Bike Forums

Bike Forums (https://www.bikeforums.net/forum.php)
-   Commuting (https://www.bikeforums.net/forumdisplay.php?f=20)
-   -   2014!! How was your commute today? (https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=928265)

mstraus 01-23-14 11:56 AM

Today was my first commute of 2014 (unfortunately a number of factors made it hard or impossible to commute earlier this year). Actually first in a month considering my last day in the office for 2013 was the week before Christmas. A bit slower then normal, partially due to being a bit out of shape but also a nasty NE headwind for part of my ride.

Felt good to be on the bike, thought the temp changes, from ~43 at my house to almost 60 at the office made it interesting to keep a good temp.

timvan_78 01-23-14 12:04 PM

0degC (32F) and clear & calm. It's not completely dark for the entire AM commute now!

The components on my commuter are all getting worn (chain, cassette, gears, rims, BB) so last night i bought a used 2010 cannondale caad8 from a dude that NEVER rides. Factory grease was still on the chain and the cassette was bright. I rode it this AM and it's nice--needs some customization to suit me, but nice. Might give it to the wife instead. We'll see. At least I'm not worried about my rims self-destructing.

MEversbergII 01-23-14 08:26 PM

Pretty ****ty. Lack of snow tyres meant I had to hump it about 1/4 of the way before mounting up and taking off.

M.

zacster 01-23-14 08:44 PM

Horrible. I had to drive 2.5 hours each way.

mister 01-23-14 11:55 PM

Nearly got sideswiped. Some a-hole passed with inches to spare, then continued drifting to the shoulder nearly pushing me into the grate that covers the storm drains. I slapped the rear panel of his minivan but the guy was oblivious. Whatever... The guy was in a minivan, that's punishment enough.

acidfast7 01-24-14 04:43 AM

Good and back in the saddle again after two days of car usage due to maintenance issues.

dcb23 01-24-14 06:00 AM

11F -12C with a strong headwind. My gloves were just not designed for these temps...nor my shoes!

The ice is starting to dissapear which is good but there are stil a few slippery patches. I passed one other bike commuter coming in this morning. Not a single runner spotted.

thechemist 01-24-14 06:47 AM

-18C or 0F ~10miles as I had to turn back. I was dressed fine except for maybe around my butt/hips but my lights weren't going to last the commute and my computer and powermeter were on the fritz. Kinda sucks turning back home to hop in the car but I learned a few valuable things about my gear in 0F.

Idkutet 01-24-14 06:54 AM

YEAH !! The north wind sleep in this morning !! It's Oklahoma, I'm sure it let me done on the way home ��

note to self -- wear eye protection when the temps drop to 3 degrees.

tarwheel 01-24-14 07:25 AM

Frigid Friday! That's what the local news media were calling it. So, of course, I had to ride and set a new record cold commute for me (12 F). It wouldn't have been so bad except for the wind, and the windchill temp was below zero. Fortunately I had a tailwind about half the way to work, but the stretches where I had cross and headwinds were brutal. My water bottle was frozen solid by the halfway point to work. Not sure if I can take temperatures much colder without buying some warmer gloves and shoe covers, but it probably isn't worth the cost because we haven't had weather this cold in more than 10 years. No point spending $100+ on gear that I will rarely if ever need.

spivonious 01-24-14 08:12 AM

Another day, another drive. Side roads still have large patches of packed snow and ice, and none of the shoulders on my regular route have been cleared. Hopefully things improve a bit over the weekend before we get hit with another frigid blast next week.

I'm seriously considering getting a trainer so I can keep my legs somewhat in shape.

wphamilton 01-24-14 08:16 AM

Brr. 9° Everything was fine except the left hand - same gloves but right hand warm, left hand stinging and unresponsive numb. Strange. I'm noticing now that my wrist also feels stingy. Did I forget to pull one layer up to the wrist? Wrist warmers, is that something in your bag of tricks?

I guess I should have put my handlebar shield back on. Those who do this consistently, you have my respect.

arsprod 01-24-14 09:45 AM

another day, another low temp record, -6F -21C with 15mph headwind... yeah, it sucked

tarwheel 01-24-14 10:04 AM


Originally Posted by wphamilton (Post 16436915)
Brr. 9° Everything was fine except the left hand - same gloves but right hand warm, left hand stinging and unresponsive numb. Strange. I'm noticing now that my wrist also feels stingy. Did I forget to pull one layer up to the wrist? Wrist warmers, is that something in your bag of tricks?

I guess I should have put my handlebar shield back on. Those who do this consistently, you have my respect.

