Trading your road bike for a clunker? and a request for other winter advice
some background:
I just got done fitting the mountain bike that i brought up here for winter with a rack and tuning it up to prepare for the season and I wanted to request some advice from the forum in regards to tips tricks and general advice that may be helpful for me before i go out and make all the newbie mistakes. There are some similar threads but i think my questions may be unique enough to not be redundant
Tonight was my first time riding in the snow and i was putting myself in questionable situations in no traffic areas just to see how the bike wiggles etc. I have to say that it is as much fun or more in snow as it is on dirt or mud but i am not sure if that feeling is going to remain when i need to be somewhere like work.
twice during my ride i had one of those "heart dropping experiences" where the bike was sliding and i began to expect i was going down. Luckily i hopped with one foot and regained my balance and overall it was very fun to be plowing through the snow
The questions:
(1) Do you opt for a mountain bike or a bike other than a road bike in the winter? The worst part of my ride this evening was remembering how *slow* my mtn bike is compared to my road bike
(2) Do you run tire pressure lower than usual (making it even slower)?
(3) How do you feel about studs? Does anybody argue against studs or not mind riding the whole winter without them?
(4) If you switch back to your favorite summer bike when conditions are good, do you rely on the weatherman to tell you if it is a winter bike day? Have you ever been caught in a bad situation with the wrong bike because of this?
(5)For the tall folks--My seat post is not as high as it should be but if i put it as tall as my road bike seat i wont be able to quickly put my foot to the ground in those situations that call for it. Does this situation happen a lot where the bike is slipping and you need to catch it with your foot before you go down?
(6) My brakes were almost non functioning on the ride after about 20 mins-- is this something that i should expect in all conditions or only when riding in deep snow? I have disk on the front and standard(?) on the back but in some instances the disk was in the snow.
Finally any tips about behaving on ice would be great i.e. do not use the front brake, dont turn etc
Thanks I really appreciate anything that can keep me off the ground! oh and here is the bike that i am hoping will be better in the slushy, salty and generally difficult situations this winter
I just got done fitting the mountain bike that i brought up here for winter with a rack and tuning it up to prepare for the season and I wanted to request some advice from the forum in regards to tips tricks and general advice that may be helpful for me before i go out and make all the newbie mistakes. There are some similar threads but i think my questions may be unique enough to not be redundant
Tonight was my first time riding in the snow and i was putting myself in questionable situations in no traffic areas just to see how the bike wiggles etc. I have to say that it is as much fun or more in snow as it is on dirt or mud but i am not sure if that feeling is going to remain when i need to be somewhere like work.
twice during my ride i had one of those "heart dropping experiences" where the bike was sliding and i began to expect i was going down. Luckily i hopped with one foot and regained my balance and overall it was very fun to be plowing through the snow
The questions:
(1) Do you opt for a mountain bike or a bike other than a road bike in the winter? The worst part of my ride this evening was remembering how *slow* my mtn bike is compared to my road bike
(2) Do you run tire pressure lower than usual (making it even slower)?
(3) How do you feel about studs? Does anybody argue against studs or not mind riding the whole winter without them?
(4) If you switch back to your favorite summer bike when conditions are good, do you rely on the weatherman to tell you if it is a winter bike day? Have you ever been caught in a bad situation with the wrong bike because of this?
(5)For the tall folks--My seat post is not as high as it should be but if i put it as tall as my road bike seat i wont be able to quickly put my foot to the ground in those situations that call for it. Does this situation happen a lot where the bike is slipping and you need to catch it with your foot before you go down?
(6) My brakes were almost non functioning on the ride after about 20 mins-- is this something that i should expect in all conditions or only when riding in deep snow? I have disk on the front and standard(?) on the back but in some instances the disk was in the snow.
Finally any tips about behaving on ice would be great i.e. do not use the front brake, dont turn etc
Thanks I really appreciate anything that can keep me off the ground! oh and here is the bike that i am hoping will be better in the slushy, salty and generally difficult situations this winter
Views: 172
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Mike Zumwalt on
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The worst part of my ride this evening was remembering how *slow* my mtn bike is compared to my road bike
That's the only thing I hate, though with a longer ride time it is more comfortable and I don't have to worry about hitting a pothole and getting a flat as the tires are bigger.
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Permalink Reply by igz on
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1) mountain bike isnt really relative, i think any reliable fully function clunker will do. tho remember, a mountain bike is typically heavier, therefore slower...with already slower riding conditions and possible even slower with deflated tires (beware of pinch flats if you deflate)
2)not usually, only when its really slippery out.
3)havent tried them. tho i imagine i would want another set of wheels to keep them on instead of changing the wheels daily or so based on the whether.
