mcours2006

I didn't check the weather forecast for today so it was my usual road bike with the skinny tires. Nice dry ride to work. Here in Southern Ontario we got quite a bit of snow during the day today, so needless to say by quitting time the roads were well-covered with more than just a dusting. Riding was out of the question, not only because of the snow, but the darkness. Would have made the commute more than a little dangerous. So I opted to run the 18-km back home. It took just about 100 minutes, or about twice the normal commute time on my bike, but it felt much more comfortable.

In hindsight though, even if I knew it was going to snow and had brought my winter cross bike with the 35-mm studs I still would not have been comfortable riding under these conditions. It's one thing riding early in the morning when traffic is sparse, but the afternoon rush hour, paired with the lack of daylight and the treacherous road conditions, would have been a good recipe for disaster.

Thanks for reading.

srestrepo

I had a similar situation happen to me yesterday. I'm only 4 miles from home but I rode in, we received what looked like at least three inches of snow. I left work at 6 PM and rode home very very slowly on my slicks...

i was caught off guard by how windy it was. I really couldn't see because the snow was being blown into my eyes. I assumed that people who were driving at speed probably couldn't see me very well and or weren't being very careful in the first snowfall of the year so I took it very easy on the sidewalk. I know, not ideal, but I pedaled calmly past two separate accidents of people who had hit a curb and severely damaged their front wheels.

I'd say you did the right thing being comfortable running. Live to ride another day.

wolfchild

I approve ...it just goes to show how important it is to cross train and maintain physical fitness. You never know what life may throw at you. Most people couldn't even walk that distance, let alone run it...great job.

Jim from Boston

How's this for multi-modal commute?!

Quote:

Originally Posted by mcours2006

I didn't check the weather forecast for today so it was my usual road bike with the skinny tires. Nice dry ride to work.

Here in Southern Ontario we got quite a bit of snow during the day today, so needless to say by quitting time the roads were well-covered with more than just a dusting. Riding was out of the question, not only because of the snow, but the darkness. Would have made the commute more than a little dangerous.

So I opted to run the 18-km back home. It took just about 100 minutes, or about twice the normal commute time on my bike, but it felt much more comfortable.

In hindsight though, even if I knew it was going to snow and had brought my winter cross bike with the 35-mm studs I still would not have been comfortable riding under these conditions. It's one thing riding early in the morning when traffic is sparse, but the afternoon rush hour, paired with the lack of daylight and the treacherous road conditions, would have been a good recipe for disaster.

Thanks for reading.

So true about commuting in the dark, morning vs evening, and the vagaries of the intervening weather. Earlier this week I replied to this Commuting thread, ”It must be winter again":In reply to this Winter Cycling thread “Emergency Winter Cycling Kit?," I posted:I have been impressed by Toronto’s mass transit system. How well can it accommodate you and your bike?

For myself, it’s rare I can leave for home before 7 PM for my 14 mile, off-peak reverse commute, and by that time, traffic is pretty light. Except for about a one mile dark stretch, I feel pretty safe, but peering frequently in my rearview mirror. More often though, I take the Commuter Rail home.

Thanks for the opprtunity to reply. .

mcours2006

Toronto's transit system is great if you live near the downtown core area, or somewhere close to the subway line, and if I lived and worked there it wouldn't be an issues. But because I'm in the suburbs the buses don't run as often and it'd involve a substantial amount of walking it didn't make sense for me to use it. I figure on a day like yesterday it'd have taken me just about as long to use transit as it is to run.

I ended up leaving the bike at work. Conditions were just bad this morning, so I opted to drive there.

None of us are too please with the late fall snow.

mcours2006

Thanks

Several people asked me during the day yesterday what I was planning to do as the snow was coming down, and when I replied that I was going to try to run it they had to think for a moment what that meant. People are easily impressed with feats that are quite ordinary. You get spoiled sitting behind the wheel of your air-conditioned/heated, health-sucking, obesity-promoting, sensory-depriving, air-polluting mobile.

Jim from Boston

Thanks for the reply, Like real estate, for cycle commuting…Location, location, location.PS: Just after posting, I saw this reply to this General Cycling thread, "Do you sometimes feel like you hate your bike?":

Quote:

Quote:

Originally Posted by mcours2006

My bikes are like my children--I love all of them, and the one I favour varies from moment to moment, day to day.

I'll tell you what I hate, though. It's winter! It's the cold, the snow, ice, frozen brake lines, numb toes and fingers. That's what I hate!

alias5000

Same here. I'd call this 'inertial cycling'. Steer when snow allows you to and use your inertia to stay upright when being pushed around. And plan your braking distance according to your inertia.

BobbyG

I am fortunate enough to have bus service less than a quarter mile from my home and office, and I have used that in situations like yours, It can take up to 90 minutes, versus ~50 for the ride home (~40 for the ride to work) and ~25 minutes driving.

My commute is ~15 kilometer and I couldn't imagine running it.

