I've Sunk to a New Low...(Temperature!)
01-21-19, 09:29 AM
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After a bitter cold commute (14 degrees, 20 mph N wind), I walked into my security manager's office wearing the full outfit: tights, shoe covers, jacket, lobster gloves, balaclava, and helmet, and demanded a new picture badge so the receptionist would recognize me. The security manager laughed out loud -- and, it seemed like, laughed all day every time she saw me.
01-21-19, 11:02 AM
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haha 
my son used my lobster gloves to go skiing this weekend
my son used my lobster gloves to go skiing this weekend
01-21-19, 11:03 AM
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I can't remember if I've told this story or not:
After a bitter cold commute (14 degrees, 20 mph N wind), I walked into my security manager's office wearing the full outfit: tights, shoe covers, jacket, lobster gloves, balaclava, and helmet, and demanded a new picture badge so the receptionist would recognize me. The security manager laughed out loud -- and, it seemed like, laughed all day every time she saw me.
After a bitter cold commute (14 degrees, 20 mph N wind), I walked into my security manager's office wearing the full outfit: tights, shoe covers, jacket, lobster gloves, balaclava, and helmet, and demanded a new picture badge so the receptionist would recognize me. The security manager laughed out loud -- and, it seemed like, laughed all day every time she saw me.
01-21-19, 11:32 AM
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I can't remember if I've told this story or not:
After a bitter cold commute (14 degrees, 20 mph N wind), I walked into my security manager's office wearing the full outfit: tights, shoe covers, jacket, lobster gloves, balaclava, and helmet, and demanded a new picture badge so the receptionist would recognize me. The security manager laughed out loud -- and, it seemed like, laughed all day every time she saw me.
After a bitter cold commute (14 degrees, 20 mph N wind), I walked into my security manager's office wearing the full outfit: tights, shoe covers, jacket, lobster gloves, balaclava, and helmet, and demanded a new picture badge so the receptionist would recognize me. The security manager laughed out loud -- and, it seemed like, laughed all day every time she saw me.
01-21-19, 12:17 PM
#30
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For me it is 1 degree Fahrenheit. This morning was going to push that down to -5 but the road conditions forced me to drive to work for the first time this year and ruined my plan of exclusively cycling to work through the entire winter. Large snowbanks narrowing the streets along with a build-up of loose nasty packed snow on the edge of the snowbanks created a very unsafe situation. I feel that it is unreasonable to expect cars to safely share the road in these conditions.
01-21-19, 12:24 PM
#31
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For me it is 1 degree Fahrenheit. This morning was going to push that down to -5 but the road conditions forced me to drive to work for the first time this year and ruined my plan of exclusively cycling to work through the entire winter. Large snowbanks narrowing the streets along with a build-up of loose nasty packed snow on the edge of the snowbanks created a very unsafe situation. I feel that it is unreasonable to expect cars to safely share the road in these conditions.
01-21-19, 12:51 PM
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yeah those snow banks are killers due to inherent blind spots. related, are those mounds from plowed driveways. this morning I drove into a pile in the roadway. didn't even see it. you know white on white. plus is was only 12" or less high. the kind of pile you'd normally drive right thru. guess I was the 1st car on the road this morning, after the home owner pushed that last bit into the road. man, thought I hit a boulder. the whole car jumped up with a thud. looked back to see the mound still intact!
01-21-19, 03:34 PM
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For me it is 1 degree Fahrenheit. This morning was going to push that down to -5 but the road conditions forced me to drive to work for the first time this year and ruined my plan of exclusively cycling to work through the entire winter. Large snowbanks narrowing the streets along with a build-up of loose nasty packed snow on the edge of the snowbanks created a very unsafe situation. I feel that it is unreasonable to expect cars to safely share the road in these conditions.
01-21-19, 10:45 PM
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I have done some pretty low temps now in my 6th year of winter bike commuting. Last night coming home at 3:00 am with one of the brightest full moons I can ever remember (anytime of year) it was 1 deg F with a -20 windchill factor. The wind gusts were upward of 30 + mph.
CLOTHING:
For my head I had my smartwool base layer hood, wool ski mask, wool hat and bike helmut. My core body had a white cotton t-shirt, smartwool base layer, sweatshirt, the top to my wool bib overalls, a down vest, and my Gore Phantom outer shell jacket with the front pit zippers almost fully open. Hands, Burton winter mittens with fleece liners.
On my bottom was my underwear, smartwool base layer long underwear, bike shorts, winter bike pants, and wool bib overalls. For my feet was 1 pair wools socks, Lake mountain bike boots with Hotronics foot warmers, and Neo over shoes. I was not the cold and didn't really sweat during the 12.5 mile commute home using my Easy Motion Max 700 e-bike with Nokian Hakapallita 240 studded snow tires.
These tires although slow, have been awesome and now in their 6th winter of duty! I leave them on this bike all year as its my dedicated winter commuting bike when the weather is snowy and or icy. I used the motor only a few times on the lowest setting when the wind was so strong or on a few hills, it took almost 2 hours to get home.
Still with the temp this low and the moon so beautiful I always say to myself, this is what it's all about, it just doesn't get any better than this!
CLOTHING:
For my head I had my smartwool base layer hood, wool ski mask, wool hat and bike helmut. My core body had a white cotton t-shirt, smartwool base layer, sweatshirt, the top to my wool bib overalls, a down vest, and my Gore Phantom outer shell jacket with the front pit zippers almost fully open. Hands, Burton winter mittens with fleece liners.
