rydabent

And again, out here in the middle of the country in the plains states, if we dont ride when it is windy, we wouldnt get much riding done at all.

Kabuki12

I rode out to the beach from my house which is about a 17 mile ride due west. I got to the beach and it was absolutely summer like, low seventies at 9:00am and the ocean looked calm. We get Santa Ana winds this time of year around here which is offshore(coming from the east) and this had the feel of that kind of day. I stopped at my shop in Ventura to check the mail and maybe swap bikes. My wife called just as I was getting ready to leave and said she was coming to get me , "it is howling out here"! I told her I was going to give it a try and i would give her a cal if I needed to I locked my front door and went to leave the industrial complex and got hit by a strong gust, I called! It would've been brutal as these winds are caused by high pressure and usually very dry and gusty. I don't like headwinds anyway, I can tolerate a modest wind but this just didn't appear to be fun. Glad I bailed, save the wind burn and dry throat (water does little good) and sinus headache!

epnnf

Yep, I know about the 'Loveland bike trail'! But I dont like putting my bike in/out the car to go for a ride. I do it, but only if I have to.

frogman

Same here rsbob. One of my favorite rides is the Silverado Trail by St. Helena CA. Beautiful road with about an 8 foot paved shoulder. Great scenery going by the Napa Valley wineries. Usually there is moderate northward wind in the first half of the day and changes to south wind in the afternoon. This day I rode northward in the morning and returned southward after lunch. All fine and dandy but the wind really picked up to about 25 mph. This was a tail wind and I broke my record on the return trip. Kept it in highest gear and was able to coast most of the way :-)

whipnet

Cold air is more dense making winter winds even worse.

*

zandoval 

There are places that can change wind direction depending on what direction you are ridding.

For example, the Galveston Sea Wall Ride. No matter what direction you ride it in the wind will always be in your face... Ha

rosefarts

I grew up in Wyoming and went to school for my first degree there. So much howling wind. To the point that if I was unwilling to venture into the wind, I wouldn’t have been able to ride.

I pushed hard as young people do, unsurprisingly, it made me a pretty good time trialer. I sure loved the other direction, covering flat ground at 35 mph without too much effort.

I’ve had a few wrecks in the wind but never fast, more like dead slow and a gust took me into the shoulder.

Thrice, while at speed in windy conditions, I developed a speed wobble. On a bike (each time a different one) that never got the wobble before or after. Each time I got my speed under control and didn’t wreck.

I really enjoyed a descent of the Snowy Range, hit 58mph and kept it at 40 or better until almost Laramie. That was epic.

rydabent

On a more logical note, I check he wind direction, and plan a route that is pretty much cross wind as possible.

Bearhawker

The worst I've ridden in was a winter storm here with winds gusting over 100kmh. I rode the fat bike down to the country store we used to have for milk... 5km trip (2.5km each way) was more than an hour.

I've walked there and back faster than that ride.

Worst wind I've commuted in (16km commute) was gusting to 70+ km/h. the 100+ was harder but MUCH shorter and the bonus was that I wasn't getting blown out of my lane with on-coming traffic like the commute.

So far I haven't found a limit for wind. lol

rosefarts

Bad idea. If you plan around the wind, you’re guaranteed to get a headwind in all directions. I just observe the rules, I don’t make them.

sovende

For me, like many others, wind is a demoralizing fun suck and weather app info definitely impacts on if I ride or not. I usually ride from home and my routes are either of the out and back type or large circular loops. I try to start with a headwind in hopes of finishing with a tailwind but we’ve all seen how that can go. I don’t have absolute limits as far as when I will or will not ride but sustained winds of 15 mph and or gusting above 20 will have me thinking about bailing. I completely understand the value of wind RE: training BUT since I’m approaching the midpoint of my 7th decade of life, I ride for enjoyment! Any additional benefits of cycling are a bonus.

GhostRider62

In the winter, I always start the ride direction into the wind making the return assuredly warm and easy whereas the opposite is a recipe for hypothermia

Calsun

When the wind speed if more than 10 mph I wait for another day. If I am pedaling along at 18 mph and have a 10 mph head or crosswind then I am having to put out nearly 4x as much effort. And a cross wind exerts two-thirds the vector force of a headwind. The winds are strongest in the afternoons so I start my rides early in the morning.

I have also sections of road that I know will have strong winds coming off the ocean and this is great when heading out but no fun coming back into the wind. I should probably drive into the valley and have the wind at my back on the return leg. Most areas have winds from the northwest so a little route planning goes a long way.

Hypno Toad

For Garmin riders: I love the WindField app for my Edge 1030. I get real-time wind speed and direction on my Edge on the same page as speed, heart rate, etc.

https://apps.garmin.com/en-US/apps/a...9-e365bc849840

This is the example from their app page, I use a smaller data field and only have wind speed and the direction arrow.

BTinNYC 

Riding the shoreline,
The wind changes direction
When I turn around.