Kudos on that.

How old are you?

Jim from Boston

Quote:

Originally Posted by mcours2006

I didn't check the weather forecast for today so it was my usual road bike with the skinny tires. Nice dry ride to work. Here in Southern Ontario we got quite a bit of snow during the day today, so needless to say by quitting time the roads were well-covered with more than just a dusting.

Riding was out of the question, not only because of the snow, but the darkness. Would have made the commute more than a little dangerous. So I opted to run the 18-km back home.

It took just about 100 minutes, or about twice the normal commute time on my bike, but it felt much more comfortable….

Quote:

Originally Posted by srestrepo

I had a similar situation happen to me yesterday. I'm only 4 miles from home but I rode in, we received what looked like at least three inches of snow. I left work at 6 PM and rode home very very slowly on my slicks...

i was caught off guard by how windy it was. I really couldn't see because the snow was being blown into my eyes. I assumed that people who were driving at speed probably couldn't see me very well and or weren't being very careful in the first snowfall of the year so I took it very easy on the sidewalk.

I know, not ideal, but I pedaled calmly past two separate accidents of people who had hit a curb and severely damaged their front wheels.

I'd say you did the right thing being comfortable running. Live to ride another day.

Quote:

Originally Posted by alias5000

Same here. I'd call this 'inertial cycling'. Steer when snow allows you to and use your inertia to stay upright when being pushed around. And plan your braking distance according to your inertia.

Is this accomplished with studded tires?We had an early snowfall, then rain on Friday (11-16). I’m considering putting on my studded tires today, weeks earlier than usual, but I don’t think I have the time to do so today.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim from Boston

Carbide studs are reputed to last a long time. I ride studded tires all winter from December to March, nearly entirely on bare, wet, and/or salted pavement. My first pair lasted several seasons, and may be still useable.

mcours2006

Thanks for the kudos I was/am a runner for many years before taking up cycling again, so running 18 km was not a big deal as I routinely run this distance on the weekends.

Like most of you who commute by bike I have a plan B, C, and even D. Plan A, of course, is always to ride, but on this occasion running home was my plan B as the accumulation on the ground wasn't so deep to make running on it difficult. Had it become difficult to run (on snow more than an inch or so), I would have resorted to plan C, which was to hitch a ride from a colleague who lives about 6 km from my home. I could run 6 km on one-inch of snow, but 18? No. Plan C would have required me to wait around for an extra hour for the colleague to finish up his work.

Plan D was to take transit. And plan E was to call wife, who did offer to come pick up, but I would never have let it get that far. Driving under those conditions would have been just as bad as riding.

FWIW, I am turning 49 this year, but age is just a number. I am not defined by it

mcours2006

I had taken out my winter studded beast this morning. I thought I'd take it out and ride it for a couple of hours to iron out any issues and to get saddle time. That lasted all of five minutes when I remembered how much I hated riding on studs. But it's ready when I need it.

alias5000

In case you were referring to me: no, I was still on 32mm slicks in 5-8cm of snow.
Now studs are out, but streets are cleared. Hello winter.

Jim from Boston

Not to dispute your preferences, but I have posted: I looked at the upcoming forecast for this week:rain on Monday and Tuesday, with low tmperatures, 20-24° F (-7 to -4° C) on Tuesday and Wednesday. Since this weekend is my only chance before then to mount the studded tires, I will try to do so.

I only have one beater bike.

caloso

tsl

Hi all!

While don’t visit or post often, I still get notifications. After being quoted, I thought I’d report in on this one.

I took a tumble on the ice the past Wednesday morning on the way to the dentist. It was our first snow to stick, and likely a one-off event for a few weeks. I knew that the ground was still warm, but one part of the route might have ice, a residential section cut in on a side hill.

I didn’t bother with mounting the studs on either the MTB or the Portland (cross/light tourer), opting for the Portland which had the cross tires already mounted.

True enough, there was ice in that section but I didn’t go down until the last intersection, where cars spinning uphill and skidding to a stop downhill had polished a mirror finish. I’d been anticipating ice, had ridden a couple of patches, so I was going slow enough that when the front wheel went out (to the downhill side) I was more or less prepared. I tucked, and landed remarkable softly on my left flank. No damage, not even bruises. Almost tumbled again trying to stand and walk from there.

Most importantly though, no witnesses!

I’d have made a different decision had I still been commuting (see OT, below), or if I’d anticipated ice on a road with traffic. But having judged things almost to the exact meter, and not having to worry about work, I went with lazy.

YMMV. I still recommend studs when in doubt, but sometimes don’t take my own advice.

What I discovered last winter was that newer studs are much nicer than older ones. They’re lighter and more supple than older models of studded tires, like my Nokian Hakkapeliitta W106s. On my MTB going from 2” (52mm) street slicks to 2.25” (57mm) Schwalbe Ice Spikers it's only barely noticeable, with regard to pedaling effort. I’m awaiting delivery of a pair of the breathtakingly-priced 45NRTH Gravdal 120 TPI 700x38mm for the Portland to see if the same holds true there.