On my bottom was my underwear, smartwool base layer long underwear, bike shorts, winter bike pants, and wool bib overalls. For my feet was 1 pair wools socks, Lake mountain bike boots with Hotronics foot warmers, and Neo over shoes. I was not the cold and didn't really sweat during the 12.5 mile commute home using my Easy Motion Max 700 e-bike with Nokian Hakapallita 240 studded snow tires.
These tires although slow, have been awesome and now in their 6th winter of duty! I leave them on this bike all year as its my dedicated winter commuting bike when the weather is snowy and or icy. I used the motor only a few times on the lowest setting when the wind was so strong or on a few hills, it took almost 2 hours to get home.
Still with the temp this low and the moon so beautiful I always say to myself, this is what it's all about, it just doesn't get any better than this!
Last edited by Bizman; 01-21-19 at 10:49 PM.
01-22-19, 07:59 PM
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I've had some rides at -5F, but have yet to hit the double digits below 0F. It looks like Friday is supposed to be a cold one, but I doubt I'll hit a new low; negative (or maybe positive?) side effect of not having a job that requires early morning hours.
01-24-19, 07:54 PM
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Wow, I can’t even imagine 7 F. My lowest last year was 25 F, but in the summer I hit a new high of 109 F !
I vastly preferred the latter...
I vastly preferred the latter...
01-24-19, 09:16 PM
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Okay, new low might be coming: Wednesday's forecast is a high of -10F (and I do not want to talk about the low!)
My high was 112F; -10 strangely scares me less.
My high was 112F; -10 strangely scares me less.
01-24-19, 09:33 PM
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At below -10F I think I’d be too terrified of stopping and freezing to death!
01-25-19, 07:15 AM
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Colorado Springs rarely hits 100. In fact the hottest day on record was only 100.8F. We generally see upper 90s in the summer. Due to the dry climate the air doesn't feel especially hot. However, because of the altitude (6500 feet) it can be blistering hot in direct sunlight, and sunburn is a real threat...even in winter!
01-25-19, 07:20 AM
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Lowest this season for me is -20*C (-4*F), which was this past Tuesday. I think the lowest ever for me was -25C (-13*F) a few years ago. I probably wouldn't do -25 anymore...unless the car didn't start.
01-25-19, 07:58 AM
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I commuted to work on Monday, it was around 20 degrees but with a feels-like of around 0 degrees. I had a headwind of 15-20mph the first mile and had a bout of brain freeze (I was wearing a heavy wool hat and baclava). I've never had brain freeze riding a bike before. Today's high is 0 degrees, but I'm working from home - too cold for my bones. Hottest? While it wasn't commuting, I participated in a 600km brevet out of Santa Rosa, CA and my bike thermometer was registering 116 degrees around noon. I had to refill my 2 water bottles every 15 miles. When I pulled into a checkpoint in the afternoon, I was chalk white from the salt in my sweat. I ended-up only doing about 300km before quitting...It was absolutely miserable.
01-25-19, 11:53 AM
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Colorado Springs rarely hits 100. In fact the hottest day on record was only 100.8F. We generally see upper 90s in the summer. Due to the dry climate the air doesn't feel especially hot. However, because of the altitude (6500 feet) it can be blistering hot in direct sunlight, and sunburn is a real threat...even in winter!
My 112 was a Santa Ana wind event in Southern California (inland Orange County), when I happened to be done with work right in the middle of the day. There were two days that actually broke the existing temperature records. Since it was so dry, everything cooled off just fine at night - which was good, as we did not have AC or a swamp cooler.
01-25-19, 04:55 PM
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01-28-19, 07:55 AM
#45
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This morning for me was a bit chilly. My finger tips & toes began to feel it on my 2 mile commute to work. With that being said, the sun was out & there was no wind at all. The mechanical thermometer at my house showed -5 & my phone showed -8 for the area. Overall, it wasn't too bad and I wouldn't have any problem doing it again. I would've stopped at one of the steaming storm drains for a photo, but my phone was under multiple layers & not easily accessible.
01-30-19, 08:57 AM
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Haven't posted in a long time. -27 °F is a new low for me. I'll put an asterisk by it since I kinda had to cheat to do it. My office is closed today due to the weather thus my usual commute wasn't in the cards. So "I'm working from home" next to a fireplace at Caribou Coffee this morning. It's less than 2 miles from my house so I didn't have to worry about keeping my feet warm for very long. There is a breeze but it's not nearly as windy as it was on the commute home last evening. So even though it's about 9 degrees colder it's not as nasty. And it is a bright sunny morning !
I don't want to downplay the potential danger of being out in this kind of weather while not properly dressed but I do get a kick out of the warnings about how exposed flesh can freeze in 5 minutes in these temps. I suppose it could but it hasn't been my experience. Looking at this pic though, I didn't realize how hairy my limbs are. Maybe that helps.
The last time it was this cold here was in 1982. I actually was in high school at the time. I remember it. School was cancelled so my buddies and I spent the afternoon playing boot hockey on a frozen pond behind one of my friends' houses. Wind chill was -70 something though they were much more liberal with determining wind chill temps in those days.
Prior to this my coldest was -22. That was a little more legit since I actually rode to the office. That was probably 8 or 10 years ago. Doesn't seem to get that cold very often anymore and those days don't always coincide with days I work.
Last edited by tjspiel; 01-30-19 at 09:27 AM.
01-30-19, 09:40 AM
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01-30-19, 01:28 PM
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01-30-19, 02:11 PM
#50
LET'S ROLL
I'm lucky it doesn't normally get lower than this in my area. 
5 Fahrenheit/-15 Celsius by 1nterceptor, on Flickr
2015 FEB, NYC by 1nterceptor, on Flickr
5 Fahrenheit/-15 Celsius by 1nterceptor, on Flickr
2015 FEB, NYC by 1nterceptor, on Flickr
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