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Nope, sorry that was totally unclear... I was counting the number of rides/day, at 13 to 14 miles/ride. So this week it was about 65 miles for the week, I guess. Normally I commute about 120 miles/week.Quote:
Originally Posted by Biciclista
Yay for no sand! Another plus of winter: Not so much glass and sharp junk on the roads, thanks to plows moving stuff all the time.
Anyone have any winter tips for protective eyewear? Do you wear your regular sunglasses? What do you do to keep them clear? Does anyone use goggles?
I wear clear lenses most of the time. Most of my commute is either at the very early hours of the morning or in total darkness. It's never very cold. So it works well. They are these: http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_d...45524442586453 but I have clear lenses for them. I also have yellow but don't wear the yellow much anymore. Can't beat the price, and they are UV proof.Quote:
Originally Posted by keepclimbing
I had to take them off once recently because it was so terribly foggy. Otherwise they are fine. I wouldn't do without. Too much flying grit and stuff on the road.
I agree about needing protection, but my regular glasses fog up constantly in the winter. I haven't tried defogger wipes on them because I assume those only work on goggles where the outside air can't get to the inside of the lens. But I might be wrong.
I have a lot of trouble with my glasses fogging up, too. I don't have a solution for you, but I can tell you what I haven't tried: Things like Cat Crap that you have to smear on your lenses. I'm very leery about that. But if you find something that works, let me know!
When it's really cold I wear ski goggles, tho' I ended up foregoing them the last couple times because they cut back on visibility, even with my mirror.
I broke a personal record THursday and Friday - 11 below zero. Friday, had my digestive tract and/or my will cooperated, I could have gone in at 17 below... but I made the tactical error of not wearing warm enough clothes to bed and when it's that cold outside, it just isn't warm inside, either... and the previous night's dinner was rather demanding that I spend extra time in the loo. So I called in and said I'd be in an hour late.
I then decided that since it really doesn't look like it will get better, that I need to, as the bracelet says, HTFU. (Hopefully harden the bowels up, too :cool: ) So I made sure to leave *early* today... fact is, that with enough layers, I don't get cold. I did yoga stretches and crunches for 10 minutes before swaddling myself, and then some running-in-place and centrifugal arm swinging before actually leaving, and my hands didn't even get cold. At nine degrees, I could even leave exposed skin so I didn't have the wet balaclava problem.
However, last Wednesday I took the bus home because truth be told, I'm not a mountain biker - I'm a weenie with roads that aren't smooth. Adn... they're forecasting snow for next week, again. Cold I can handle... but I don't wanna fall into traffic.
It occurs to me that I *could* order Bigger Studs... that is my plan as soon as these have put in WorthWhile Mileage... and I don't even know what that would be. 1000 miles? I have the "106 stud for plowed roads" tyres... but on the other hand, more studs would have been a bunbite this a.m. on the *mostly* clear and dry roads.... *and* getting the back wheel off my bike wtih chain guard and internal hub and brakes is a bunbite of its own.
Third option: get Monster Studs for the folding bike, which is much easier to operate on.
Wow. 11 below. I'm not sure if I would go that far. But I've stuck it out pretty well this January. I've only used my car two days all month and that was because of some mechanical problems I had to get fixed. There was only one day that it plunged below zero here, and I was out of town on a business trip. Mostly it's been in the teens. A couple of days ago the temps rose into the upper 20s and it felt like a heat wave. Riding felt easy and caused me to wonder why I haven't ridden through every winter. My friends ask how I can ride in such cold weather and I keep assuring them it is just a matter of having the right gear.
Yesterday it was 27 when I rode to the office. By the time I left to go to an evening event about 7 miles away, the temperature was 57! I had to stop to remove layers and stuff them into my bag, but I was a sweaty mess when I arrived. What a grand entrance I made! The best part was that my doctor was at the event. When he realized it was me, he gave me a big hug and said that he was impressed, proud, and envious! He said that he had been driving behind me on the way there but had no idea it was me. He was impressed with how well lit my bike was at night. (That was good to hear, especially from my doctor!) When I left the event at 9:30, the temps were still in the 40s and I had a very comfortable ride home. I really like riding late at night when there are fewer cars.
