Winter Cycling options

ian_rush

Thinking of trying to get some evening cycling in over the winter and wondering what the best option is.
I was considering getting a turbo trainer, but my limited experience with exercise bikes has been one of intense boredom and I think I probably just won't use it
The other option which I am leaning toward is just getting some lights and heading out on the unlit roads of Fingal. I think this would be less boring but not sure how safe it is. What do you guys think?
There are also some spinning classes run beside me in the evening but they are pricey at €10 per session.

Dubba

I bought a turbo trainer myself last winter, used it a few times and sold it on. If we have as mild a winter this year as last's I'd much prefer to be out on my bike than stuck indoors sweating buckets. Only ice, snow or a full on storm would put me off weather wise.

Very good lights and just as importantly dressing for the conditions, i.e. full finger gloves, gillet, shoe covers, warm socks, etc. and your good to go.

manwithaplan

ian_rush wrote: »

The other option which I am leaning toward is just getting some lights and heading out on the unlit roads of Fingal.

I did this all last winter. I don't know how safe it is but I know I had no problems. There's a great buzz the first few times you do it. Unfortunately it just becomes another form of boring winter training quickly enough. You can liven it up by switching your front light off in the pitch dark and trying to stay upright while stargazing at 30kph.

ck101

Did some winter spins with good lights around the lanes of north co. last year. No problems at all.
For me I hope to get 4 spins in a week, 1 longer club ride, a night spin and 2x 1 hr Sufferfest sessions on the trainer.

Lawdie

What about Mountain biking, guaranteed not to be boring...
Some travelling but worth it.

AaronB

in the winter i cycle mornings for even 1hr before work, but still hard to do if weather is crap!

ian_rush

Typically I leave for work before 7am and normally am not back before 7pm. So the extra time to get mountain biking probably rules that out.
All I really want to do is try and get an hour in one evening per week. I found that last winter only having a weekend cycle meant that it was easy to miss a month of cycling due to work, family, ice etc. I don't a great base of fitness and I really feel missing a couple of weeks in a row.
I was thinking of going with a 700 lumens light at the front + blinking smart light front and rear. Other than a high viz vest is there any other gear required?

Seweryn

I commute all year since I started last October and I will continue doing it. It is a fantastic way of starting and finishing your working day and the best part of it as well.

lennymc

I dont find the turbos that bad - try the sufferfest videos. They help pass an hour. I would also watch a bit of champions league football aswell. I do go out on the roads aswell, as has been mentioned, lights and the right gear will help. I also do some mountain biking.

Congo_Dub

My hours for work are 9:30 -9:30 during the summer and 9:30 - 6:30 or 9:30 during the winter. I cycle to and from work everyday, bar icy days of course. Its the best thing i ever did. Only started cycling last December and its just the good part of a bad routine now! Its hard to get the drive to go out when its miserable, but after the first 1/2 km you dont notice.

billyhead

Seweryn wrote: »

I commute all year since I started last October and I will continue doing it. It is a fantastic way of starting and finishing your working day and the best part of it as well.

How far is your commute each way Seweryn. Mine is a 55 m round trip and its the highlight of my day. Only started the commute 5 days a week 2 months ago. Also do you use a road bike on your commute. I have a full carbon road bike but am thinking of getting a touring bike or Cyclocross bike for the commute as I don't want to overuse my pride and joy:) I ordered one of the ribble winter commuter bikes online but cancelled it due to budget considerations so am still on the lookout.

Ian,
I got a turbo trainer last winter and did 2 sessions on it before I put it away. Was bored out of my brains on it. Nothing like training outside

ian_rush

Congo_Dub wrote: »

My hours for work are 9:30 -9:30 during the summer and 9:30 - 6:30 or 9:30 during the winter. I cycle to and from work everyday, bar icy days of course. Its the best thing i ever did. Only started cycling last December and its just the good part of a bad routine now! Its hard to get the drive to go out when its miserable, but after the first 1/2 km you dont notice.

billyhead wrote: »

How far is your commute each way Seweryn. Mine is a 55 m round trip and its the highlight of my day. Only started the commute 5 days a week 2 months ago. Also do you use a road bike on your commute. I have a full carbon road bike but am thinking of getting a touring bike or Cyclocross bike for the commute as I don't want to overuse my pride and joy:) I ordered one of the ribble winter commuter bikes online but cancelled it due to budget considerations so am still on the lookout.

