January rides -- outdoors!!

[ny biker]

I just finished my first bike ride of 2014. I had expected it to be too cold to ride outside today, especially since Santa did not bring me the Firewall tights I had asked him for. But I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was sunny and 49 degrees with no wind chill this afternoon, so I pumped up the tires and went for a spin. I decided to keep it simple and just do loops around my neighborhood with some hill repeats to get the legs working. I rode for about an hour.

All in all it was nice, though my feet were cold for much of the ride. Right now I'm having a bit of a post-ride asthma-chest-tightness thing, but my lungs did not hurt during the ride, and I'm getting over a cold, so I'm more concerned about solving the cold-foot problem. I expect warmer legs will help -- today I wore Shebeest capris under my Midzero tights, and they worked pretty well, but still left my lower legs a bit cold. I ordered the Firewall tights from TE a couple of days ago and they shipped out last night so I should have them soon.

[Thorn]

Congrats on starting the New Year with a ride! I am truly jealous.

But...sigh....I won't be riding until Monday (no winter joy riding this far north this year) and it will be my coldest yet. December this year was like January of years past. Monday morning I'm looking at around -16F with a daytime high of only 0F. Arrgggh....at least there won't be snow. I can handle the cold, but snow still scares me.

May the descent to colder temperatures turn around so we can all ride with joy!

[ny biker]

I am really not liking this winter so far!! I hope the colder-than-normal trends to not continue.

Fortunately we're not expecting much snow with the coastal storm that will hit the northeast tomorrow night, but they're calling for a blizzard on Long Island where my parents live, so I am concerned for them. And then we will all have very cold temps to end this week. Brrrrrrr.

[gocard]

I also had my first ride of the year - 25 miles on an old mountain bike I hadn't ridden in at least 6 years. Now that I mainly ride my road bike, the mountain bike certainly feels more sluggish. I feel like I burned more calories on the bumpy trail than on the road although Mapmyride claims otherwise! Happy new year, everyone! May 2014 be filled with lots of great rides and smiles.

[Catrin]

They are calling for highs next week of ZERO and perhaps not THAT high!!!!!!!!!!! Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeekkkkkkk (pulling warm blankets over my head and not coming out until spring)

[Veronica]

8.5 miles for us on the mountain bikes. Gorgeous weather, low sixties. I'll put more about the ride in mountain biking.

Veronica

[Crankin]

Yup, tomorrow night through Sat. AM is going to be around 0 F or less. Snowstorm starting at 4 AM, going through Friday at noon. I already cancelled my morning session, a meeting, and definitely the afternoon. Tomorrw's snow is supposed to be intermittent, getting heavy tomorrow night, but I have about 130 miles of driving and there is no way I am doing that, even in a small storm.
Can't wait to start my new job, and this is one of the big reasons!
But, the x country skiing will be awesome this weekend, with temperatures rising after the morning on Saturday.

[AppleTree]

It's raining for sure, but I thought "why not?"... It felt good to be out for a short errand ride (8 miles) on the North Creek Trail today. Temps are in the 40s, so not bad at all. At least the PNW isn't in the polar vortex.

[Thorn]

As I toyed with riding or not, I kept thinking of the woman who rode to the South Pole. Now *that* was impressive. If she could do that, what's a commute to work?

It is funny, the colder I successfully ride, the more I realize that the bike really is year-round vehicle now that we have LED lights and studded tires. Sure, it is cold, but at those temps you can't ride very fast so it doesn't get colder by biking. I admit, tho, that if there is a more than an inch or two of snow I'll take the bus -- I just don't feel confident riding in the snow.

As for what I wore...
Core: 3 layers of wool (Ibex Shak-weight) + winter cycling jacket for wind protection
Head: Wool beanie + hood of one of the Shaks + wool Buff over the chin; for the nose, the LPH patented "nose buff" -- best tip I ever got; safety goggles
Legs: Boure thermal knickers and Showers Pass thermal pants
Feet: 2 pairs of SmartWool knee socks + thermal hiking boots (I switch to flat pedals in the winter)
Hands: Shak-weight glove liners and Bar Mitts (seriously, just glove liners, the road bike Bar Mitts are crazy warm)

Sometimes in the winter I think I spend more time gearing up than I do the actual riding.

[ridebikeme]

Got out mid afternoon yesterday, although had to ride the roads as opposed to the trails. Like most parts of the country, the temps/rain have left the trails where once you step foot on them you end up crashing through the top layer to 6-7 inches below. But all of that will change when either a snowmobile goes through or they groom. Either way, the roads are enough of a challenge with 2-3" thick ice on the sides.

Took the FATBIKE out and had a blast! Temps were about 15 when I started with wind anywhere from 5-15MPH.

I wore:
Gortex shell
Smartwool top
Windproof vest

swix base layer on the bottom
Swix Universal pants

Toko Lobster mitts... the best that I have ever found!
Wool Buff
LG skull cap
Thin Smartwool footies
Ficsher OTX boots... like Crankin, I generally switch to flats in the winter.
+++ I did just buy a pair of Toko Boot Covers, much heavier than any of the cycling booties I've ever seen, so will try them along with my Mavic shoes here soon.