But how quickly I got spoiled. This morning the temp was in the 20s again, but I didn't want to be overdressed in the afternoon so I used fewer layers. BIG mistake! The weather channel got it wrong and the temperature plunged. I thought I was going to freeze on my short little 3-mile ride home. I really do not like being cold.
Tomorrow I'm going to a friend's house 19 miles across town for an afternoon get-together. It's going to be cold again. I have to look decent once I get there, but she won't mind if I head straight into the bathroom for a quick change and freshening up. But I'm a little nervous about the return trip. It will be dark and some of the roads are not well lit.
What I'm learning this winter about bicycle commuting is that it requires daily planning. Mapping out my destination, figuring out how much time to allow, watching the weather reports, fussing over exactly which balaclava and gloves are the right weight for the day, deciding what to wear and if/how to change clothes at my destination--it does consume extra time. I suppose the more I do it, the more of those details will become second-nature.
It's all worth it knowing that when spring arrives and everyone else is dusting off their bikes, I'm going to be in good form already!
First time back on the bike since early December.
Today: 11 miles.
Woo! I'm sure your bike was very happy to see you again. :DQuote:
Originally Posted by indigoiis
Last week I rode ~26 mi/day M, W, Th, and F; Tues I rode 13.
Today it was so frickin' cold, but I did it anyway. My face-covering (now a complicated two-part Gore/Turtle Fur combo) got completely covered in a thick layer of frost from my breath, as did my fuzzy outer gloves. ...Is winter over yet?
You have a really cool dr. :DQuote:
Originally Posted by keepclimbing
Welp, I rode in today feeling like I was getting on a bus with no ticket back home. The forecast is for a "winter advisory" starting at 6:00 p.m. ... I'm generally here 'til 9:30. Forecasts are amazingly vague ("chance of many snow showers or flurries," or words to that effect!) ...
... but I'm thinkin' I will skip out on my class (it's chorus, not for credit... I'll be sorry if I don't look at the music between now and next week but...) and beat the nasties home and then tell them to just stay away.
I looked at big studs for the Dahon but at $70 + each, well...
I did it again. I rode to the bus and will have to ride home again.
I forgot my helmet. I was in a rush this morning. I didn't even know til I was a mile down the hill from my house. So I am going to be riding extra carefully tonight going home.
(Back in the day, I rode helmetless for years. But I also didn't wear seatbelts, and smoked a pack a day. So yeah. I feel naked without it!)
I rode the bus today, too. I think I could haev made it in... but we have a perfectly good bus system, I really can afford two bucks, and it would have been a car out of control that would be the problem. (five or six inches of snow over night, trailing off this a.m.)
Plus, I'd kinda forgotten how warm and fuzzy bus trips can be. Everybody called the bus driver "Linda" and the guy at my stop made sure I got the right transfer... he said " the bus will be packed!" and yea, looked like about half the seats *were* taken - such is the Midwest :)
i am off the wagon. between having a cold and crummy weather, I haven't ridden to work last week or this week :(
Same story here. I'm off the bike for a few days with a cold. And our temps took a dip into the single digits and teens. Got to stay well for our coming trip to So. California. I'll be able to bike on snow free roads and in nice weather for a week! :D bikerHen
If all goes well, tomorrow will be my first day on the bike in a long time. The frost on the roads is just a no-no for me now. I'm thinking about converting one bike to a winter machine (with studded tires) but it might not happen until next year. :(
I get the complicated face covering thing! I use an old cut off turtleneck, a polarfleece head band (and instead of putting it over my ears and head, I put it over my nose) and a polar fleece cap with ear flaps.Quote:
Originally Posted by kfergos
Can only commute 2 days a week as the darling dotta won't go near her bike in the cold... DARN!
Using my old steel frame mountain bike with tractor-style tires.
It's going to be in the 40s this weekend! Woohoo! A respite from the snow and ice. (Hello, potholes!)
So January was all over the place - winter thaw, winter's revenge, a vacation, a head cold, and a new foster dog...phew!!!
It was my worst month so far, but I got back on the wagon for some frigid-y but getting lighter every day commutes, and just barely got to the 66% mark...I'm counting it as hitting the goal for the 4th full month of our challenge!
