Black ice – so that's what the fuss is about…..

Ay common’ guys……

We all have opinions.

As an aside I had no black ice this morning but at about -11 C my gloves didn’t work very well 🙁

Not a personal attack at all but your opinions seem to change to suit.

Not at all Gary. My opinion is consistent – just differs from the mainstream. I ain’t gonna argue it tho – but I will say perhaps my slagging of falkirk mark was OTT

Yesterday I cycled along a 2 lane A road – there was about 1.5 lane width available – conditions were dicey – and I did wonder if I should be on the road….. but there was hardly any traffic and there was plenty of room for overtaking – I didn’t feel as though I was holding anyone up, and cars were only doing 20mph. At one point the road narrowed due to roadworks – so I just hopped onto the pavement. I rekon it’s easy enough to judge if it’s safe or not – just use your loaf 😉

As for ice – 3.8″ of rubber at 6psi is the answer to that! 😀

Gary_M, at least I’m only occasionally filling the internet up with crap. You’re developing it into an art form on this thread. You need to get out on your bike and live a little.

Just a thought, but black ice is pretty much invisible and unexpected.

As it’s -8 outside and been snowing for over a week with feet of snow piled at the side of the road. I’d struggle with anyone who said an accident was due to black ice here in Newcastle.

It’s just ice and you should be expecting it no expecting the roads to be clear.

You need to get out on your bike and live a little.

Yeh as I said over 6000 miles ridden so far this year, so I don’t have anything to prove. You?

And why is it crap if I’m contributing to a discussion?

As for ice – 3.8″ of rubber at 6psi is the answer to that!

I wouldn’t go boasting about being flaccid and less than 4″ 😀

Oh the joys of the UK. Here is Sweden my daughters school bus did get stuck but I rescued her by attaching the sledge to the back of the bike and pulling her home. All the big roads around here and a lot of the little ones have either dual use pavements or proper cycle lanes. Having great fun cycling to work and back practising my drift turns literally as I most often end up in a drift.

Not meaning to deflect you all from the the important job of making remote personal attacks on people you’ve never met (!) but I seem to see an idea for a ghetto tyre mod. Liking the whole cable tie thing, and the bath chain is a nice variation but hard to get right? Has anyone tried making ghetto tyre socks with sacking fastened on the tyre with cable ties? Seems to me would also add lateral grip, would be cheap, and best of all would be ghetto. Presume has been dome before? If so, please resume the attacks. Thanks for your attention.

How much difference does a spiked tyre make? there is not so much surface area on a bike tyre. Best thing I have found for grip is weight. So I am eating my 5th bar of chocolate today to try to improve my winter biking performance.

on ice a spiked tyre makes a huge difference – almost normal grip compared to almost none

Had to give the bike a miss this morning. Brought my bike inside to thaw first thing as brakes non-functional, within 10mins of riding they’d started to seize up again along with the rear deraillieur. Roads themselves were fine though.

To be fair to Gary, it’s impossible for me to say that he should be cycling to and from work. I don’t know the state of the roads around him, nor the prevailing traffic conditions.

However, my point is that he is wrong to make a broad, sweeping statement such as “There is no denying the fact that riding on the road in these conditions is extremely dangerous.”

Furthermore, for anyone to suggest that driving a car is OK because you are better protected from the results of driving, misses the point that, if conditions are that bad, your duty of care as a driver is NOT to drive in the first place and so avoid putting other road users and pedestrians at risk.

-11 here and my finger were rather painful when I got to work 🙁 Oh well they are worm now – at least is sl. warmer to go home 🙂

Succinctly put Druidh

*applause*

Gary, stumpy et al if you don’t want to ride on the roads coz it’s icy and you are worried you will slip and fall, or coz it’s snowy/cold/hardwork/can’t be bothered thats fine I have no issue, each to their own. However if you think it’s too dangerous to ride on the roads due to all the cars and decide instead you will drive, well I’m sorry thats all messed up and coming on here trying to convince a load of other cyclists to think the same as you – I take issue with that, you’re making yourself part of the problem, thanks guys.

(EDIT) A reasonable easy commute in for me this morning (first ride in on road for a while cos offroad snow is much more fun) brake levers and all leading edges on me/bike frosted over but most people played nice, except one div white van man who tried to bully me off the road, nowt to do with ice tho.

BTW ice spikes, they aren’t going to help with a fine layer of black ice on the road are they? compacted snow and thick ice yeah, but can’t see it working on the tiny amount we have. Or am I wrong.

spikes help greatly – its on ice they work best

Furthermore, for anyone to suggest that driving a car is OK because you are better protected from the results of driving, misses the point that, if conditions are that bad, your duty of care as a driver is NOT to drive in the first place and so avoid putting other road users and pedestrians at risk

So how are we getting to work then?

By bike of course 😉

D0NK – Member
Gary, stumpy et al if you don’t want to ride on the roads coz it’s icy and you are worried you will slip and fall, or coz it’s snowy/cold/hardwork/can’t be bothered thats fine I have no issue, each to their own. However if you think it’s too dangerous to ride on the roads due to all the cars and decide instead you will drive, well I’m sorry thats all messed up and coming on here trying to convince a load of other cyclists to think the same as you – I take issue with that, you’re making yourself part of the problem, thanks guys.

