Does Anyone Keep Cycling In The Winter?

As long as we don't get any snow, cycling in Winter in the UK is not really too different from cycling at any other time. We don't get really cold temperatures and rain is pretty much a constant part of the weather here so we're used to that. The main difference is that I tend to start out with several layers of clothing to keep warm, and they rapidly end up either tied around my waist or in my backpack as I warm up. It sure beats shivering in a cold house, and when I come back from a good energetic Winter ride I'm always nice and warm.

You didn't say where you live but the answer is yes, lot's of people do and in all sorts of weather, snow and frigid temps included.

Yes, I actually cycle more in the winter I think...

I also have a 6 km cycle path next to me, that is baby-free in the winter and I can go there and run suicides for like 30km...

Scandinavia? Copenhagen or... Oslo? 😄

I cycled in the winter in Copenhagen... 🙂 it was nice. 🙂

I've never done it, but I plan to cycle to work this winter. 🙂

I agree with Brian MacDonald, the answer is absolutely yes. In fact, I recall a thread a while back regarding clothing and gloves best suited to cycling in cold temps (the guys in Minnesota are experts at cold-weather riding). I recall adding to that thread to advise others of an incredible new material that is finding its way into gloves and clothing. This stuff is off-the-charts amazing. It's called Aerogel: spinoff.nasa.govcg 2.htmlOpen ↗

I'm sure there are many more Aerogel products now, but here's a product that might be useful for riding in really frigid climates: workingperson.compolarwrap insoles men s toasty feet aspen aerogel insoles tfm 250375.htmlOpen ↗

Good luck and enjoy winter riding.

RapDaddyo said:

I recall adding to that thread to advise others of an incredible new material that is finding its way into gloves and clothing. This stuff is off-the-charts amazing. It's called Aerogel:

Somehow I thought that you would say that the incredible material is Irish Coffee. :p 😄

If the roads are free of snow I'm out in it all winter. I think the coldest ride last winter was 18° F.

I grew up on the west coast, and it was easy to keep cycling through most of the winter season. Some years we wouldn't get any snow at all, or what we did get was so slushy that it didn't stick, and it never stayed cold for long. As long as you were careful to avoid the occasional patch of ice the winters were easy to handle on a bike. The only time I'd purposely avoid riding would be during storms, especially since it can get incredibly windy along the water.

I'm living in Ontario now though and once the snow hits I pretty much put the bike away for the season. I'm sure if I were determined enough it would be possible to ride for at least some of the winter, but it just doesn't feel safe. Where I live there are always huge snowbanks alongside of the road, which means the actual road itself is narrower and the bike lanes are gone, so commuting with traffic is dangerous. The sidewalks are sometimes solid sheets of ice as well, so they're no help either, and sometimes just trying to get somewhere on foot is a lost cause.

Yes, all winger long. This is Southern California and these are actual shot at our rest stop at the beach during the winter months! :o

No snow here! :lol:

"...actual shot at our rest stop..."

Uh...your rest stops are better than our rest stops!

DarkStarling said:

I have just never done it before, or, really, considered it much of a possibility since the winters up here, in Scandinavia tend to be quiet harsh and having the gear necessary and putting it on seems like quite a task, especially for the 'get to a place' travel. How many of you guys out there continue cycling in the winter, continue just using a cycle trainer indoors, or just use other ways of training?

In bleak midwinter, daylight ceases at 1600 hrs (here in Ireland).

I try to maintain my cycling regime at weekends during mid winter to compensate for the lack of mid week mid winter training.
Adequate clothing and well maintained bike is all I need to keep going.

I guess daylight in Scandinavia is really at a premium during mid winter too for obvious reasons.

CAMPYBOB said:

Uh...your rest stops are better than our rest stops!

:lol: 😄 :P

My winter rest stops are short and usually spent dealing with this:

cyclingforums.com430356 cold penisOpen ↗

DarkStarling said:

I have just never done it before, or, really, considered it much of a possibility since the winters up here, in Scandinavia tend to be quiet harsh and having the gear necessary and putting it on seems like quite a task, especially for the 'get to a place' travel. How many of you guys out there continue cycling in the winter, continue just using a cycle trainer indoors, or just use other ways of training?

I don't like slippery roads. But if you are young 10-12 hours on a bike is a nice way to spend the day. Booties and a rain suit are great on a 20 degree day.

I try to but then again Northern California winters aren't that bad 🙂.

I have to admit that here in the UK the winters can be pretty bad and even if there's no snow or ice its very cold so I don't tend to cycle at all.

As soon as it gets into November till maybe the end of March a hardly even look at the bike, and while I do miss it, but I don't miss being frozen to the handlebars by the time I get to work!

I would try it if I could but like you said, the winter conditions tend to be very harsh. That's why we've got cycling and running machines right here in our house so we can still keep in shape even when the external elements work against us.

I am in the UK, and for most of the time it is still perfectly safe to cycle, so yes, I will do this a lot of the time. Unless it snows, which will make the ground slippery, there is no reason that we shouldn't cycle. We should of course be careful when the temperature drops, because this can mean that there may be ice on the ground that we're unable to see, which can be dangerous. But provided that we do our best to stay safe, we should find that there is no need to stop cycling at all, and that we can continue on as we usually do during every other day.

I'm in the UK also and in recent years our winters have been a bit of a joke, so it's been more than safe to get out for a ride. But then again even if we had a severe snowfall that wouldn't stop me getting the bike out. I'd see the ride in the snow as a challenge! 😄

If you're careful and have the right tyres then riding in the snow is not too risky. Only thing you need to be on the lookout for is ice.