Off to the weekend bike projects...
Yesterday night we got more snow. Snow on snow on snow. This morning I took my usual back roads route to work, knowing there was a good chance of at least some snow remaining on the lesser-traveled roads.
Mostly it was OK; I averaged about 11 or 12 miles an hour, perhaps. The killer roads come with 3 miles of work: Tiny neighborhood roads that I swear never see a plow, are heavily shaded by dense trees, and to whom the touch of salt or sand are complete anathemas. They had a inch-thick covering of packed-down snow, which the Ice Bike website describes thus:Quote:
Heavy snow that has been traveled upon by automobiles is one of the most difficult of surfaces ICEBIKERS have to deal with.
Not only do you have the wheel diversions caused by the ruts, but also the polished smooth surface underneath where cars have spun tires trying to get going.
The best technique is to avoid this stuff, riding in the undisturbed snow at the side of the road. While a lot of work, undisturbed snow is always easier to deal with than trafficked snow.
If your balance good you can sometimes make progress following the tire track, but don't count on it for very long, and certainly don't expect to make good time. Also, there is a thin layer of highly compacted snow at the bottom of the track, that tends to squirt out from under your tire throwing you slightly left or right.
This pretty accurately describes the conditions I rode in. I actually got off and jogged with my bike for a while and made faster progress than I did on two wheels. That warmed my feet up, at least. :rolleyes: Part of the way while I was on my bike, as my wheels went sliding in separate directions, I suddenly realized that this was more like sledding or skiing than biking.Quote:
Getting through heavily trafficked snow is seldom elegant, often a lot of work, and always a nerve wracking experience, especially if there is automobile traffic nearby.
Frequently, the falls that seem inevitable from second to second can be avoided by continuing to apply power and steering as best you can. Your side slipping front wheel often bites when it hits a slightly more solid ridge, and if you can delay the fall for half a second or so you may find that you can recover. Don't be in a hurry to dab, stay on the pedals and apply power. This is a lot like riding in loose sand.
As you power through this stuff, you will have to make rather large steering corrections to compensate for impending falls. This preserves your balance. You will, however, find yourself going in a direction slightly (or not so slightly) different than you intended, and this can not always be permitted if motor traffic is in the adjacent lane.
Total distance this morning: 13 miles
Total time this morning: 1 hour, 20 minutes
Typical for a snowy day. I'm getting really, really tired of snow.
On the bright side, somewhere on those snowy back roads I passed 10,000 miles ridden since September 2007, so all was not in vain.
I got back on the wagon after that one day - especially because snow is definitely not ice. The plows had pushed the five inches out of the way.
Three weeks ago I decided I wasn't going to say "enough already!" This will be a hard winter... gonna shoulder it up. So Tuesday, when we'd gottn another inch of snow and the guy said it was 5 degrees - we were only supposed to dip into the teens, I'm pretty sure - I just did 50 jumping jacks to get blood circulating to my hands. When it went down to four and three (zero at the airport) I yelled at the radio and did more jumping jacks.
Tuesday we had also gotten another inch before I went in and I figured I'd leave early and that worked well, 'cause I was between the hourly traffic bulges and yes, the snow was pretty undisturbed. Alas, the elastics that hold stuff together that lost their elastic really lost it and wrapped themselves around my hub and broke off a chunk of chain guard. Fortunately, the jumping jacks did their thing (or it was a miracle ;) ) because I could take my gloves off and unwrap and - another miracle - had my pocketknife handy to snippy snippy ... and my hands didn't get cold. No, they weren't frostbitten :)
I wore my butt completely out riding in because I was plowing through snow and there was an 18 mph headwind and based on today's effort level, I think there's still crap wrapped around the hub. It took over an hour of hard pedaling and high heart rate ... fortunately that same wind kept the ride home a fit and proper "cool down" (and the temp was a balmy 14). Fortuantely on Wednesday I go at 5 and the LBS on the way home is open 'til 6 and they love me, and fortuantely I still have enough layers so that today it was 3 but I was warm. (And fortunately when you put a million layers on you can do jumping jacks without giving yourself a black eye or having your boobs bang your knees.)