OFF-TOPIC: To catch up folks who remember me from before, recently, and through no fault or planning of my own, I found myself retired. Yay! I plan to spend 2019 travelling to and researching three places for potential relocation in 2020: CO, AZ and HI. Yes, HI.

I’m still fairly young, 61, so I’ve been treating this as a “trial period” of retirement. (I’d been planning to work until age 70.) While it’s generally agreeable, I’m finding I’m prone to becoming a bit of a hermit, especially in foul weather, which we’ve had aplenty so far this fall. Plus I’ve put on 20 pounds without daily commuting.

I figure I’ll find something part-time in order to keep my mental health when I “land”. Or something low-stress and full time if I go completely nuts from boredom. But all three places offer better cycling year-round than here and seem interesting. So who knows?

Jim from Boston

I was, and thanks for your reply. I'll keep your technique in mind when the snow hits. As I mentioned I have found studded tires the best on "glare," or "black" ice and hard pack snow, and OK, but tough going, for fresh snow up to about three inches.

Sill I think studs are necessary to handle what might be beneath the snow layer.

PS to @tsl: So nice to read your post; I'll reply later when I have more time.

mcours2006

@tsl: We missed you here for a while. I used to always count on you to make a meaningful contribution when it comes to commuting in the cold/winter.

Yep, sounds like the conditions were quite treacherous.

I've a set of W106's in 700x45, which are super heavy, but the few times I'd used them they were superb and I had full confidence in their abilities. I've also have a couple of sets of the Schwalbe Winter Studded in 35 mm, which, I suppose, are 'newer'. They perform well, but probably due them being narrower I don't have quite as much confidence in them.

Congrats on the retirement. You spend your life making money, now you deserve to go in reverse. Enjoy it.

srestrepo

the only thing that i didn't like was the fact that the snow was wind driven and it was hitting me in the eyes. i have a small cycling cap but the brim was no help in that regard. I've since added a cheap pair of clear Dewalt lenses i got for really cheap at a local hardware store.

beyond that the only struggles i have are finding pants that shed the snow and rain well enough to justify the cost...

RubeRad

tsl, great to hear from you, it's been such a long time! When you figure out your destination (or just want to talk about your choices), I'd love to read about it here in BF commuting!

OP, you're hardcore. If that happened to me I would ask a cow-orker for a ride home, or make the call of shame to the wife. And say my prayers because if we got accumulating snow in San Diego, it's the end of the world!

(I did see snowflakes flurrying once, it was a winter morning shortly after dawn -- but nobody would call it 'snowfall')

alias5000

I have one of these pants: https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5033-250/Adanac-Tights
Originally intended to serve as rain pants (good for that unless you are in a deep downpour), but I also use them as additional wind proofing and warmth when it gets too cold (below -10 ish on long rides) and if I want to stay dry like you say. I like them, can be worn as add-on and packs light. Need water proofing re-applied every now and then. I have them for 4? years now.

Jim from Boston

Hi @tsl,

As you know, I have frequently quoted your advice about studded tires, since it convinced me, especially from a resident of Rochester, NY.Speaking of the Fifty-Plus Annual Rides, the Second One in Watkins Glen in 2010, and meeting you in person with the other participants was a memorable cycling experience. FYA, I have posted (link) the personal narratives and photos of all those Annual Rides through 2015.

Finally one other cycling bon mot of yours I have frequently quoted:

noglider 

It's good to see you and hear your news, @tsl.

Jim from Boston

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim from Boston

…Speaking of the Fifty-Plus Annual Rides, the Second One in Watkins Glen in 2010, and meeting you in person with the other participants was a memorable cycling experience.

FYA, I have posted (link) the personal narratives and photos of all those Annual Rides through 2015.

Hey @tsl, we did exchange some pleasant encounters:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim from Boston

...TSL was my first encounter. He was a remarkably hospitable host and guide to the weekend, making sure everyone had a good time. It was inspiring to hear his well-told tale of his progress in five years from a total bicycle noobie to his guru status…

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim from Boston

The Friday Fire Tower Tour was a nice ride to introduce us to the terrain and I got a chance to ride with tsl, who rides with a fine form, as commented on by another group member…

Quote:

Originally Posted by tsl

Jim From Boston wins the prize for sartorial splendor. And he has a story to tell that I first heard from the SAG wagon driver. It was a great story, and we'll wait for his return to Boston to tell us about it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim from Boston

The monster uphill back to the campground was anticipated as a sign that I was almost home…

I was able to ride upright the entire length without wobbling but at a cadence estimated at about 20 rpms in lowest gear…[NOT the story mentioned by tsl]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tsl

Bragging or not, that little climb makes you my hero!

I hope things will be "downhill," with the wind at your back, on pleasant well-paved roads.