How much wind can you endure?

[redrhodie]

It's always windy on the roads I ride. I usually don't ride if there's a small craft advisory. I'm kind of a small craft .

A more aero bike really helps, as does tight fitting clothes. IMO, the worst thing you can do is wear a windbreaker on a bike. It's like wearing a sail, and if it's a headwind, you're going to be fighting hard!

[Miranda]

It's always windy on the roads I ride. I usually don't ride if there's a small craft advisory. I'm kind of a small craft .

A more aero bike really helps, as does tight fitting clothes. IMO, the worst thing you can do is wear a windbreaker on a bike. It's like wearing a sail, and if it's a headwind, you're going to be fighting hard!

I had to google "small craft advisory" to curiously figure out how many sail wind knots that is in miles per hour. Seems like about the 26 mph mark the advisory kicks in. Some winter pounds I'm still working off, but normally I'm more of a small craft too, lol. I never thought about the lose windbreaker gear. Being more aero does help. Thx.

[mimitabby]

Last year i did a ride, I think it was about 20 mph. It felt like riding into a wall when we were going into the wind. Even down hill was a chore. After 20 miles of that, we turned around and went back. My legs were so sore from the exertion that the return with a tailwind was not fun. So wind is a heckuva lot more than "mental" if it's terribly windy, I won't do a long ride. On my commute, it's not so bad, because it's short and circular.

[Geonz]

When I've done some of those windy rides on the prairie with our club I've noticed that we'll go out as a group and fight it nobly, with a good paceline... and then at the turnaround point the group splits into the "We can REST now!" group in the back and the "We can FLY now!" group in the front.
*Some* of that is mental but most of it's in the legs and lungs... maybe

[redrhodie]

I had to google "small craft advisory" to curiously figure out how many sail wind knots that is in miles per hour. Seems like about the 26 mph mark the advisory kicks in. Some winter pounds I'm still working off, but normally I'm more of a small craft too, lol. I never thought about the lose windbreaker gear. Being more aero does help. Thx.

Thanks! I was actually going to look that up myself.

Also, if it's windy, but it's quiet, that means it's a tailwind. I sit upright and use my body like a sail. I don't know if riding the drops into headwinds makes much difference, but I do that, too.

[spokewench]

10-20 is just a mild breeze in Flagstaff in the Spring. If you don't get 30-40 on some rides, you haven't ridden in Flagstaff in the Spring.

It's not fun, but if you want to ride, you have to do it.

Now, today is the most beautiful day of the year - it is actually probably only 10 mph winds with gusts to 15 - how wonderful

[Zen]

After having actually been blown over, I have something of a wind phobia.
A very low wind tolerance for me.

[DDH]

OMG, I am the biggest weenie ever!!! I can't stand riding in the wind and if it's 15-20 I won't go. I have however told myself that I need to get over that considering that most days are windy around here, and it's usually 15-20. Needless to say between the wind and the rain we have been having, I have not done a lot of riding yet this year.

I'm trying to find my motivation and it's hiding!

[Trekhawk]

I dislike riding in the wind.....lucky we moved to Perth.

Found this info on the internet
"Perth is the third windiest city in the world and enjoys a warm and sunny Mediterranean climate with moderate seas and summer wind speed averages between 11 and 30 knots, provided by the relief of the afternoon sea breeze, known locally as the ‘Fremantle Doctor’."


LOL - when we first got here I was shocked that it was windy everyday. I just had to ride in it because if I waited for it to stop I would never have gone out on my bike. Now Autumn is here I am really enjoying the drop in wind and temperatures.

[sundial]

35 mph is my limit--and only because it occured during the ride. Whatever the windspeed is on weather.com, we can always add at least 3 mph more since we cycle in the farmlands.

Course now I'd rather mtb in the woods on a gusty day.

[SlowButSteady]

Riding in wind is more difficult, like swimming upstream.

Last year I rode a bit on windy days because I was training for triathlons. The biggest one came on a extremely windy day, so I was prepared and made decent-for-me time in spite of it.