[ny biker]

As I toyed with riding or not, I kept thinking of the woman who rode to the South Pole. Now *that* was impressive. If she could do that, what's a commute to work?

It is funny, the colder I successfully ride, the more I realize that the bike really is year-round vehicle now that we have LED lights and studded tires. Sure, it is cold, but at those temps you can't ride very fast so it doesn't get colder by biking. I admit, tho, that if there is a more than an inch or two of snow I'll take the bus -- I just don't feel confident riding in the snow.

As for what I wore...
Core: 3 layers of wool (Ibex Shak-weight) + winter cycling jacket for wind protection
Head: Wool beanie + hood of one of the Shaks + wool Buff over the chin; for the nose, the LPH patented "nose buff" -- best tip I ever got; safety goggles
Legs: Boure thermal knickers and Showers Pass thermal pants
Feet: 2 pairs of SmartWool knee socks + thermal hiking boots (I switch to flat pedals in the winter)
Hands: Shak-weight glove liners and Bar Mitts (seriously, just glove liners, the road bike Bar Mitts are crazy warm)

Sometimes in the winter I think I spend more time gearing up than I do the actual riding.

What is the nose buff??

[AppleTree]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who wondered what a nose buff was. I actually googled it, thinking it was a new piece of bike gear I hadn't heard of, and you know what the result was? A link to this thread on TE!! LOL. :- o

[Thorn]

Ah, the "nose buff".

It is an invention of TE-er LPH (she of the cold north in Norway). Cut a old, ugly buff in 1/2 (one 1/2 for you and one for your spousal unit who will also need one). Fold your mini-Buff in 1/2 and then in 1/2 again. It is now about 1-2" in size -- rather like a head band. So, wrap it around the head so that it over your ears and your nose. Fold the part over the nose in half again so you can breathe. Voila. Nose buff.

The nose buff is amazingly effective. The nose stays warm; the cheeks are covered; the ears get a little more cover, but you have enough air flow so that it doesn't get nastily wet.

Over the years I've gotten many a great recommendation and ideas on TE, but the nose buff really rocks. And, apparently, found only on TE!

[I found a pick using google image ... http://blog.fitzgeraldsbicycles.com/?attachment_id=5822 but the wearer is missing that extra fold on the nose ]

[ny biker]

Ah, the "nose buff".

It is an invention of TE-er LPH (she of the cold north in Norway). Cut a old, ugly buff in 1/2 (one 1/2 for you and one for your spousal unit who will also need one). Fold your mini-Buff in 1/2 and then in 1/2 again. It is now about 1-2" in size -- rather like a head band. So, wrap it around the head so that it over your ears and your nose. Fold the part over the nose in half again so you can breathe. Voila. Nose buff.

The nose buff is amazingly effective. The nose stays warm; the cheeks are covered; the ears get a little more cover, but you have enough air flow so that it doesn't get nastily wet.

Over the years I've gotten many a great recommendation and ideas on TE, but the nose buff really rocks. And, apparently, found only on TE!

[I found a pick using google image ... http://blog.fitzgeraldsbicycles.com/?attachment_id=5822 but the wearer is missing that extra fold on the nose ]

I was actually going to experiment with something like this -- I hate hate hate having any clammy scarf or balaclava or neck gaitor in front of my mouth when it's cold, but sometimes my nose really needs to be covered. Thanks ladies!!!

[lph]

Ah, the "nose buff".

It is an invention of TE-er LPH (she of the cold north in Norway). Cut a old, ugly buff in 1/2 (one 1/2 for you and one for your spousal unit who will also need one). Fold your mini-Buff in 1/2 and then in 1/2 again. It is now about 1-2" in size -- rather like a head band. So, wrap it around the head so that it over your ears and your nose. Fold the part over the nose in half again so you can breathe. Voila. Nose buff.

The nose buff is amazingly effective. The nose stays warm; the cheeks are covered; the ears get a little more cover, but you have enough air flow so that it doesn't get nastily wet.

Over the years I've gotten many a great recommendation and ideas on TE, but the nose buff really rocks. And, apparently, found only on TE!

[I found a pick using google image ... http://blog.fitzgeraldsbicycles.com/?attachment_id=5822 but the wearer is missing that extra fold on the nose ]

I am so flattered! Suddenly came over this. But I have to say - this may be inspired by me, but is actually your own invention.

My "nose buff" is just a regular buff (full-length), pulled up over my nose all the way to under my eyes, with a hole carefully cut out for my nose and mouth. (Cut carefully and just a little at a time, the hole expands quite quickly). I use it on really cold days when I need to cover the skin on my cheeks and face all the time, but need to breathe freely. I keep it there by using a little vaseline under my eyes and "gluing" the buff to it...

Congrats on a brand-new winter gear idea!

lessee if I can find a photo... here's one. In this one I'm wearing a thin merino balaclava over a green Buff.