Ian,
I got a turbo trainer last winter and did 2 sessions on it before I put it away. Was bored out of my brains on it. Nothing like training outside

You guys are playing havoc with my personal supply of "why I don't commute by bike" excuses, mine would be a 75km round trip which I thought was far to long but now but Billyhead has blown that out of the water. How long does your commute take, including showers etc?
I have ordered the 1000 lumens Chinese lamp recommended in other threads, so expect to see reports of bright lights slowly ascending the high mountain passes around Rush this winter and perhaps on the occasional fair weather commute.

billyhead

ian_rush wrote: »

You guys are playing havoc with my personal supply of "why I don't commute by bike" excuses, mine would be a 75km round trip which I thought was far to long but now but Billyhead has blown that out of the water. How long does your commute take, including showers etc?
I have ordered the 1000 lumens Chinese lamp recommended in other threads, so expect to see reports of bright lights slowly ascending the high mountain passes around Rush this winter and perhaps on the occasional fair weather commute.

Don't fell too guilty. I should have had a k in front of that i.e 55km round trip:D

ROK ON

I was highly sceptical of turbo training. However I have used it for past two years and I love it.

I would aim to do 1hr to 90mins three times a week and I find it a huge help in training.

I use a mix of workouts with for different purposes.
Some I do to music and some to The Sufgerfest and a few more videos.

I would suggest that if you are doing the turbo properly that you should be in no condition to watch tv.

Have a structured goal. Warm up and away you go.

The three principal types of workout that I do are
1. Repeat short efforts. High cadence/medium resistance/flat out effort.
2. Climbing simulations. 53/14 max and keep increasing the resistance until you simply can't pedal any longer. 3 efforts of 6 to 10 mins.
3. Threshold plus. 2 20 min sessions. Start at sun threshold and work up towed threshold, with a small burst of insanity/anaerobic at the end for sh1t and giggles.

brasshead

billyhead wrote: »

Don't fell too guilty. I should have had a k in front of that i.e 55km round trip:D

ian_rush wrote: »

You guys are playing havoc with my personal supply of "why I don't commute by bike" excuses, mine would be a 75km round trip which I thought was far to long but now but Billyhead has blown that out of the water. How long does your commute take, including showers etc?
I have ordered the 1000 lumens Chinese lamp recommended in other threads, so expect to see reports of bright lights slowly ascending the high mountain passes around Rush this winter and perhaps on the occasional fair weather commute.

1000 lumens? Wow that's bright. Any links to this light? Looking into some decent lights for nighttime training myself.

ian_rush

brasshead wrote: »

1000 lumens? Wow that's bright. Any links to this light? Looking into some decent lights for nighttime training myself.

From this thread

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=80863666

I ordered

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1200-Lumen-CREE-XML-T6-LED-Bike-Bicycle-Outdoor-Sports-Light-HeadLight-headLamp-/300677445326?pt=UK_SportsLeisure_Cycling_Bike_Lights&hash=item4601c5b6ce

Actual lumens of 700 is grand for me and there is a risk it will never arrive\work but as the poster said "but sure for 20e...!"

A lot of people also reference www.dx.com

Congo_Dub

The weather side of things is just you giving yourself excuses. Lets be honest, we live in Ireland. It rains.....alot! We're used to it, so (without sounding rude), get on the bike and grow a pair:)

Seweryn

billyhead wrote: »

How far is your commute each way Seweryn. Mine is a 55 m round trip and its the highlight of my day.

My commute is very similar, i.e. 53km round trip, but I sometimes make it longer and extend it on my way back home. It is by far the nicest part of my working day, a real highlight as well. Love it .

billyhead wrote: »

Also do you use a road bike on your commute.

Yes, I use a road bike as on the photo below. It is due to the distance traveled daily and the nature of my route, i.e. mainly country roads.
I treat my bike well and I carry out a small service every second day or every day depending on the distance covered and weather conditions. Yes, the parts are expensive to replace, but I wouldn't like to use any other bike for my commuting. If it wears out or gets damaged, I replace whatever is needed.



At the moment I am considering buying a pair of winter cycling shoes instead of using overshoes.

Frere Jacques

Quick question regarding tyres.
What's the story with running slicks on the road bike in winter time. If I have to go through a couple of puddles or round a corner with a little bit of surface water would I find myself on my back.
I have a Giant Hybrid, was thinking of getting some suitable tyres for that instead of risking the roadbike.
Too cautious?, I'm not 21 anymore and reckon the road surface got harder in the last 15 years .

Coronal

Frere Jacques wrote: »

Quick question regarding tyres.
What's the story with running slicks on the road bike in winter time. If I have to go through a couple of puddles or round a corner with a little bit of surface water would I find myself on my back.
I have a Giant Hybrid, was thinking of getting some suitable tyres for that instead of risking the roadbike.
Too cautious?, I'm not 21 anymore and reckon the road surface got harder in the last 15 years .