However, riding a bicycle is supposed to be fun--that's why I do it in the first place (well, that and fitness).

So I won't ride on windy days.

[lauraelmore1033]

I don't keep track of actual wind speeds, but if I look out the front window and the top of the neighbor's huge douglas fir is bent past the 10:00 or 2:00 position, I might decide to ride the trainer that day or just go for a walk.

[Miranda]

35 mph is my limit--and only because it occured during the ride. Whatever the windspeed is on weather.com, we can always add at least 3 mph more since we cycle in the farmlands.

Course now I'd rather mtb in the woods on a gusty day.

I never thought about that with the farm lands! You can do your weather search by area, but how does the weather web site know you're out in Farmer Bob's freshly plowed field? This is true. I hate the dry dirt blowing off the fields crossways into your lung path when you are already being blown over sideways. Another killer is people burning leaves and brush. OMG, I have asthma, and the wind, plus the fire/smoke/ash being carried by the wind when it's your path through is just YUCK!

[Miranda]

35 mph is my limit--and only because it occured during the ride. Whatever the windspeed is on weather.com, we can always add at least 3 mph more since we cycle in the farmlands.

Course now I'd rather mtb in the woods on a gusty day.

OH! One other thing I forgot to blab about when I quoted this first time was this...

YES! On the last 20+mph day I took out my mt bike instead. That was my EXACT same thought... trees are my friend.

Unfortunately after that ride, I think I might need to sell my mt bike. I've ridden it little. I have some health issues and can't do impactive exercise. My back has been pretty good lately with a long winter of PT. So, "feeling better" I stupidly forgot (without the reminder of constant pain) about the MAJOR difference in mt biking, vs road riding.

WHOAAA... the back is now messed up killing me. Totally diff set of muscle use, and strength skills. Versus to ME, road is more "lungs" (and yes, strength in certain ways... but way diff than the mt bike).

So, that "wind weenie plan" didn't end so well for me at all with plan B. Sad, because it was fun otherwise.

[OakLeaf]

I wussed out of my club ride today, and wind was a large part of the reason.

It was supposed to be an 80 mile ride in honor of one of the members' 79th birthday. There was a 60% chance of rain in the early afternoon. Winds at the airport were steady at 16 mph gusting to 29 by 9:30 in the morning (probably stronger than that out in the country). The route they'd chosen went downwind first, so we'd be headed back straight into the wind, after noon when the winds would be strongest.

Plus, it was appliance recycling day at our solid waste district. I'd thrown a dead dehumidifier in the car on my way out, knowing that if I did the whole distance I wouldn't make it back before the collection closed, but thinking that maybe I could call DH from our breakfast stop to ride his motorcycle up to where I'd parked the car, unload the dehumidifier, and then leave the car for me to bring the bike back.....

So about 15 miles in, I'm going DOWN a 12% grade at about 18 miles an hour because the wind's so strong in my face, and at that point I got hit with a crosswind gust that literally shoved me two feet to my left, luckily no one else was near me. That's when I started thinking about when to cut off and go back. I think some of the older club members weren't going to do the whole distance, but we'd dropped them long before (they pretty much ride their own ride as a separate group, and they may not have even been taking the same route). I couldn't interest anyone else in quitting - but they were all going on about how it wasn't going to be any fun. Well, heck with that, why ride if it's not fun?! With a strong chance of rain in the forecast, I'd had enough of rain last weekend for a good long time. Without all the wind, it might've been possible to push the pace and get back before the strongest chance of rain, but not as it was.

So, I'm a wuss. It never did do more than spit rain. But at least I got rid of the dehumidifier that had been dead in the basement for three or four years. And I had a pretty nice ride, and it was fun, 36 miles total.

I do agree that wind is mostly mental, though. Obviously it takes physical strength, but mentally is where it really beats me down. You never get to a point where you feel like you've conquered something, like you do at the top of a hill. There are no goals, no landmarks - and if it's windy in the flatlands (and I got plenty of that over the winter!) there's no chance to change position in the saddle. It just goes on, and on, and on. And on. And on.