What kind of shifters do you have on your bike? I do much more shifting with my right hand, rear derailleur so it tends not to get as cold or numb. In contrast, my left hand is more static because I don't have to shift the front derailleur as much. I notice more of a difference when riding my bikes with STIs than the ones with bar-end shifters as well. With STIs, my hands tend to stay parked on the hoods most of the time. With bar-end shifters, I am moving my hands around more and they get less numb and cold.

trailmix 01-24-14 10:20 AM

Another cool morning at -6°F and 15mph headwind. Broke a plastic toe clip when it hit the ground so I was riding with bits dangling.

wphamilton 01-24-14 12:16 PM


Originally Posted by tarwheel (Post 16437158)
What kind of shifters do you have on your bike? I do much more shifting with my right hand, rear derailleur so it tends not to get as cold or numb. In contrast, my left hand is more static because I don't have to shift the front derailleur as much. I notice more of a difference when riding my bikes with STIs than the ones with bar-end shifters as well. With STIs, my hands tend to stay parked on the hoods most of the time. With bar-end shifters, I am moving my hands around more and they get less numb and cold.

Could be - Sora brifters - but I didn't shift much on the right side either. Maybe those first few shifts get the blood flowing and it builds from there.

enigmaT120 01-24-14 12:53 PM

29 degrees, with the moon and stars out! I love it. Three cars passed me in 9 miles. I'm getting off work early this afternoon and will get to take a longer ride home in the sunshine. I hope I can remember the route when I can actually see stuff around me.

timvan_78 01-24-14 05:06 PM

Awesome. Clear, calm, a couple degrees above freezing. I rode the new (to me) 2010 CAAD8 again, with my own clipless pedals/shoes this time. Fun!

I havent even had time to take the dust off the frame since its 4 year hibernation in the previous owner's garage. lol.

The poor bike probably doesn't know what hit it...

redvette 01-25-14 11:26 AM

Please Oklahoma, make up your mind!!! Yesterday was -3 and today is 57 deg. I prefer the latter, but It get tiring always packing the thermals. Rant over...

dcb23 01-27-14 06:02 AM

Calm before the Polar Vortex returns...41F / +5 C, tKing care of much of the ice but around noon today the cold returns with a vengence so my homebound commute will be much different.

trailmix 01-27-14 06:49 AM

For me, today was the hardest commute of the year. Maybe because it was 44°F yesterday and today was 19°F with a 22mph headwind. Black ice was really bad in spots but somehow my tires never slipped-lucky I guess.

tarwheel 01-27-14 08:08 AM

Warmest morning commute in weeks, with temps in the low 40s. I paid for the warmer temps, however, with a stiff headwind out of the SW. The weather this week is looking like a near repeat of last week, with another winter storm forecasted for Tuesday night. Hopefully it will hold off long enough for me to ride to work tomorrow. Last Tuesday I drove because forecasters said the snow/sleet would start mid-afternoon but it held off until evening. Right now, the forecasters are saying snow won't start here until tomorrow night, but they are notoriously bad about predicting any kind of precipitation around here, particularly snow.

acidfast7 01-27-14 08:19 AM

great! good to be in the saddle again!

OrionXavier 01-27-14 09:20 AM


Originally Posted by arsprod (Post 16434547)
-3F, -25 with wind chill - new low temp record ride. I waited until almost 9a to leave hoping the temps would rise with the sun but they didn't budge, actually got colder because the wind picked up. All in all it wasn't a bad ride just really slow and I had to stop twice because of fogging. I'm discovering there's a threshold of fogging issues - I have it figured out to about 15, below that is another story. And it's official, one of my work colleagues said "you're a f$@%in idiot!"

Same here, at least -25F wind chill while biking. That was last week. Currently sick with the flu from that ride.

Yesterday, about 52F. Today, -12F with wind chill (excluding additional wind chill while biking). Can't go very fast since there's some issue with my chain and/or rear derailleur. I'm quickly realizing that I need a single speed bike for Winter..

BTW for your fogging issues I would recommend "CLARITY DEFOG it". I first started using "Jaws Quick Spit" but it didn't last very long. One Clarity Defog application lasts about 10 days. I wear a balaclava and ski goggles, so most of my breath goes straight into the goggles causing them to fog (without anti-fog treatment). It also prevents most of the condensation from freezing at the upper portion of my goggles next to the air vents, when wind chills are brutal.

dramiscram 01-27-14 10:30 AM

A lot of snow and Wind so no bike for today and probably no bike for the second week in a row. :cry:


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 09:24 AM.


Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.