I reckon for most of us, it’s a lot like night riding. You might not always have a huge amount of choice of where and when you ride, and ice spikes like lights will sometimes mean you can get out and ride with more freedom.
I used to always have a set- there’s more days than you’d think where it can make a big difference, even just in/around Edinburgh. It doesn’t mean “can/can’t go for a ride”, it means “can go for a pretty normal ride rather than being careful in case there’s death waiting around the next corner”
Especially with things like the fabled Glentress Glacier (which is when all the tyre pressure compresses a couple of inches of snow into a diamond-hard layer of mirror polished ice, which in the right conditions can outlas all the rest of the snow by weeks)
I mean, I’m only talking 2 or 3 gamechanging rides a year maybe on average, but that was enough for me. And tbh I just really like riding on ice, it’s a strange and excellent feeling.
(I don’t bother any more as the fatbike opens up more snow/ice options, not the same but another route to much the same place)
scotroutes
Full Member
My biggest issue with them is stopping, putting a foot down, and then sprawling over as it slides away at speed.
Ah now, I’ve only done that 50 or 60 times, tops.