on your glove, then wipe your glove really good on the side of your thigh, the glove is dry-ish and ready to wipe with again in no time. And I like to think no one notices the smudge on my leg from glove wiping.

[salsabike]

Sorry folks. To me, it's a public health issue when I've noticed alot of snot releasers and spitters on elevators, staircases, etc. after seeing gobs. And seeing young children spit anywhere out of sheer bravado.

Should be done discreetly and into the grass/bush/outdoors/well you know.



Yup.

And BSG, love the recycling thought.

[lph]

Hehe. I'm so used to snot rocketing wherever when bike commuting and skiing that I have to stop myself from doing so at the bus stop surrounded by other people :D

I do realize it's not too appetizing at close quarters. But what's up with all the teenage spitters?? The ones that spit not just once, but slowly, deliberately, 3 times in the course of as many minutes...? I missed that being cool. :confused:

[Bike Chick]

I'm with Rollie. I wait for a private moment when I'm off the back and on a country road. It may not be very ladylike but sometimes very necessary---kinda like peeing on the side of the road. I always carry the bandana too to blow my nose in while I'm trying to find the right bush to pee behind.

[Grits]

Ewwww. Yuck. Gross.

This thread is practical, but disgusting.

[hammertime]

snot rocketeteer here as well. thought i'd never be one... but once i tried it, it's quite effective, LOL!!:D

[OakLeaf]

In all seriousness, I can see how snot rocketing isn't the most attractive thing in the world, but I can't understand why it would be unsanitary. If someone's licking the ground - or even putting their hands on the ground and then not washing them - they've got more problems than athlete snot.

To me, a handkerchief is unsanitary - putting a healthy culture medium on a matrix that'll keep it wet, jamming it in a pocket that isn't necessarily the cleanest but is kept nice and warm by your body heat, then putting it back onto your nose? Ewwwww.

[Bike Chick]

To me, a handkerchief is unsanitary - putting a healthy culture medium on a matrix that'll keep it wet, jamming it in a pocket that isn't necessarily the cleanest but is kept nice and warm by your body heat, then putting it back onto your nose? Ewwwww.

grrrrroooooossssssss Never quite thought of it that way. Ewwww

[7rider]

Yeah, recycling isn't the best, either: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfKkgT9zXV0 (this was the least gag-inducing I could find).
No pretty way to address an ugly issue.

[nscrbug]

Add me to the runny nose list, too. Can't do the snot rocket thing...way too watery and the thought just gags me. :eek: I plan on trying a medical solution. I had read somewhere that this condition is called "vasomotor rhinitis", and that there is a prescription nasal spray called Atrovent that can help control it. I'm going to ask my doctor about it, the next time I see him. I don't ride very often in the dead of winter in Chicago...but I will attempt to ride when it gets above freezing. So I'm okay with using a nasal spray on an "as needed" basis...which would realistically only be a few times a month (if that) during the winter time.

[PamNY]

I If someone's licking the ground - or even putting their hands on the ground and then not washing them - they've got more problems than athlete snot.

Heh. This is my favorite line in this thread.

[zoom-zoom]

I wish I could do snot rockets...but my snot just flows and flows. I run with a hanky in my hand year-round. During the warm months I use it to wipe sweat, in the cold it gets half soaked with snot during an hour run and on a 2 hour run it is fully soaked. Gross. But better on the hanky that goes in the wash with my sweaty workout clothes than ON my clothes, heh. I have pretty overactive sinuses (thank god for my neti pot).

Haven't biked in really cold weather, yet. Cold = lots of snow. On a bike I have a feeling the snot issues would really be a pain.

[Pedal Wench]

Add me to the runny nose list, too. Can't do the snot rocket thing...way too watery and the thought just gags me. :eek: I plan on trying a medical solution. I had read somewhere that this condition is called "vasomotor rhinitis", and that there is a prescription nasal spray called Atrovent that can help control it. I'm going to ask my doctor about it, the next time I see him. I don't ride very often in the dead of winter in Chicago...but I will attempt to ride when it gets above freezing. So I'm okay with using a nasal spray on an "as needed" basis...which would realistically only be a few times a month (if that) during the winter time.

That's what I usually use - my prescription ran out so I'm back to the rubbed-raw-red nose and snot rockets. The prescription doesn't stop everything, but it controls the constant running. I need to get a refill -- NOW!