Winter is right around the corner
Originally Posted by
gecho
-22C [-8°F] yesterday morning, then today got up to +4C and its still above freezing at 11 pm. Much of the fresh snow we got is melting, but it is supposed to be cool down again tomorrow afternoon upping the ice factor…
I tried the new highway near me earlier in the week before the new snow, but they put a ton of salt on it.
When the road is dry passing vehicles kick up clouds of powdered salt. Salt isn't used much around here since it gets too cold for it, but the highway is maintained by a private company. Maybe they are just trying to make a good first impression and will dial back on salt use soon.
Originally Posted by
NoControl
-4C [25°F] here this morning.
They use a lot of salt here, but definitely not enough to send clouds of it as you are riding. I think if it got to that point, there would be outrage from the environmentalist-types. As it is, they don't salt a lot because the small towns simply cant afford it.
My town has only 1300 people.
We pay high property taxes, but its never enough to include the luxuries of unbroken pavement and bare asphalt.
Originally Posted by
Jim from Boston
… For me, it takes a while to make the transition between warm and cold and vice versa. As for the bicycle, the definitive transition to winter is mounting the studded tires, early in December, and removal signals winter is over, usually in late March.
PS: And I transition entirely to the beater bike with the studded tires until a late winter storm thoroughly rinses off the road salt; then I bring out the pristine carbon fiber road bike.
Today (11/9/19) it was 23°F (-5°C), and snow is predicted for Tuesday (11/12). That still seems a little early for studded tires, and I anticipate a light dusting with “frictionable” underlying pavement, but I still would not ride my road bike with 25C slicks if this early snow occurs.
Even with dry roads in the Winter, after the first salting I still think that salt dust can be corrosive.
Originally Posted by
Jim from Boston
”
Protecting bike from salt and rust in commutes”
So too I don’t bother cleaning my beater either. We live in a small downtown condo, and I don’t have easily accessible facilities, like a garage.
If the bike, mainly the drive train is particularly filthy, my bike shop one block away does a good cleaning.
My beater is a good quality aluminum Specialized Diverge, and I bought it as a good-riding beater that I would nonetheless subject to the elements, without the distress of messing up my high end Specialized S-Works. 