Slightly terrified of commuting in the (Michigan) winter

[beccaB]

I'm in Jackson, and probably too sissified to commute in the winter, especially since I've already proven I'm too sissified to commute at all! I would like to ride at least, especially since I've really gotten into committing myself to doing more miles than I ever did before.

[Grog]

It's absolutely not an answer to your question, but 2 miles is not a very long distance. You could fast-walk it on some days when it's really bad and you don't want to take your bike. I walked 3 km (about 1.9 miles) each way to work in the Montreal winter. Not quite as wet as Chicago perhaps, but often very cold, very humid, and very slushy. Having good boots made it work. It took me just over half an hour, and was very invigorating.

For the other days... you might be inspired by the Chicago Bike Winter folks:
http://bikewinter.org/main.php

[KnottedYet]

Matchmaking!!!

beccaB and Ana, start riding together!!!

This is how TE ride/eat/drink groups get started!

[lph]

Slushy/slippery conditions are the worst, I have to say. Rain is wet (duh) and cold, cold is just cold, but the intermediate cr@p around freezing is the worst of both. And salt eats your bike. That said, you might be surprised at how many commutes are quite nice in winter, and how just a small handful are in bad conditions. Commuting daily you get into a different mindset and dress for bad weather anyway. I'm never as cold as when I wimp out and take the metro, dressed in wimpy thin office clothes..

If you can afford them and you do get ice, I'd recommend at least one studded tire, in front. It gives you much needed traction for steering. It doesn't matter as much if your rear tire slips, you just end up on your feet. You'll want fenders, and you can tack on half a plastic bottle to extend them if they're a bit skimpy. And if you can, hosing your bike down gently, leaving it somewhere warm to dry, and relubing the chain at least once a week, maye even daily, helps greatly against the salt. And you need LIGHTS. The small blinky diode ones are cheap and quite visible, get several and make sure you can be seen from several directions.

[kfergos]

And if you can, hosing your bike down gently, leaving it somewhere warm to dry, and relubing the chain at least once a week, maye even daily, helps greatly against the salt. And you need LIGHTS. The small blinky diode ones are cheap and quite visible, get several and make sure you can be seen from several directions.

I second these suggestions. For lube, be sure to get a nice waterproof "wet" Teflon one -- summertime "dry" lube will just wash right off in nasty weather. If you can't wash your bike off, at least wipe it down thoroughly after EVERY commute, especially the chain, cassette, and chainrings. Rust develops on chains incredibly quickly, and it's impossible to really get off well. With the salt factor, your entire bike will rust if you don't take extra-good care of it.

That said, +1 on the walking option. Ride when it's cold but clear; walk when it's nasty. That would save you lots of $ in the long run on bike repairs. (This winter was so hard on my bike, it would cost $600 to repair it -- that's $100 more than I paid for it 10 years ago!) Around here in MA, anyway, we tend to have enough cold, clear days that winter riding can really be beautiful.

As for warmth, layer up, especially on feet and hands. Experiment and you'll find what works for you.

[beccaB]

I'd like to bike with KnottedYet, but Jackson is 45 minutes by car from Ann Arbor. Maybe we will run into each other somewhere. Are you going to do the Cereal City Century-Knotted?

[beccaB]

Correction-Ana, whos' apparently from Ann Arbor, not Knotted yet. I didn't read it carefully enough.