Winter woes

Annnnd I'm out. I feel like crap.

It snowed on Saturday, I wanted to see if I could handle it, but I dumped my bike on an ice patch. I'm fine, and so is the bike, but I must have looked pretty pathetic when I realized I no longer felt safe on the road. What if there had been a car behind me?! My commute is pretty traffic heavy and most of it is a steep hill.

That very same day, I saw someone riding a tall bike. Grrrr. And I've seen a few bike commuters too, how do they do it?! I'm so frustrated right now. I hate taking transit, but I feel like biking now would be a stupid idea.

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Originally Posted by Antaresia

Annnnd I'm out. I feel like crap.

It snowed on Saturday, I wanted to see if I could handle it, but I dumped my bike on an ice patch. I'm fine, and so is the bike, but I must have looked pretty pathetic when I realized I no longer felt safe on the road. What if there had been a car behind me?! My commute is pretty traffic heavy and most of it is a steep hill.

That very same day, I saw someone riding a tall bike. Grrrr. And I've seen a few bike commuters too, how do they do it?! I'm so frustrated right now. I hate taking transit, but I feel like biking now would be a stupid idea.

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Do you own a mountain bike? Some folks use theirs for the street in snow/slush/ice, better traction...........

No, I have a 30 year old department store mixte and a new CX commuter.

Making the old bike winter-proof probably can't be done. And I'm afraid of bailing on the CX frame because it's too expensive to fix.

A few customers today have asked if I biked to work, when I tell them "no, but I wish I could" the look on their faces is like, o_O no you'll die. One was more worried that other cars would slide into me, and to be fair Vancouver sees so little snow most people have no idea how to drive in it or bother with winter tires.

I am so torn between really wanting to do this and thinking I will die trying.

If there's a way to do studded tires, I highly recommend it! I did my first studded tire ride yesterday (on my CX bike)...it was amazing. I had NO idea how amazing the traction from those things is. FAR better than running on the same roads with trail shoes. Comparable to running with YakTrax, but far more fun. Our roads were mostly a mix of packed snow/slush and some bits of ice. Windchill was 13º. The only scary part was the brakes. As soon as I can get a CX bike with disc brakes for <$1500 I will.

Studs totally rock - I just made myself a set today. I did the front one and then went out for a test spin. We have the *worst* conditions here today too. It snowed yesterday, froze last night and warmed up a bit this afternoon, so the roads I was testing on were ice/slush and tire rutted. Those conditions have completely foiled me in the past but with my brand new studs, even just on the front wheel, it was no harder than riding on a slightly bumpy road. Even riding over lumpy ice where people had walked was a piece of cake. I went right out (on my bike :cool:), bought more screws and did the rear tire. Throw your worst at me mother nature I can't wait - bwa-ha-ha-ha. We are supposed to have totally heinous weather tomorrow and Wednesday. I am going to dress warmly and hum a happy little tune when I am one of the few mobile vehicles around.

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Originally Posted by Eden

Studs totally rock - I just made myself a set today.

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You *made* them? YOU rock! :p

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Originally Posted by lph

You *made* them? YOU rock! :p

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4 tires (2 good knobbies, 2 old ones with the bead cut off for liners), an exacto knife and a big box of #8, 1/2" pan head, self tapping sheet metal screws :cool:

I find myself actually hoping for lousy weather so I can see how well it works with *both* tires studded......

That is soooo cool, Eden. :D

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Originally Posted by Eden

4 tires (2 good knobbies, 2 old ones with the bead cut off for liners), an exacto knife and a big box of #8, 1/2" pan head, self tapping sheet metal screws :cool:

I find myself actually hoping for lousy weather so I can see how well it works with *both* tires studded......

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Did you follow a tutorial? I'm still pretty new to biking and don't have a good idea of what you did.

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Originally Posted by Antaresia

Did you follow a tutorial? I'm still pretty new to biking and don't have a good idea of what you did.

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I've seen examples of other people doing it, but I didn't follow anyone's formula. I figure tires are all different - different tread patterns, different sizes (mine are 24" - which is one of the reasons I didn't just buy a set of studs.... I doubt they come in that size) - so I'm thinking each handmade studded tire will be made a bit differently. My tread is little raised boxes. I put the screws in so that they emerged between two of the raised areas to hold them in good and to position them slightly to the outside of the tire - so that they only make contact when needed rather than hitting all of the time. If I get a moment tonight I'll see if I can post a photo.

www.icebike.org has some examples of hand made and store bought studded tires.

I think mine are working - and well.... I got off my bike when I got home tonight and nearly fell over when my feet hit the ground.... apparently my whole street is black ice right now and I didn't even *notice* it when I was on the bike..... not even stopping.

Forgive the lousy photos. Because it's so crappy out I've left my good camera at work, rather than risking falling with it..... these were just snapped with my Ipod - makes it easier to get them onto the computer too. My homemade studs - they are quite aggressive.

"Quite" aggressive? :D :D

Eden. I like the looks of your tires!! Back in the mid 90's I lived on a lake, and decided that I wanted to make some studded tires.( before they were available) I made one set for riding trails that weren't quite so long, and others similar to yours for riding the lake. The ice fisherman used to plow the lake, so they would plow small berms and I would see how far off the ground I could get... but even with studs gravity eventually will say "enough" and down on the ground you go.:D IT was loads of fun, and we'd all have wagers as to see how high I could get, and then spray a paint line on the berm. Loads of fun.... Ahhh the good old days....:p

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Originally Posted by Eden

My homemade studs - they are quite aggressive.

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They are glorious ;_;

Thanks for the photos! I wouldn't even think anything that aggressive would be rideable, but there you are doing it.