This Saturday is the "Illini Chill" ride so I really wanted to be getting in shape for it... yesterday helped :) Since it's supposed to be 47 (with wind and rain of course ;) ) I'll take the folding bike...
It's too durn cold. I just can't do it! Normally down here we have days of cold mixed with days in the 50s during the winter. Not this year-it's solid cold (except for last weekend, and I did ride then). If I wanted to have really cold winters I would have moved north. I'm ready for spring.
Geonz, you're such a stud! Stud-ette, I guess I should say. Good for you. I'd have wimped out.
rode to work 2x this week. But that's probably it for this week. :)
Another great forecast for tomorrow in my town:
Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 14. Wind chill values as low as -12. Northwest wind between 10 and 16 mph
Ugh. and we got another 2" of slushy snow yesterday.
What a winter this is! :(
It's 3.9 F out as I sit here. Yesterday was actually beautiful... 25 and 3 inches of new fresh powder. Then tomorrow it will start warming up to about 50 by Sunday.
But, I am afraid the streets will be too slushy to ride. They are in the worst condition I have ever seen since I moved here.
Well, lazy me finally tested my work security card several days ago which had to be reprogrammed to allow me access into the locked bike room near the underground parking garage in our workplace building. Now it's working.
So hopefully later this month, at some point when I know there won't be alot of cold rain or black ice... where black ice is ok if the route is flat, but this commuting route is not. Where I work is several degrees colder compared to home ..and it's only a 13 kms. away from home but the work building sits on top of a ridge.
Yesterday was amazing. I was able to wear capris and a lightweight long-sleeved shirt! I left early for work so that I could take a long way and enjoy the morning. It felt so good! But overnight we had a storm. The sewers are still overworked from all the recent melted snow, so the storm caused some serious flash-flooding. The streets around my home were just too dangerous with high waters so I drove today. It seems to have subsided tonight. The temp has dropped again now to remind us that it's still winter, but I'll be back on my bike tomorrow.
Some crazy black ice around here this morning.... I didn't realize it until it was too late to take the bus in so ride I did. Pretty much everything was covered with a very, very thin layer of ice. I made it all the way with no incidents, but it was definitely hairy.
I wore SHORTS yesterday! I can't remember the last time I didn't wear long pants -- it must be three months at least. It was 58 when I left work in the evening, with stuff melting all over the place. I flew home; made the 13.25 miles in 54 minutes, a winter personal record. This morning was 48 and I hardly knew what to wear. But as keepclimbing mentioned, we had a big storm overnight here too, and the roads are covered in water from rain and melting snow. I can even see grass, some of which is green (how does it do that after a straight month being covered in a foot of snow?).
I sure wish spring would come and stay; the warmer temperatures remind of why, exactly, I'm still doing this. Sometimes it's hard to stay positive when it's the fourth day in a row in the teens, with more snow predicted.
Random factoid: Each of my hiking boots, which I've worn every day since November, weighs about 1.5 lbs. I should be super buff from lifting those while pedaling all winter!
So nice to be able to ride the regular bikes and leave at the regular time and only wear two or three layers :)
20 degrees this morning... my poor skin is getting desiccated but hey, it's only a month or three more :)
Hey all you intrepid commuters! Is everybody still kicking? Winter's almost over; soon we will be riding summer bikes with zippy slicks at speeds greater than 10 mph (at least for me, winter riding is 3 or 4 mph slower on average than summer riding) over nice clear roads, wearing shorts and jerseys, feeling the wind and sun, seeing other cyclists and not worrying about frostbite, ice, snow/rain, windchill, salt and sand, or any other wintry issues.
Spring is coming, even if we did get more snow/ice/sleet last night here in MA. The weather's been much more rideable the last week or two; highs above freezing and lows above 20 (usually) mean I haven't had to cancel a commute for a couple weeks now. Soon it'll also be time to start training rides for the STP and the Cape Cod Getaway -- I can hardly wait, even if I do end up riding alone most of the time.
So start thinking springy thoughts! It's only a matter of time.
Thanks for the encouragement! Just since Friday there's a major difference in my commute - the sun rose before I got to the bus stop today, and I don't need my headlamp to undo the lock to the shed or to get my battery pack attached. Really don't need the headlight for me except for the last bit of my night commutes, though still use it for visibility both ways.
