So ... I guess I need to put the bike away

[Downs]

Really hoping for some nice weather to get rid of all this white stuff.
Bike is under a cover in the driveway, with piles of snow on either side of it.

[jeffsmith]

I had been in denial that winter was going to arrive this year. The first couple of hours of my day today turned that denial into anger/acceptance.

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[benwedge]

Really hoping for some nice weather to get rid of all this white stuff.
Bike is under a cover in the driveway, with piles of snow on either side of it.

I ride my pedal bike year round, just not when there's fresh snow down. Someday I'll become hard core and buy snow pants and build studded tires.

[John G]

I use Schwalbe marathon studded tires. I bike to work all year in Halifax. I stay off the road in major snow storms, but so should a lot of car drivers.

[benwedge]

I use Schwalbe marathon studded tires. I bike to work all year in Halifax. I stay off the road in major snow storms, but so should a lot of car drivers.

I try to live within a 15 minute walk of everything I do, so it's no problem to put the bike away, thus it's hard to justify buying pants and tires. Someday...

[Graham.C]

My Girlfriends mom just got back from yellowknife. She couldn't believe how many people were still on bikes with all the snow. When she asked someone about it, they told her "of course we bike, there is no way in hell my car will start at -30"

[chalmers]

I lived in Edmonton for 7 years, and biked to work/school year round for the first 5. Plenty of -40 mornings and nights in pitch black. I built my own studded tires using 1/4 screws through some older, worn down tires. The key was to put them mainly along the edge of the footprint, to keep stability, and very seldom along the middle. Most important to stay vertical, stopping distance was secondary (cuz you never get going very fast anyway!).
And in the winter I used engine oil on my chain every day (I had a "winter chain" I used), and cleaned it every weekend, to keep the shitty salt and rock from screwing up my gears (used the worn down ones from the year's riding). Also, pretty much converted my 24-speed to a 3 speed, rarely shifting.

Something like this: http://www.wikihow.com/Convert-Bicycle- ... Snow-Tires" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[mr x]

What's the story with that creme brule beer? Did you put together a recipe?

[benwedge]

I lived in Edmonton for 7 years, and biked to work/school year round for the first 5. Plenty of -40 mornings and nights in pitch black. I built my own studded tires using 1/4 screws through some older, worn down tires. The key was to put them mainly along the edge of the footprint, to keep stability, and very seldom along the middle. Most important to stay vertical, stopping distance was secondary (cuz you never get going very fast anyway!).
And in the winter I used engine oil on my chain every day (I had a "winter chain" I used), and cleaned it every weekend, to keep the shitty salt and rock from screwing up my gears (used the worn down ones from the year's riding). Also, pretty much converted my 24-speed to a 3 speed, rarely shifting.

Something like this: http://www.wikihow.com/Convert-Bicycle- ... Snow-Tires" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

That's the trick. I'm looking at getting a new bike in the next six months, leaning toward a flip-flop with around a 52/20 gear ratio. I think that should work well year round for Halifax, especially when my riding is almost exclusively on the peninsula on relatively flat ground.

Looks like I jacked this thread a bit. Ooops.

[jeffsmith]

I lived in Edmonton for 7 years, and biked to work/school year round for the first 5. Plenty of -40 mornings and nights in pitch black.

I remember that. I lived in St. Albert for about 6 years and worked in downtown Edmonton for about 4 of those. The first two years my office was at the corner of Jasper and 123rd St. The way the St. Albert buses were timed in the mornings I had to walk from 107 St. to 123rd because there was a half hour gap in Edmonton transit's route at that time. 16 blocks in -40 (and down to nearly -60 with windchill at times) is no fun, I really shouldn't complain about the snow we get here…

[CorneliusAlphonse]

Most important to stay vertical, stopping distance was secondary (cuz you never get going very fast anyway!).

this. I biked most of the last 4 winters in halifax, and this was mostly what I learned. Go slow, stay upright, stay out from the icy/snowy edge of the street, and don't go in traffic unless the roads are dry.

still managed to fall a few times