DONK – I never said that I would get in my car as a substitute for cycling. I said I cycle for fun.
If the conditions mean it’s not worth the risk, then I won’t go out. That doesn’t mean I am going to do a 30 mile training loop in my car instead, does it??
And I don’t believe I have tried to ‘convince’ anyone to ‘think the same as me’. People can think what they want & do what they want; I was merely expressing an opinion on how I see the situation and react to it.

But thanks for your input. No need to be sorry for it.

druidh – Member
Furthermore, for anyone to suggest that driving a car is OK because you are better protected from the results of driving, misses the point that, if conditions are that bad, your duty of care as a driver is NOT to drive negligently (like normal) in the first place and so avoid putting other road users and pedestrians at risk.

FTFY

Where did I say I was substituting the bike for a car? I’m sure if you could be bothered reading then you’ll find I’ve got the bus the last two days.

So donk how does getting the bus make me part of the problem? I await your angst ridden teenage response.

And as for your line ‘or coz it’s snowy/cold/hardwork/can’t be bothered thats fine I have no issue’ – like I said I’ve ridden over 6000 miles this year, how about you?

Who’s Dave? 😀

“Waderider – Member

THIS IS A MOUNTAIN BIKE FORUM, NOT A ROAD CYCLING FORUM.”

Wouldn’t have got 20 feet on my road bike for most of this week Therefore still appropriate for a mtb forum

This thread is still going? 😆

Still not convinced then?

Thread Closed………AGAIN. 😉

I’ll be off in a minute to do a 2 mile night time hilly city centre commute. The roads are quite icy. I will be using my single (rear) brake 20″ slick tyre bmx. Tell my family I love them.

OPEN: Rubbish 😉

My own skewed opinion is that I quite enjoy the riding/commuting at the mo, but then in MK we have dedicated cycle paths with no cars on them so I have been attacking every bend and corner like a big kid and skidding the rear end out like a speedway rider. Come off yesterday down a slope but it was just a slide and all I got was a back full of snow. I should imagine I’ll take a few more slides this winter but as I said with no cars to worry about its no real problem.

Hi guys, remember me?

Never expected this thread to develop the way it has!

Anyway, as an update, woke up this morning feeling fine, rode into work on the main roads that I knew were gritted and safe. Spent the day watching this thread develop and discovered how dangerous this commuting apparently can be. Came to ride home and discovered that I had completely lost my bottle whenever I saw white or possible black ice and ended up coming home a very long and scenic route to avoid any roads I wasn’t sure were gritted and/or stick to the snowy, griipy paths.

I also seem to have a bruised hip and knee getting more painful as the day goes on, and a bit of whiplash – seem to recall my head hitting the road as I went down so I guess my neck/shoulder copped it.

As far as comments made on this thread go, as always on t’internet, a sweeping generalisation seems to have got blown out of all proportion. It is every riders – and drivers – decision as to what constitutes “too dangerous” for them their families and other road users.

My commute is 12 miles each way, half on rural towpaths and sustrans trails, a quarter on “urban” cycle paths or back streets, a quarter on busy urban roads. My problem is that the design of the roads and cycle paths means that I cannot just reverse my route to come back out, hence the cut through quiet residential areas where I got caught by black ice. My car is stuck in our village, I cannot get to work by public transport, my bike is the only viable way.

My experiences this week, and some of the comments made, have made me think that perhaps while riding in the snow to get in is fine – and fun – I really need to decide if it is worth it when the snow turns to ice – that may mean sticking to the busier gritted roads, or staying at home, or maybe trying to justify ice tyres!

No I still haven’t changed my mind however I did experience 400 yards of sheet black ice this morning on the wrong bike 🙂

I did see my bike stationary on the road looking back at it while I skimmed down the road on my back – Was kinda funny – small graze and ripped my tights a little (sewing later). I was half way to work on quiet country roads so carried on. More ice, slowed down and was OK. Of concern were the t1ts going about 40mph while I was on the verge putting my chain back on again – I am sure one was planing along it 😯

I still think its personal pref and in snow I love it but it took me another 10 mins to get to work this morning (and trying to stay upright on the sheet ice on 25c tyres is not easy 🙂 so wasn’t quicker than the car 🙁 I will saty away from the moor this weekend and do some turbo 🙂

Had been meaning to watch this thread but had stuff on, anyway quick response to gary, you seemed to think I had unfairly had a go.

Gary_M – Member

Where did I say I was substituting the bike for a car?

Totally crazy riding in this weather unless you avoid roads altogether. I was driving to work the other day…

Yeh whatever, just hope I don’t come across you when I’m driving.

Well that kinda sounds like like you’ve ditched the bike for a car.
Oh after rechecking the thread I did see this one about the bus (first time round I was too busy watching geda’s video – awesome)

Took the car yesterday and bus today and same tomorrow

I’ve ridden over 6000 miles this year, how about you?

I’m not getting into a who can pee highest contest (but no I haven’t done 6000 miles) but what does that matter? If I lived 0.5 miles from work and rode in everyday I’d still be short of doing 1000miles but my view would still be valid I feel.

Sorry stumpy got some posts mixed up

you lot are mental, why don’t you just drive?

was someone else entirely.