corrado33

POLAR VORTEX! SNOW! ICE! Didn't think you guys heard enough of those words yet so I wanted to post more.

Anyway, these last two days I've been riding on the ice and snow covered streets of Bozeman. Generally the roads I ride on have a bit of a shoulder or bike lane, but since the ice and the snow came, it's DANGEROUS to ride where I usually do. I have studded tires on my bike so I actually prefer riding on the ice sheet that is the right tire track for cars. Riding over the half packed snow from tire tracks is very slippery and dangerous. I have a lot more trouble riding on the side where all of that stuff is than riding on the tire track. Sure, it LOOKS fine sometimes, but then you'll hit a spot where the snow isn't quite as packed and whoosh, there goes your front wheel!

Anyway, I'm pretty sure this is normal for winter bike commuters. Right? I technically AM riding as far right as possible, it's just that it happens to be 5-6 feet off of the curb/side of the road. I attempted to move right a few times to let cars past, but it just ended with me being REALLY wobbly on that half packed snow stuff and it felt a heck of a lot more dangerous. Cars can pass me just fine.

Besides, I'm doing them a favor, I'm slowing them down so the don't approach the icy intersection with too much speed! (I actually felt this was the case yesterday, I was riding on a downhill that led to a roundabout, which had about 30 yards of glassy ice in front of it. I saw the truck in front of me slide with all four wheels to the curb, and he was even already stopped! I had no trouble stopping, but I made sure the car behind me ALSO had no trouble stopping.)

79pmooney

I basically agree with you but you have to make sure people see you. Visibility is key. Bright colors and good lights. And you have to be prepared to leave the road. You might want to read what I wrote on the What does the ultimate winter commuter bike look like? thread. (Second page) Low Riders with weight in both paniers can help a lot when you have to ride in iffy conditions. I regularly toss heavy stuff in when conditions are bad. Ride with a mirror. When you are riding a rut, you have no business looking over your shoulder but you do need to know when you have to leave the lane to let a sliding car go by (This is less of an issue in true snow country where most folk are pretty good snow/ice drivers and very important in cities like Portland and Seattle where most haven't a clue.)

Ben

MattoftheRocks

That half-packed junk is why I rarely ever use tires wider than 28mm. 23's require that you pedal on your tippy toes and lower the saddle a bit, but they cut right through to the bottom. My favorites were specialized elites.

TransitBiker

Wide in back for traction, narrow in front to cut through.

- Andy

corrado33

Thanks for the advice guys. I can't really change my tires now, studded tires really only come in certain sizes, and I've already bought mine! I'll definitely try putting something heavy on my rack though, that'd be useful.

TransitBiker

I don't use studded tires, but i've found with the new bike i may try them due to its different geometry.

- Andy

jrickards

For the most part, I have the option, when there is snow and ice on the roads, to change my route to residential and minor streets until I get to the path through the park and then, a bit later, the MUP along my final road. It doesn't really avoid snow and ice under the tires, it just means that I'm in less busy traffic (or just pedestrians) by taking the alternate route.

corrado33

There is a MUP that runs along the road I ride on, however it's rarely plowed when I'm out there headed to work. It's 15x harder to ride on the trail with frozen footprints and tire grooves than it is to ride on the road. For the past few days, I've found that people give me plenty of space when the pass me. Since I head to work early, there are not many people on the roads.

scroca

Not sure what tires the OP has but there are studded tires, which do well on smooth ice, and there are studded snow tires, which, with the aggressive tread, do better in rutted snow and ice.

I completely understand the issue with the road vs bike lane. Here in Missoula they plowed the snow off the road onto the bike lane on one stretch that I ride. That plowed snow is dreadful to ride through so when I go home and there's a lot of traffic I've taken to riding the sidewalk along that stretch, something I rarely do.

jrickards

Agreed, it can be tough but both the path through the park and the MUP have been kept fairly clean in past years. Of course, there can always be a delay between when the storm hits and the plow gets there but I would rather fight through the snow than risk, not so much me falling into a snow bank at the side of the road, but rather a car losing control on the road and slamming me into the bank. Along one route I take, there are often "car dents" in the snowbanks, I don't want to be the source of the blood smear in a dent.