WIRED> how to winterize your bike

http://howto.wired.com/wiki/Winterize_Your_Bicycle

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Permalink Reply by jennifer james on January 8, 2011 at 5:27pm

Hi- enclosed chain cases- chains that are enclosed in a case like on the dutch bikes you see around town-are common in Holland, Germany and Denmark. Check out some pictures on the Amsterdamize or dutch bike pic sites and look closely at the chains or the rear hubs of the bikes. Another good thing on a winter ride can be an internal hub- a hub like you find on an old Schwinn- your gears shift inside the hub of your back wheel- not with a derailleur.

Winter maintenance on a bike that has a chain and shifter protected from the weather is much easier! They don't have to be expensive bikes- Working Bikes has a lot of internal hub bikes every week and the bonus is often they come with fenders already attached.
My box bike has an enclosed chain case and internal hub and I do almost no winter work on it and have ridden it pretty much every day for about 3 1/2years.

I've never bought a chain case but I guess that you could order one and have it put on at your friendly neighborhood bike store.??

Anyhow places that have more cycle tracks and protected lanes seem to have lots of that sort of bike around in my experience.