Slicks are better on a bicycle than knobbly tyres in wet conditions. The bike will never hydroplane, like a car can, so 'water shedding' grooves on a bike are pointless and, I assume, actually decrease grip on the road due to less rubber in contact with the surface. Ice/snow is a different story, but for the former you need spikes, not necessarily knobbly tyres.

cdaly_

Slicks are better. Threads in car tyres are to channel water away to avoid aquaplaning. On a road bike, you need to be travelling at something like 200kph for aquaplaning to be possible.

Beasty

OP - we'll probably be starting the regular training spins in and around Skerries in a few weeks. Shaungil normally sorts them out, although I'm not sure if he's now retired from "competitive cycling" . We tend to go out Tuesday and Thursday evenings, sometimes doing repeats of Ardgillan (weather permitting), or doing an extended circuit up Ardgillan across to Loughshinney and back to Skerries, or simply sticking to the Distributor Road outside Eurospar. There are a few boardsies who tend to partake. Your 1,000 lumens would complement a few thousand others we tend to get out on some of these evenings.

Oh and we have Strava segments to suit everyone

Lumen

cdaly_ wrote: »

Threads in car tyres are to channel water away to avoid aquaplaning.

TREADS

Thanks.

ashmash

Ireland has got one of the finest climates for cycling in the world. Neither too hot nor too cold and even the rain is not as bad as we like to complain about.

I cycle 12 months a year (though not 365 days, as sometimes it's too icy or windy).

After 5-10 mins of cycling with a reasonably thin jacket it doesn't feel cold at all.
It might be a bit dangerous to cycle in rural Fingal after dark, but it's nothing that a good set of lights and a high-viz vest can't minimise.

I also spotted quite many cyclists in snowy days.



The picture originally appears here and is taken from Dublin's Cyclists.

shaka

Living in the ballyhouras so going to do a bit of the mountain biking this winter if only for the cross training , came off on the aptly named brown trail yesterday but will stick with it local road cycling club meet once a week for night light cycling and will also try to do a bit on the turbo when I can- going to fly up those mountains next year

cdaly_

cdaly_ wrote: »

Slicks are better. Threads in car tyres are to channel water away to avoid aquaplaning. On a road bike, you need to be travelling at something like 200kph for aquaplaning to be possible.

Lumen wrote: »

TREADS

Thanks.

Ah no, I was talking about threads wicking the water away. Like these in a recently retyred retired example of mine...

what_traffic

Seweryn wrote: »

Yes, I use a road bike as on the photo below. It is due to the distance traveled daily and the nature of my route, i.e. mainly country roads.
I treat my bike well and I carry out a small service every second day or every day depending on the distance covered and weather conditions. Yes, the parts are expensive to replace, but I wouldn't like to use any other bike for my commuting. If it wears out or gets damaged, I replace whatever is needed.



At the moment I am considering buying a pair of winter cycling shoes instead of using overshoes.

What kind of bag are you using here and how much gear can you fit in it? Thanks

Found answer by your good self ina different thread: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=81007361&postcount=21

Frere Jacques

Thanks for the tips. In an odd turn today I was cycling home when the bike said "whoosshh" and the handling went all rubbery. Puncture in the rear. Closer examination found that my slicks were too slick. No harm starting the winter with two good tyres anyway. Cheers to all for the tips.

Ant

Frere Jacques wrote: »

Thanks for the tips. In an odd turn today I was cycling home when the bike said "whoosshh" and the handling went all rubbery. Puncture in the rear. Closer examination found that my slicks were too slick. No harm starting the winter with two good tyres anyway. Cheers to all for the tips.

That happened to me last week on the way to a job interview so I locked the bike and took a taxi. That was my first puncture this year. I have Kevlar tyres and while they still have a fair bit of wear left in them, I won't be so complacent about punctures.

tfrancer

ashmash wrote: »

Ireland has got one of the finest climates for cycling in the world. Neither too hot nor too cold and even the rain is not as bad as we like to complain about.

It's great to see such a positive attitude but I can think of dozens of places around the world where I'd rather be right now with my bike.

ashmash

tfrancer wrote: »

It's great to see such a positive attitude but I can think of dozens of places around the world where I'd rather be right now with my bike.

Alright, please let me rephrase it...
Ireland has got one of the finest climates in the world for a sweatless commuting cycling.

There are plenty of other marvellous places for cycling, but I can hardly think of a place where I can cycle 10 miles to work and still smell like my last night shower. In Ireland, it works! :eek: