How dyed-in-the-wool as a commuter?
 

I did twelve years all seasons to work and wondered how many folks do that? I only bike about eight miles, but eight miles in winter can be tough. After semi-retiring I am less dedicated. At 0200 a few days ago it was already 78* in Misery and I decided to drive. What a wuss. I guess I'm not as dedicated as I used to be. I'm 67 and have a few wrecked body parts so it is interesting. But that is the way life can be. How about you folks? I can't believe I misspelled dyed but it was pointed out in a humorous way. Be Well. Bluesfrog

I only ride in good weather. The driver in my area are bad enough in good weather. They are dangerous in bad weather and in the dark. The first rain of every Fall has a lot of them in the ditch. They are not smart enough to slow down to the distance that their headlights show in the fog and rain.

If I could ride off road to and from work, I would. I won't as long as I am sharing the road with the drivers in my area.

Driving to work in snow or rain here is miserable. Additionally, the road salt rots out your car. Even rain slows cagers to a crawl. No way in hell I would consider taking anything but a bike to work. Dedication has nothing to do with it -- cycling is easier and far more practical. My car is for weekend fun and never sees rain or snow. So, yeah -- twenty-plus years of year round, bike commuting, because it's the easiest way. I kind of admire cagers because of the way they accept suffering.

I'm in the middle. I ride in conditions some wouldn't dream of riding in. And I really think it's not so bad. And yet there are conditions that people ride in that I won't, especially with the surface is slippery with slush or ice.

I was until I wasn't. I commuted by bike and/or mixed mode in the Denver area year-round for a couple of years (6, 36, or 66 miles RT), then year-round in southern California (6 miles RT) then made it a little over a year in Alabama (18 miles RT), got depressed, and drove for about eight months.

Since 2013, I've been year-round, all weather in western Wisconsin, but my commute is a joke (3-4 miles RT). I got rid of the car entirely after a few months. The next commute will be ~19 miles RT in North Carolina. It looks like there are some nice routes, but I'll have a backup vehicle again, so we'll see how that goes.

Violent thunderstorms are probably the biggest deterrent; I can handle most temperatures. Feral dogs and dangerous infrastructure are also a deterrent.

I try to commute by car as much as I can, but when there's snow or freezing rain, I take the car. This year I drove the car a total of 15 times so far. Rain doesn't bother me as I have a shower and clothes dryer at work. I'm still trying to figure out a way to keep my feet dry in heavy rain. My commute is 12 miles one-way. If it was half that distance I wouldn't let the snow or freezing rain bother me either.

I'm 57 and bike commute 9 miles each way sun, rain, snow or ice. My main commuter has long fenders and my old MTB has fenders and wears studded snow tires in the winter. I'm good up to 100F but it rarely gets over 97F officially in Colorado Springs. As of last winter I pushed my cold limit down to 7F from 10F where it's been for a few years.

I have a weekly meeting after work on Mondays so I usually drive on Mondays, and I drive on any other day I have an errand I can't accomplish on the bike due to having to provide lifts for family members or having to ferry items not possible on one of my bikes.

The only other times I drive are illness (seldom), or when my body says "no" louder than my brain says "yes" which isn't too often. Three things that help motivate me are the unpleasantness of afternoon traffic; plus not riding for more than a day makes me cranky. And riding clears my sinuses, so when I don't ride I'm more prone to sinus pressure.

I wouldn't say I'm dedicated as much as not riding is uncomfortable and unpleasant.

You should try to ride your bike more often.

I’m a year ‘round guy but then I’m doing it in what may be the most temperate climate in the country. If I had to face freezing temperatures with snow and ice I might not be so dedicated. Weather wise, the SF Bay Area is about as easy as it gets.

I’ve said before that a rainy ride is not all that bad and frankly sometimes I find it enjoyable. There’s something almost primal about the close connection with nature I experience riding in the rain. I’ve only ever had similar feelings with staring into a campfire or catching a sail full of wind.


-Kedosto

"Dyed" in the wool, please. I'm not ready to die in my wool yet! :lol:

So far, I've been a pretty reliable bike commuter. Started when I got suspended from the bus when I was 13 -- my parents weren't going to reward me with a car ride (14 miles RT) for misbehaving.

Have always ridden since then, including 10 years of 40+ miles RT which included a 47 month stint where I never drove once.

For the past 7 years, have 15 miles RT with 1k of climbing and have never driven. But I'm healthy, so it's not a big deal. We'll see how I'm doing in a few years since I'm only 52 right now.

FWIW, I think merino wool is da bomb for cold and wet weather.

Is wool dye especially tenacious?

i've been a 4-season bike commuter in chicago for over 11 years now (i'm 43).

my one-way distance has varied between 4.6 and 15.2 miles. currently i'm at 8.0 miles.

i'm fairly dedicated, but there is some weather that will put me on the train:

- active thunderstorms (i'm a bit lightning phobic)

- polar vortex BS when wind chills plummet into the -50s (F that)


most importantly to me, my bike commuting/transportation cycling allows us to be one-car family, even as we've grown from 2 to 4 people over the past 5 years.

i pray that we can keep a 2nd car at bay forever (the real money saving in bike commuting is not in using a car less, it's in not having the car in the first place).

Compared with painting on the surface, yes.

In AZ, all year, no problem. My commute ranged from 14 to slightly over 20 miles each way.

In KS, I was lucky to be able to commute 6-8 months, depending on how early the first ice storm hit. I hate the cold, and the ice and ruts in the streets would last for months, since they didn't use salt at all.

In Seattle, 12 months, but there was usually a 2-3 week period in the winter where it just wasn't feasible, and again, I hate the cold, and wasn't willing to risk putting studded tires on my bike just for that few weeks.

Southern OR was about the same as Seattle. I was about to pull the trigger on a trike, since it wasn't terribly cold, but was cold enough that random bits of ice would cover the trail. (Then I moved back to AZ....)

Now that I'm in UT, I have my 2 wheel bent for most of my commuting, and a velomobile for when the streets get sketchy, and it gets cold. It can be made fully enclosed for really cold weather, and with 3 wheels, I don't have any issues with a little snow or ice. If there's a lot of snow on the ground, I'll just drive, but even with the really bad snow we had this past winter, they do such a good job salting and plowing that I don't think I'll miss too many days do to weather. :)

impressive history, you can be rightly proud. I did a full year back in 2009-10? regardless of weather, but not every day. I was planning on continuing, until circumstances outside my control, threw a stick in my spokes. I ain't as good as I once was, but you can't take away my glory days

Merino Wool or Cashmere. Preferably from Salvation Army. I'm a wool commuter from below freezing to 80ish (although thin wool can go warmer). Wonderful temperature range, sweat wicking, no smell fabric.

Died in the wool, wool wearing commuter.

i have commuted year round for about 7 years I guess now. I have 11 miles one way (straightest shot) So I am careful with the weather but have ridden as low as 13F and HOT and humid.

I am a teacher; so I don't have to go in every day in the summer (but it sure seems that there are a lot of meetings scheduled for the summer months). Other than that, I ride every day.

I have been a year round, 8 miles each way commuter for 3 years. I don't ride below 30 degrees or if it is raining in the morning. I don't have to skip for rain or cold very often. If I skip it is most likely because I have something to do after work.

I absolutely love bike commuting. It has made a huge difference in my health and attitude.

Commuting rain or shine in PNW over 7 years. Snow and dangerous icy conditions I've stopped riding in recently, just not worth the risk as my routes are hilly!

I've been commuting year-round for a few years in Madison WI. Temps can get down to -15 F under normal conditions, and last year a freak "polar vortex" got us down to -27 F, the coldest I can remember. Oddly enough I was at home that week because my workplace closed and I was caring for a relative.

For me, it's an adventure. Folks do all sorts of weird things, for me, it's riding my bike in all weather. My commute is only 4 miles each way with minimal hills, and I dress pretty warm, so I'm not really in any grave danger even if I have to get off my bike and walk. Folks in the north work real jobs outdoors in much more extreme weather, and it's just a fact of life.

For heat, I slow down. For rain, I have rain gear, or I just risk getting wet.

This winter will be my first with a dedicated winter bike, but I've been using studded tires on my regular bikes. So far, I've really had no bike related problems.

I was a year-round all weather bike comuter for 3 years until I took the company's early retirement package.

Before that I drove to work for 14 years. I hated it because it was only 4.5km from home but I couldn't find a safe way to cross one of the freeways by bike.

Then on bike-to-work day 2014, I took a vacation day and went downtoen to the event. A volunteer handed out free Toronto Cycling maps. I studied it and found a safe way to get to work crossing that freeway. And the rest is history.

20 years commuting year long, 20 kms round trip. But it's on flat roads,and in a mild climate - it never snows where I live.

How died in the wool as a commuter? I have described myself as a “decades-long, year-round cycle commuter” of variable intensity, but always with enthusiasm. For the past few years, circa 2012 to currently, I have been hampered by some medical maladies and cycling injuries, including a 2012 accident that kept me off work for three months, and off the bike for five.

However I have described my most serious impediment: