Winter Cycling

A little cold out here.

Last winter, I rode straight through. This winter, we’ve had snow every two or three days roughly since the beginning of the year, so I’ve missed a few days. But now we are getting a break, and I am back at it. Here are a few things I’ve learned.

1.) Wind is everything. Where I live, winter is windy. Usually it comes from the north-northwest here. When the wind comes from the northeast, that usually means a storm – a nor’easter – and no riding. So I plan rides accordingly and try to have a tailwind on the ride home. This rarely works.

2.) There are no tailwinds in the winter. Because the winds are stronger in the winter, unless you have a wind directly behind you or behind and slightly to one side, the wind pushes against the spinning spokes, making forward motion more difficult. Even on good days then, average speed suffers. I try not to get too frustrated when I see my average speed, developed over the span of the preceding less windy months, slowly drop to embarrassing lows.

3.) Spinning is difficult in a headwind. Spinning is good practice. But with the relentless pressure of the wind, spinning (at least for me) makes it harder to maintain momentum. So (and I don’t know whether this is good practice) I tend to find that dropping cadence a bit keeps the bike moving forward in a strong wind better than spinning at a higher cadence. I can’t go too low though, or I end up with chronically sore knees and risk injury. I just do it enough to maintain momentum.

4.) Overdressing is easy to do. If you walk out of the house, and you are warm, then you are overdressed. If you walk out of the house and ride down the block and you are warm, you are still overdressed. If you walk out of the house, ride down the block and climb the first hill and you are soaked with sweat, you are still overdressed. On that first hill, you should be just a bit sweaty by the time you reach the top and starting to feel like you are warming up. Most of the layers I wear are relatively thin, and I have started to memorize which layers go with which temperature/windchill. I rarely wear more than three layers, but I often vary the thickness of each.

5.) Booties, gloves and hats are important. If I don’t have the right hat on, my toes freeze. If I don’t have the right booties on, my toes freeze. And if I don’t have the right gloves on, my hands freeze and my toes freeze. Get gloves that have longer “gauntlets” that allow them to be tucked inside the sleeves of a jacket. There are booties made that range from simple outer-socks to fuzzy fleece-lined Gortex arctic wear. I think the best hats are made of merino wool, because they stay warm even when sweaty. And I have a pair of booties that are the arctic kind. My feet get really cold very easily.

6.) Getting dressed takes too long. The most irritating part of the ride is getting dressed. I take care of my bike first. Then I get dressed. The absolutely last thing I do is put on my outer jacket. I live in an apartment, so getting sweaty before I reach the street is pretty easy. Getting out the door as soon as the last layer goes on is the goal. No matter what I do, this takes at least 45-50 minutes. It helps me to have most things sitting by the front door.

7.) New stuff is often good stuff. Several cycling clothing manufacturers recently started making jackets out of very lightweight, slightly stretchy, translucent material (I have one made by Castelli.) There have been things like this before, but this new material makes the jackets packable to almost nothing. The best part, however, is that the jacket is nearly wind-proof while fitting like a cycling condom (no material flapping in the wind.) Great for keeping the chill off while fighting your way home through a change in the weather wearing sweaty clothing.

8.) Get out of the house. The house is warm. The outside is not. Hard to leave the house. But no indoor trainer replicates riding on the road. And for me, the solitude during the ride and the feeling of accomplishment afterwards usually produces enough energy that the next ride is easier to begin. First though, I have to get out of the house.

9.) Wave at people. Usually, I am the only cyclist I see all day during a winter ride. I say usually, because I live in an area where there are lots of very serious cyclists, so it would be wrong to say never. However, I am usually one of very few cyclists out on the roads. That gives me an opportunity to get to know my fellow drivers. So I wave at any car that yields to me, lets me go first through an intersection or gives me a wide berth on a narrow road. They are usually staring at me anyway, so I see it as a PR opportunity. Later in the summer, maybe they won’t try to kill me.

10.) Drink. When I ride in the winter, I forget to drink because I am not hot. I might be sweaty, but I am not having difficulty keeping my core temperature down. So I forget to drink. As a result, I get dehydrated more in the winter than in the rest of the year. So I have to force myself to drink. I also have to figure out how to keep my water from freezing in my water bottle, but mostly I just have to remember to drink.

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