We do winter in Minneapolis
 

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...9020b49b19.jpg


At least we had a few months with skinny tires

We got some snow today but I waited too long and it melted at which point I wasn't in the mood to go for a cold wet ride. Around here its like November showed up 3 weeks early. Well below seasonal the past half week, many of the artificial lakes around town are iced over already. Should be ice tomorrow, but I don't want to switch to studded tires yet since its all going to melt and dry within a day or two. So I guess I'll take my fat bike out which only has studded tires.

For the record ... this was a record snow for Minneapolis on Oct 20 - over 7 inches. And we had 2 or 3 days that hit 80F earlier this month.

Weather in Minneapolis is always interesting :rolleyes:

not mentally prepared for this. More snow tomorrow, though mostly it will pass N of us, it seems.

Thundersnow today at my house ... been a long time since I've seen that.

There was snow in Eau Claire, nothing in Madison. Maybe it's not quite time to hack my way through the weeds and recover my winter bike from the back yard.

Just got our first measurable snow a few days ago here in Fairbanks but I've seen snow fall in all twelve months of the year up here. Of course, the snow in July was up on the Slope, but still. That reminds me, it's supposed to be sunny through the weekend so I need to put the studded tires on my mountain bike.

Howdy, neighbor. I'm in the state below you. Just curious what type of bikes are best for Winter commuting. This will be my first season attempting to commute in these conditions. We got a brush of snow the other day and temps will be near freezing the next few days. I have a Cannondale Quick 1 that I've been using during the Spring/Summer months and looking into buying another bike to handle these next months. Was thinking about a Priority Continuum with belt drive but I'm hesitant in dropping $1200 and gears to boot. Thought about getting a older MTB or a beater that I can trash and not worry about wear and tear. Any suggestion is appreciated since your weather conditions are worst than what Iowans go through.

The belt drive Continuum looks like a great winter bike! But I honestly have a hard time buying a new bike to ride on snow, slush, and road salt.

For winter commuting, I've used my Pugsley (fun but slow); Kona Dew Drop (good, but flat bars are better), and I liked my old 26er MTB best for winter commutes. I made some changes/upgrades: converted to single-speed and mounted Top Contact Winter. Full fenders would be better that these MTB fenders. Sadly, this old Marin suffered a cracked frame at the bottom bracket a few years back and needed to be retired.

In general, simple is better:

• belt-drive is great if you can find it or single-speed - derailleurs are a pain in the wet salty conditions
• disc brakes are better than rim brakes
• winter tires are great for snow and ice - studs if you get lots of ice or Top Contact if you get mostly cold/wet conditions
• platform pedals are generally better, but I liked straps to keep feet from slipping off the pedals

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...15c3516f30.jpg

I hope this is helpful, let me know if you have any follow up questions ... I'm happy to help!

Kona Dew Plus

Found this bike at my LBS. The price range is slightly more than what I'm willing to pay on a used bike and no disc brakes. It's similar to my Cannondale Quick and I'm spoiled by disc brakes especially during Winter months. In the end, I think an older used bike I can modify and trash will be my go-to ride while I save up for my next toy. While bike shopping, I came across the Poseidon X which caught my attention due to its specs, dual purpose usage and price tag. Not sure what you've heard or read about this unknown bike brand but it might be my next purchase for bikepacking. Thanks for the tips.

Pugs2xLove That Kona Dew has disc brake ... it should ... my 2009 Kona Dew Drop has discs (see pic below). I think the price on the linked bike is high - I bought my Kona new for $520 (I did buy in 2010 so it was last year's model). I really enjoy my Dew Drop, it has over 20,000 miles on it. It was my go-to commuter bike before moving to a home office in 2015, now I like it for wet miles and errands.


https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...0f411c0753.jpg



The Poseidon X looks like a great bike and a great price!

Now that you mentioned it, I think that Kona has disc brakes (the photo or angle weren't great) and the site has no description of the bike. Nevertheless, that $550 price tag is high or else I'd snatch it in a heartbeat. We got some snow in Central Iowa yesterday but most of it melted today. Now it's just cold and will be in the 20's when I head out to work in the morning. My work commute is about 14 miles each way with mostly trail but I do have a few miles of roadway and a few hills to climb so single speed won't work. Simplicity is better in some cases just not mine.

My old commuter route ranged from 9 miles of all rolling roads to 14 miles of all rail-trails. On the rolling road route, gears were great - but when my old Marin needed a new derailleur, so I opted for a single-speed adapter with a spinners ratio for climbing and freewheel the descents. I'd say the SS option is a personal choice, derailleurs can be cleaned and kept going for many years and on a bike like this, they are cheap to replace.

https://www.dsmstreetcollective.org/shop-hybrids

That Kona Dew is still available and I dig the components on it just not that high price especially used. What do you think about the Trek 720 or Antelope 820 on the second row? The price is range is what I have in mind plus all the accessories to Winterized it. This week will be in the 70's here but after next Sunday, it's getting ugly so I don't have much time for bike shopping.

Trek 820
 

Interesting they refer to the 820 as a hybrid, though it's geometry has much more in common with an older tour bike/modern hybrid than it does to a modern rigid mtb. Anyway, it's a good bike. I use one for playing on, and vacation commuting. Fun bike, I'm able to spin it up to a nice speed rather easily. I did modernize it to a 2x10 and new wheels, but it was certainly quite rideable as it was.
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...3e99285e53.jpg

Nice bike. Do you think the 820 is a good bike for Winter commute then? 14 miles each way with some hills mostly trails and about 4 miles on the road. I plan on putting studded tires and fenders to help combat black ice since trails aren't normally cleared.

Trek 820
 

It would easily do that. The triple it came with would surely get you the gears you need for hills.

Good to know. Thank you for responding. I'll have to check with the seller to see what components have been replaced/upgraded. I am leaning towards that 820 bike.

Got a whip of snow this evening in Iowa and I rode in it on my Cannondale Quick from work home. Currently have all season Marathon tires on my Cannondale and the ride was wet and slushy but it handled just fine. I'm sure it will freeze overnight and it's going to rain all day until Wednesday so I'll stay off the bike for time being. Guess I'll need to get that Winter bike and studded tires sooner than later.