Forum menu
icy in sheffield - lots of cyclists in the office comparing bumps and bruises.
i stayed upright, but did have a few 'left-hookers' - maybe i was mincing along just slowly enough to be a target, but quickly enough to get in trouble...
stay safe kids 🙂
Icy here in Bradford, particularly on the side roads. Was about 5 minutes slower getting in today, but still better than sitting in the car 🙂
Forecast colder tonight, might try the spikes tomorrow just to see what they're like.
Icy in manchester too, attempted a left hand corner a bit too fast and am now hobbling about with a very bruised knee...
in all the time i waste on this website, i can honestly say, i have only just noticed this challange.
can i get my miles backdated from when it started? and do i get brucie bonus point, for doing it with a ****ed up ticker....... 8)
p.s, not missed a days commute since 1st march this year after my last procedure.
can i get my miles backdated from when it started?
Yep. Endomondo does that automatically when you join any challenge. Any "Cycling,Transport" workouts since the challenge started will be counted automatically (it can take an hour or two to update).
do i get brucie bonus point, for doing it with a ****ed up ticker.......
Only if I get one for doing it with a big belly.
And Asthma (I've got a note from my mum).
Forgive me. I turned back this morning and decided it was a good day to work from home! 😳
The path was sheet ice for as far as I could see. Got a couple of km, with several "moments", but it would have taken me hours to pick my way through it all and the risk of injury was high.
[img] 
[/img]
cold and frosty this morning, but less lethal...
[img] 
[/img]
Stunning! 😀
Christmas parties are having a massive negative impact on my miles! Think i've only done about 70 this week 😆
leaving my GPS widget on the ground* at home yesterday morning cost me 23k!
(*seems to pick up the signal faster like that...)
Damn my luddite ways, my chance for a shot at mediocrity is dashed by not having a gps, or an endomondo account.
Darn.
On the plus side my commute envy is waning, graham that looks awful
No smartphone with GPS D0NK?
Aye that path is [i]not great[/i] in the ice. I've ridden it a few times now and it is almost bad enough for me to consider chancing the dual carriageway instead.
Almost.
Have we done a "what ice tyres?" thread.
Just been looking at the Schwalbe Winter Marathons on wiggle. Any good?
no phone is works, basic job with no data, could buy myself one but meh, guess it's actually my tight-arsedness that's holding me back. Just noticed you're only doing commutes so my mediocrity is even greater (lesser?) than I first thought.
Dunno bout ice tyres, how deep does the ice have to be before they work? Probably great on compacted snow and frozen mud but I can't see them doing you any favours on frosty roads
Sod it. Ordered them anyway. Can;t be any worse than what I'm using and if nothing else the extra weight will be good training and make up for the fact I'm crawling along.
Blimey, I've just accepted this challenge and uploaded my commutes...a mere 5 miles each way and I'm on the front page, are the others southern softies?
😀 2nd page and Northern here.. in fact 18th now, thanks al!
My commute is 11 miles each way, but I can only do it a couple of times a week.
I suspect the Southerners are actually leading as they have it easier
[i]*eyes Will suspiciously*[/i]
Got to agree there Graham, whilst you've been having roads of ice i've been having slightly cold mornings. Although Greig is in Wishaw...
Get this bumped back up now commuting has started again!
However I am quite sure miles aren't being added to the challenge. sure i've been at that mileage for a few days now...
There is no "last updated" section now either!
Who's braved the snow this morning then? I've dug the SnowRat © out of the shed this morning for a test run, shame it was mostly just a slushy mess! Oh well, it'll have bedded the spikes in I guess 🙂
"Dunno bout ice tyres, how deep does the ice have to be before they work? Probably great on compacted snow and frozen mud but I can't see them doing you any favours on frosty roads "
no - they work best on frosty roads.
they are not that great in snow at all.
Been running mine since the first frosts in november.
Im back on it after a lax december period - didnt really get out on the bike at all to work with all the Xmas partys and the like , i got back from turkmenistan and had to go for a meeting in houston.
got a wee bit of MTB in but didnt include that as its not in the spirit of the rules.
Working my way back up the standings at an alarming rate (28th as of this morning from the bottom last week)
boss just called asking if i made it in , saying he cant make it roads are too bad..... i suggested he gets a bicycle and was met with torrents of abuse - only last week he suggested i buy a sensible car and my bangernomics mobile had a hicup.
However I am quite sure miles aren't being added to the challenge. sure i've been at that mileage for a few days now...
Seemed to stall around Christmas - the Endo fairies have fixed it now.
Who's braved the snow this morning then?
Tick! Put the Schwalbe Winter Marathons on at the weekend (as well as a whole new drivetrain, but that's a different story!)
[img] 
[/img]
Bloody hell they are heavy. Super grippy though and the "riding through rice crispies" road noise is oddly soothing.
Got bedded in this morning on a mostly dry run. It's snowing again now, so we'll see how they perform on the way home.
heavy - yes .
looking forward to putting the summer tires on and dropping nearly 2kgs off the bike weight !
reassuring on solid ice of aberdeenshire - Yes.
the road from my house to north deeside doesnt seem to get gritted before i leave.
Yep, I'm mostly off road, so no grit and some pretty thick ice at times (see pic at top of this page!)
Funnily though, my only fall so far this winter was on the road, suddenly moving from gritted to non-gritted on a corner!
They do feel incredibly grippy so I think they'll perform well on ice. Got to be better than my narrow slicks anyway and 2kgs is just extra winter training 😀
-3 and an inch of snow on the ground today. Winter Marathons didn't skip a beat. I was only 2 minutes slower getting to work than I was with them on dry trails yesterday!
[img] 
[/img]
Impressive stuff! A light dusting in London yesterday, roads were obviously all fine, and just wet.
[img] https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-JeQuxqNXBOE/UPUvjqHAT9I/AAAAAAAAHiU/N8SbtuHbtYQ/s400/%255BUNSET%255D.jpg [/img][img] https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-SSlkm5xAqTQ/UPU9FEBIXXI/AAAAAAAAHi0/sHA2KhoKO2E/s400/%255BUNSET%255D.jpg [/img][img] https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-fNrDUpD4oes/UPUvoH5A-cI/AAAAAAAAHic/XWNZ2jNjItQ/s400/%255BUNSET%255D.jp g" target="_blank">
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-JeQuxqNXBOE/UPUvjqHAT9I/AAAAAAAAHiU/N8SbtuHbtYQ/s400/%255BUNSET%255D.jpg [/img][img] https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-SSlkm5xAqTQ/UPU9FEBIXXI/AAAAAAAAHi0/sHA2KhoKO2E/s400/%255BUNSET%255D.jpg [/img][img] https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-fNrDUpD4oes/UPUvoH5A-cI/AAAAAAAAHic/XWNZ2jNjItQ/s400/%255BUNSET%255D.jp g"/> [/img]
Is that 20psi in your tyres trail_rat?
Blimey! I was running the WMs at the full 70psi.
Edit: [i]*enhance*[/i] ahh it's a thermometer, not a pressure guage 😀
thats a thermometor.
Bit nippy out then?
it was showing -9 C the 20 is F
Yep, that's cold!
Any tips for keeping my toes warm? I was wearing two pairs of thermal socks today and they were still a bit nippy by the end.
(I don't really want to wear overshoes if I can possibly avoid it!)
You can buy toes warmers, which just go over the end of your shoes. never used them though so no idea how good they are.
Why no overshoes Graham? I find a thin pair of wool socks and overshoes just about ideal on the commute. Bulking up with extra socks seem to make my feet colder!
the cheapo merino ebay socks on here a bit back , inside mw01s inside mt500 overshoes = warm happy feet
Why no overshoes Graham?
