Winter Riding Thread (December-February) Outside and Inside

[ny biker]

I was also going to suggest a balaclava, Blueberry. It's usually not cold enough for me to wear mine since I generally don't ride when it's much below 40F. But there have been a few times when I really wanted something covering my neck and chin. (I have a couple of friends who start wearing their balaclavas as soon as the temperature drops below 55.) For hands, I make sure my winter gloves have room for wool glove liners inside them. Sometimes my fingertips are painfully cold at first even with the liners, but once I get going and warm up it's nice to be able to take them off.

What are pogies?

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I set up the indoor trainer and rode for about 45 minutes last Thursday after work. I was watching my dvd of Coach Troy on the road in Baltimore County, which usually is enough to keep me from being bored but this time I had to really force myself to keep pedaling. I think the problem was that I'm just not in very good shape right now, so it was more of an effort.

On Saturday I led a 34-mile club ride. It was cloudy and very humid and it had rained earlier in the morning so the roads were wet. Only one person joined me. I knew she was going to be there because we had both agreed in advance that we were looking forward to the chance to pedal off some work-related stress. As luck would have it, the sun came out unexpectedly and dried the roads nicely. It was still humid (more rain was on the way overnight) and with temperatures in the 50s I was overdressed. I kept unzipping my Gore jacket on the uphills and zipping it back up on the downhills.

My legs were pretty tired by the end of the ride. I hope if I'm able to ride steadily over the next few weeks they will get stronger again. Someone please remind me of that when I'm struggling to overcome the laziness and get on the indoor trainer!

[Blueberry]

I was also going to suggest a balaclava, Blueberry.

I'm not sure it would help - it's localized to my forehead. There's a massive downhill on my ride where I'll hit about 35-40 MPH - that's where I'm having the issue. Otherwise, I'm fairly comfortable. Usually I don't do a face covering until the 20's (F). Maybe I need to get a windproof ski headband and put that under my skull cap.

I totally hear you on trainer time being miserable when you're out of shape. I haven't been in the shape I want to be for a long time, and it really does make exercise more of a chore. I'm trying to remind myself of that and get my butt on the bike so it will get better - that's easier said than done some days.

[Crankin]

My skullcap (thermal and otherwise) and my balaclavas cover my forehead. I do have a little head, but I wonder if you experimented with different brands, you might find one that comes down lower.
I have the opposite problem. I have to fold up the edge, so it doesn't roll down over my eyes!

[ny biker]

I've got quite a few Gore Windstopper garments and they do work. From some of the photos here, they seem to have beanies that could cover your forehead (though I guess as Crankin says, that might depend on individual head sizes). But they also have a windstopper headband.

http://www.goreapparel.com/gore-bike...omen/headwear/

[lph]

I was also going to suggest a balaclava, Blueberry. It's usually not cold enough for me to wear mine since I generally don't ride when it's much below 40F. But there have been a few times when I really wanted something covering my neck and chin. (I have a couple of friends who start wearing their balaclavas as soon as the temperature drops below 55.) For hands, I make sure my winter gloves have room for wool glove liners inside them. Sometimes my fingertips are painfully cold at first even with the liners, but once I get going and warm up it's nice to be able to take them off.

What are pogies?

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I'm glad you asked. Here, my bike, with pogies. They're like little insulated tents for your hands

[lph]

I'm glad you asked. Here, my bike, with pogies. They're like little insulated tents for your hands

Oops, can't get the pic to load. Will try later.

[ny biker]

I'm glad you asked. Here, my bike, with pogies. They're like little insulated tents for your hands

Like Bar Mitts?

http://www.barmitts.com/

Come to think of it, I know several people who complain about cold hands during winter bike rides but have never seen anyone with bar mitts.

I'd like something like this for the steering wheel of my car -- driving in winter is when my hands are the coldest.

[lph]

Like Bar Mitts?

http://www.barmitts.com/

Come to think of it, I know several people who complain about cold hands during winter bike rides but have never seen anyone with bar mitts.

I'd like something like this for the steering wheel of my car -- driving in winter is when my hands are the coldest.

Yes, exactly! They're awesome.

[ny biker]

Well, I rode for an hour on the indoor trainer the other night. Since my last indoor effort with one of Coach Troy's "on the road" dvds didn't really hold my attention, I tried something different. I watched a dvd episode of a show that I've been wanting to watch but haven't gotten around to, and just pedaled a medium gear. Every few minutes I shifted up or down a little, but never to anything really hard or really easy. So no difficult intervals, but 60 minutes of solid pedaling.

Tomorrow will be the better weekend day for outdoor cycling here. I will be doing something by myself. A friend posted a club ride but it's more miles than I want to do, too far to drive to get there and it starts at 10:30 which means I'd have to get up way too early for it. As a real night owl, I consider the best thing about winter cycling to be the chance to sleep late and still be able to ride during the most comfortable temperatures of the day, in the early afternoon. And I really feel a need to change up the routine a bit. So I'm planning to ride in a suburban residential area that's not particularly scenic but is not too far from home and does not have lots of car traffic. I used to ride there pretty often and I find it nice to go back from time to time for a contemplative solo ride. As a bonus it will start near a bunch of stores where I can get errands done after the ride. (I am a bit concerned that traffic has increased on part of the route due to some new houses being built. I hope not.)

[Crankin]

The only riding I've done this week is a 5:45 AM spin class, which I convinced DH to come with me to attend on Tuesday.

[ny biker]

Well I've moved on to plan B for today. The forecast last night said it would be windy today and I hate riding on windy days. So I decided to really shake up my routine by sleeping very late. I'll go for a walk later.

Yes I could still grab a quick ride now -- it's not as breezy out there as expected -- and yes I might regret this next week or next month. But I know from experience that I'll enjoy riding more in the spring if I take some lazy days now.

[Crankin]

You sound just like me.
I did not do any other spin classes this week, as my knees are feeling it. I use harder gears than on the road. But, I did a hike yesterday, Power class Wednesday, circuit training class Thursday, and an intense Tabata class today. DH is leaving for his company's annual meeting in Boston tomorrow morning. He stays downtown until Thursday, so tomorrow I am going on a longer hike with friends. I also need the down time from riding, so I am ready in March, with a good attitude.

[emily_in_nc]

Blueberry, I have a fleece headband that covers my forehead and is very warm -- Pearl Izumi brand, I believe, but I am sure there are others. Perhaps that would help?

I had a great ride yesterday! We are back from Mexico, bought a motorhome, and are in a campground in Winter Garden, Florida. There is a lovely paved bike path here that connects to another in the next county west, Lake County, and yesterday after getting the Bike Fridays set back up after our travel back from Mexico, we rode over to the trail (about 2 miles from the campground) and rode it west, for a total of around 23 miles round-trip. It's dead flat here, but the farther north and west you go, the hillier it gets. I never knew Florida had hills! But it's true. The subdivisions we could see from the trail there had names like "Bla Bla Hills" and "XYZ Ridge". Very cool. It was a wonderfully warm day with a high of 79.

A cold front came through last night so it may be awhile until our next ride, since all our cool-weather cycling gear is up in NC. But the next warm day, we'll be out there again. Just lovely! It's gonna take me awhile to build up my strength on the hills again, since I've been riding the flats since the end of July and since 2015 was a very low-mileage year for me. Hoping for much more cycling in the new year!

A couple photos from the trail:

Attachment 17927 Attachment 17928 Attachment 17929

[Crankin]

Congrats on the purchase. Guess you will be wandering now!
There are hills in northern Florida, for sure. I don't know much about the area you are in, though. But, any ride is a good ride.

[ny biker]

Welcome back!