Post by barky on Dec 22, 2012 13:42:04 GMT
How to make winter riding as pleasant as possible
Your bike
Oil & grease EVERYTHING! The chain will become ruined with salt in no time, 10 speed chains & cassettes are very expensive these days. So a good thing to have handy is a can of GT85/WD40, some oil & a rag next to where you keep your bike, so when you put it away after a ride you can give it a quick spray, wipe & oil, that should keep it in good working order.
Make sure your pedal threads are greased before the winter, if they get corroded in place you'll have to buy new cranks and pedals, a little bit of grease will remove this problem.
Mudguards are essential for winter riding, it’s a totally different ball game getting sprayed with water in the summer to getting sprayed with water at near freezing point. So fit mudguards, especially if you’re in a group, you’ll also spray those who have fitted mudguards with freezing dirty water too, so you’ll make yourself particularly unpopular!
Various options are available, full length mudguards, with a mudflap front & rear are your ideal choice. If you have mudguard eyes on your bike you’ll have more secure fittings, but there are also plenty of full length clip on mudguards available for frames without mudguard eyes. www.solidrockcycles.com/ will have all the options in the shop.
Mudguards will make winter riding much more pleasant, protect your bike from dirt & salt, plus will encourage you to get out on your bike where you previously would have stayed indoors.
Contact Colin and he’ll fit one of his hand crafted mudflaps to your existing mudguards.
Another winter speciality is tyre choice, you’ll generally ride slightly wider and more durable tyres in the winter, fixing a puncture while your hands go numb with the cold isn’t in the least bit pleasant. A lot of our riders are now using ‘slimed tubes’, which virtually guarantee you’ll not puncture, there is a slight weight penalty, but it’s worth it if you do a lot of riding in the dark or very cold, where it’s most difficult to fix a puncture.
Your winter bike should have a very similar position to the bike you ride in the summer, so check the measurements or get somebody else to check it for you.
Clothing
It’s essential to keep the extremities as warm as possible, so good gloves, overshoes and an under helmet cap are very necessary. You may sometimes need an additional pair of light gloves that fit under your winter gloves to keep everything cosy.
Make sure your overshoes are windproof at least or you’ll be getting very cold tootsies very quickly, not pleasant.
You cap should cover your ears and again, being windproof will help on the coldest days.
Always keep your legs covered with warm full length tights in the winter, most choose tights without a chamois, so you can wear your shorts underneath for an extra layer and you can get more than one ride out the tights that way without washing them.
Then your upper layers should begin with a wicking base layer, then a series of long sleeve jerseys depending on the conditions. A gilet is a very useful addition, it allows you to regulate your heat by removing it and makes the beginning or a ride very comfortable, it also packs up into a jersey pocket when not needed.
If it’s raining, a ventilated or technical rain jacket is required, non ventilated ones generally make you overheat and you sweat too much, making you as wet as you may been getting soaked, although it’s a warmer wet than rain.
Tool kit
You can keep these in a small under saddle bag so you can fill your pockets with grub.
Multi tool, ideally with allen keys & chain splitter.
Spare tube, or two.
Puncture repair kit.
Pump.
Phone.
Other tips
Leave your gloves on the radiator the night before your ride, so they’re nice and warm to put on in the morning, makes it more likely you'll head out.
Fill your bottle with warm juice rather than water at the temperature of outdoors, it'll take less time to freeze!
You need to drink in winter too, so 1 or 2 bottles plus some snacks in your pocket.
Add your other tips below....
Your bike
Oil & grease EVERYTHING! The chain will become ruined with salt in no time, 10 speed chains & cassettes are very expensive these days. So a good thing to have handy is a can of GT85/WD40, some oil & a rag next to where you keep your bike, so when you put it away after a ride you can give it a quick spray, wipe & oil, that should keep it in good working order.
Make sure your pedal threads are greased before the winter, if they get corroded in place you'll have to buy new cranks and pedals, a little bit of grease will remove this problem.
Mudguards are essential for winter riding, it’s a totally different ball game getting sprayed with water in the summer to getting sprayed with water at near freezing point. So fit mudguards, especially if you’re in a group, you’ll also spray those who have fitted mudguards with freezing dirty water too, so you’ll make yourself particularly unpopular!
Various options are available, full length mudguards, with a mudflap front & rear are your ideal choice. If you have mudguard eyes on your bike you’ll have more secure fittings, but there are also plenty of full length clip on mudguards available for frames without mudguard eyes. www.solidrockcycles.com/ will have all the options in the shop.
Mudguards will make winter riding much more pleasant, protect your bike from dirt & salt, plus will encourage you to get out on your bike where you previously would have stayed indoors.
Contact Colin and he’ll fit one of his hand crafted mudflaps to your existing mudguards.
Another winter speciality is tyre choice, you’ll generally ride slightly wider and more durable tyres in the winter, fixing a puncture while your hands go numb with the cold isn’t in the least bit pleasant. A lot of our riders are now using ‘slimed tubes’, which virtually guarantee you’ll not puncture, there is a slight weight penalty, but it’s worth it if you do a lot of riding in the dark or very cold, where it’s most difficult to fix a puncture.
Your winter bike should have a very similar position to the bike you ride in the summer, so check the measurements or get somebody else to check it for you.
Clothing
It’s essential to keep the extremities as warm as possible, so good gloves, overshoes and an under helmet cap are very necessary. You may sometimes need an additional pair of light gloves that fit under your winter gloves to keep everything cosy.
Make sure your overshoes are windproof at least or you’ll be getting very cold tootsies very quickly, not pleasant.
You cap should cover your ears and again, being windproof will help on the coldest days.
Always keep your legs covered with warm full length tights in the winter, most choose tights without a chamois, so you can wear your shorts underneath for an extra layer and you can get more than one ride out the tights that way without washing them.
Then your upper layers should begin with a wicking base layer, then a series of long sleeve jerseys depending on the conditions. A gilet is a very useful addition, it allows you to regulate your heat by removing it and makes the beginning or a ride very comfortable, it also packs up into a jersey pocket when not needed.
If it’s raining, a ventilated or technical rain jacket is required, non ventilated ones generally make you overheat and you sweat too much, making you as wet as you may been getting soaked, although it’s a warmer wet than rain.
Tool kit
You can keep these in a small under saddle bag so you can fill your pockets with grub.
Multi tool, ideally with allen keys & chain splitter.
Spare tube, or two.
Puncture repair kit.
Pump.
Phone.
Other tips
Leave your gloves on the radiator the night before your ride, so they’re nice and warm to put on in the morning, makes it more likely you'll head out.
Fill your bottle with warm juice rather than water at the temperature of outdoors, it'll take less time to freeze!
You need to drink in winter too, so 1 or 2 bottles plus some snacks in your pocket.
Add your other tips below....