4)keep access open to diff bikes if you can. this also hold true for when ya winter bike is in dire need of TLC and you dont have time to address it, you can just hop on another bike.
5)ive always kept my seat high, but i think im going to lower it this year. i recently got myself a cruiser and instantly recognized the benefit of being able to quickly drop my foot. drawback, of course, is lack of full leg extension which brings us back to issues with "1)" and losing speed.
6)brakes have been the biggest bane of winter biking for me. i had cantilevers that kept seizing on me thanks to slush and salt, completely corroded. i replaced them a few times, but the problem always returned. its partially my fault for not cleaning them after every ride, but i cant always clean them after every ride. i decided to go fixed gear on that bike. it took care of the problem.
advice with ice...if you get caught on it...try to coast through and be aware that you will likely have to react quickly falling either left or right.
my winter ride is a KHS Solo One fixed gear moutain bike. it has a larger front fork so i throw on a 700c wheel in the front. the narrow, non treaded tires typically cut right down to the asphalt through snow and slush. i wish the rear could be larger but it is what it is.
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Permalink Reply by garrett on
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Thanks for the input!
So you opt for smooth tires as opposed to knobby ones? I was thinking that the knobby ones would hold a better grip which is one of the main reasons why my road bike and slick skinny tires worry me
iggi said:1) mountain bike isnt really relative, i think any reliable fully function clunker will do. tho remember, a mountain bike is typically heavier, therefore slower...with already slower riding conditions and possible even slower with deflated tires (beware of pinch flats if you deflate)
2)not usually, only when its really slippery out.
3)havent tried them. tho i imagine i would want another set of wheels to keep them on instead of changing the wheels daily or so based on the whether.
4)keep access open to diff bikes if you can. this also hold true for when ya winter bike is in dire need of TLC and you dont have time to address it, you can just hop on another bike.
5)ive always kept my seat high, but i think im going to lower it this year. i recently got myself a cruiser and instantly recognized the benefit of being able to quickly drop my foot. drawback, of course, is lack of full leg extension which brings us back to issues with "1)" and losing speed.
6)brakes have been the biggest bane of winter biking for me. i had cantilevers that kept seizing on me thanks to slush and salt, completely corroded. i replaced them a few times, but the problem always returned. its partially my fault for not cleaning them after every ride, but i cant always clean them after every ride. i decided to go fixed gear on that bike. it took care of the problem.
advice with ice...if you get caught on it...try to coast through and be aware that you will likely have to react quickly falling either left or right.
my winter ride is a KHS Solo One fixed gear moutain bike. it has a larger front fork so i throw on a 700c wheel in the front. the narrow, non treaded tires typically cut right down to the asphalt through snow and slush. i wish the rear could be larger but it is what it is.
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i believe there are a few different schools of thought on this, but in my experience, snow will stick between the knobs, and therefore creating a more slippery surface
garrett said:Thanks for the input!
So you opt for smooth tires as opposed to knobby ones? I was thinking that the knobby ones would hold a better grip which is one of the main reasons why my road bike and slick skinny tires worry me
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Permalink Reply by Kevin C Dormant on
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Smooth 700 x 32s year round. I'm guessing that seventy percent or more of the winter riding I do is on dry, snow-free pavement. There aren't enough ice days to switch over to studded tires (IMHO). They're noisy and a bit slippery on dry pavement. I just remembered this weekend that I "post" (out of saddle, straight arms and legs) a lot in iffy conditions. It raises your center of gravity, but gives you a wider range of options for shifting your weight to the required balance point.
iggi said:i believe there are a few different schools of thought on this, but in my experience, snow will stick between the knobs, and therefore creating a more slippery surface
garrett said:Thanks for the input!
So you opt for smooth tires as opposed to knobby ones? I was thinking that the knobby ones would hold a better grip which is one of the main reasons why my road bike and slick skinny tires worry me
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wow, "posting" in iffy situations scares the shit outta me, it seems like being that much further off the ground makes the wheels more likely to slip but ill give it a shot, Thanks!
Kevin Conway said:I just remembered this weekend that I "post" (out of saddle, straight arms and legs) a lot in iffy conditions. It raises your center of gravity, but gives you a wider range of options for shifting your weight to the required balance point.
iggi said:i believe there are a few different schools of thought on this, but in my experience, snow will stick between the knobs, and therefore creating a more slippery surface
garrett said:Thanks for the input!
So you opt for smooth tires as opposed to knobby ones? I was thinking that the knobby ones would hold a better grip which is one of the main reasons why my road bike and slick skinny tires worry me
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"i believe there are a few different schools of thought on this, but in my experience, snow will stick between the knobs, and therefore creating a more slippery surface"
True, and there are those who say skinny smooth tires cut thru the slush and snow better,?
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