I got on the road bike both days this weekend, and had the funny experience of wondering if I still knew how to dress for temps in the 40s and 50s. Full daylight rides are a joy, but man there's a lot more people on the roads! ;)
I have managed to meet my goals every week so far, for February, it was 2 commute rides a week. I also commuted to my painting sessions half the time, which doesn't "count" as a commute, but still involved going somewhere on my bike and getting back home that way too. So it's all good.
Well the Winter has faded around here but I've been working from home every single day and trying to finish my Ph.D. dissertation. I've cycled about 10km in the last 2 weeks. :(
When I was free-lance writing from home, I made a point to commute to work every morning. Sometimes I commuted home, too. Starting the day with a 7-9 mile ride meant I was *much* more focused on the writing, and the commute could be any distance I wanted since the destination was the same as the starting point.
The sun is starting to be up when I get up, which is a big help. It's going down later, too :D :D :D Now, I'd be happier if it were warmer than 25 degrees, but you can't ask for everything...
*Sigh* that's what I intended to do--go to the post office every day to get may business mail. But the cold just beat me this winter. That and my new dog that insists on walks three times a day. At least I'm getting outside!Quote:
Originally Posted by Geonz
I've managed to drive a car only 5 days per month. On President's Day I did a 50 mile ride recreational ride and it felt easy (although still very cold). My bike has taken a beating this winter and needed a good overhaul. My LBS was begging me to go ahead and bring it in before the spring rush, so that's where it's been while I've been away on a business trip. I can't wait to get back home and pick it up! I'm so ready for more long rides. I have new shoes, new pedals, and new cleats that are calling my name.
We're having another snowstorm. When I left the house this morning, the snow was well over my boot-tops, perhaps six or eight inches deep. I struggled through our parking lot, which had just been plowed and only had maybe an inch of freshly-fallen snow on it. But when I got to the road, it hadn't been plowed at all; it was all deep rutted car tracks through untouched snow.
Even so, I did my best. I downshifted and used all of my bike handling skills to stay upright. This meant that I ended up weaving all over the road in my attempts to stay upright -- my tracks look like a drunk's walk, meandering all over as I rode with the way my wheels wanted to go. Ultimately I failed as, going around a corner, I simply tipped over and fell into a huge snowbank. No harm done. I got up and kept going, but I was simply crawling along, still slipping all over and every second only a heartbeat away from hitting the ground again. It was hard going, scary going, and miserable with snow flying everywhere and 15-mph steady north winds pushing me around.
Finally, after 20 minutes, I reached downtown -- 1.25 miles from home. I'd kept going in the hopes that the main street and Route 20 would be cleared enough for me to make decent time. I was disappointed. The roads weren't much better, and there was more traffic, so I couldn't maneuver as much. All the packed-down car-rutted snow was so slippery, so difficult to ride in, I spent every second just trying to stay upright. Looking at the roads, thinking about the 10 or more miles ahead of me, I had to admit this was foolish.
I gave up.
Not that I couldn't have made it; it's just that at a 4-mph pace, it would've taken me 3 hours to get to work. Once at work, I would've had to leave fairly early to make it home for an appointment I have this evening. I might've gotten in 4 hours of work all day. Frankly, I made my best time when I was walking and pushing my bike. It took me another almost 20 minutes to get home again, trudging and shoving my bike along most of the way. An SUV passed me on my way back; the driver rolled down his window and shouted, "You're nuts!" -- not even in a mad way, just in a matter-of-fact tone. I had to agree with him.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3562/...b5714f80a1.jpg
I hope winter is almost over. :(
Sorry for all those still stuck in winter madness - and that's quite a photo of your commuter in snow kfergos! You get to chalk that one up to learning more about how you, your bike and the weather interact!
Can't quite believe it's DST already, and just 2 full work weeks 'til the official end of our challenge! I'm once again grateful for it, because I'm pretty close to my goal and this group helps me stay motivated to ride when it'd be easier to get in the car -- I've got to hit almost all of my days left to make it, so I better get to sleep now so I'm ready to ride in the morning! ;)