Pure vanity. I look enough of a gimp as it is.
But that said, if it saves me a toe..
Proper snow strikes Sheffield.
[url= https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/117535839343703283706/albums/posts/5835856478601322226 ]Snowy scene on the TPT Sheffield[/url]
Half hour longer to get to work. Way home could be a problem.
As posted on another thread:
Was [s]brutal[/s] [i]character building[/i] this morning. Couple of inches of thick wet snow on the ground offering little if any traction, even with Schwalbe Winter Marathons at 30 odd psi. Spent most of my 11 mile commute going sideways.
That in itself would have been fun - but not when combined with driving wet sleet that soaked though all my waterproofs*
I even took to the road for some of it, I was that desperate!
On the bright side I managed to stay more-or-less vertical and I levelled up my Skid Correction ability.
*(got Mt500 overshoes at the weekend. Looked about as gimpy as feared. My feet still got soaked but they were warmer so cheers. Sealskinz "waterproof" gloves on the other (numb) hand were rubbish. Filled with water then got heavy and very cold).
That sounds a lot like my ride in too Graham. Roads surprisingly bad here, I was overtaking traffic on one of the busiest main roads which really surprised me. Snow studs seem to work ok on well compacted snow and ice, or through very fresh stuff, but any snow that had been spread by cars and slushed up was lethal. Like you, managed to stay upright though (just!). Didn't get too wet as it was still snowing, legs got a bit wet from passing cars throwing up slush but feet and hands warm enough.
Will be taking a more offroad route home I think!
i only came into work so i could bag another 22k for the challenge...
Graham, the British economy thanks you!
(crookes to catcliffe: some riding, some pushing, some carrying, some crashing)
I wouldn't count on off-road being any better if it starts gets slushy out. I even rode on the dual carriageway, something I usually avoid at all costs, because I just wasn't getting anywhere on the paths.
(and fears of dual carriageway confirmed. Despite the conditions I still had drivers buzzing me dangerously close as they raced to the next set of lights. 👿 )
Anyway I have pussied out and called the missus for a lunchtime car evac. 😳
In my defence all my gear is soaked through with no hope of getting it close to dry in time, the weather is getting even worse and I'm not sure my light would last the 3 hours+ it would take me in the dark.
I'm going for offroad mainly so if I do fall, it's not into the road! I had a couple of moments this morning with traffic in pretty close proximity, I wouldn't like to repeat it in the dark with people trying to get home 🙁
Light's on charge!
You did better than me Graham.
Sideways and nearly off at the top of your street.
Sideways and nearly off in Engine Dene.
Returned home and got the train.
First commute missed this year - so not happy.
One overtake by a car this morning with a full slush splash catching me!
I had a couple of moments this morning with traffic in pretty close proximity
You'd like to think that in adverse weather conditions they might give us a bit more room - but no.
We "have no right" to be on the road in this weather (or any weather) so the logical thing is to express their displeasure by attempting to kill us.
I just don't understand that logic - if I saw a child on a tricycle in the middle of the motorway then I'd agree that they had no right to be there, but I'd carefully avoid them not get as close as I could to "teach them a lesson".
You did better than me Graham.Sideways and nearly off at the top of your street.
Sideways and nearly off in Engine Dene.
Returned home and got the train.
LOL. Yeah Engine Dene pretty much set the tone for the rest of the N72. Wet slushy slippy snow with zero traction.
My post was badly worded - when I said "I had a couple of moments this morning with traffic in pretty close proximity", I meant I had a couple of wobbles/slips when there was traffic about.
However, I did also have a couple of close passes but not as many as I expected! Take care going home everyone, driving, biking or whatever 🙂
Well we even had quite bad snow in London on Monday, most main roads were fine however had to be extra careful of corners and exits from side roads. A few close moments so only did short miles. Tuesday was just as bad but mainly due to ice!
Wednesday and today and just muddy muddy roads!