Cold Weather Riding
From MORC Wiki
Riding in the snow is a lot of fun and helps keep you active year round. Here is some information to help those new to winter riding.
Contents |
Cost
Throughout this wiki you will see product examples shown to help identify the various kinds of equipment and clothing available. This is not an advertisement for any specific brand of product. There are many good manufacturers of cold weather gear, and people are free to spend as much or as little money as they want. While many manufacturers pride themselves on proven cold weather gear, often you can save money by looking for non-bike-specific clothing that will work just as well. XC ski gear works very well also. You can often find bargains in the off-season on winter bike gear, at outdoor sportmen's stores, and at discount stores. Some good places to check out are Campmor , REI-outlet and Sierra Trading Post. For a good selection of cycling specific winter riding gear, check out REI and their house brand Novara.
Clothing Considerations
What to wear is a big concern for many people so here are some tips. First thing first.
Materials
Cotton Kills!
This cannot be stressed enough. Cotton is the worst thing you can wear since it holds moisture next to your skin. If you have to slow down or stop, you will freeze.
Wool is warm, warm while damp, and does not promote the growth of stink-causing bacteria as bad as synthetics. It is however expensive and more delicate than other materials. Most wool clothes can be machine washed in cold water, but cannot be put in the dryer. Wool is also heavier than synthetics. It works great for socks, glove liners, helmet liners, and base layer on the upper body.
Polypropylene/thermax/coolmax (woven) is a good base layer. It allow for wicking, is lightweight, durable and cheaper. It's good for upper body, lower body, glove liners, helmet liners, and ok for socks.
Fleece/Polartec is great middle layer all over for extreme cold. It allow for wicking, is lightweight, durable and cheap.
We will now break it down by body part.
Head
For cooler temps, a thin headband to keep the ears warm is all that is needed. As things get colder, a thin skull cap that will fit under your helmet is the next step. When it gets really cold a balaclava is needed to keep your face warm, just make sure it has a good mouth opening so you don't steam up the inside with all the heavy breathing.
For extreme cold (0F and colder) consider adding a windproof or neoprene facemask and a neck gaiter. Cut out the mouth of the facemask if it is it not big enough for heavy breathing. Watch your nose and ears for signs of frostbite, which can happen rapidly. The neck gaiter helps prevent the wind from sneaking down your collar.
In daylight hours in the open with snowcover, sunglasses (or goggles) are a good idea to prevent snowblindness. You can use a product called "Cat Crap" on the lenses to help prevent fogging. In extreme cold, eyewear helps prevent watering eyes, frozen eyelashes, and frostbitten corneas.
Torso
The first priority is getting some good moisture wicking material next to your skin, this is referred to as a base layer. Then you just need to add insulation as necessary and a good wind resistant outer layer. Ideally you want something that is wind resistant on the front and more breathable in the back. Completely waterproof outer layers do not breath well enough for highly aerobic exercise like biking. They will get all clammy inside and you get the meatcicle effect.
Wool jerseys work well at around the 50 degree temp range and are quite popular out on the trails.
Value Alert! Buy non bike specific gear and save!
Arms
Hands
Cycling specific gloves are nice, but not necessary. Just don't get too bulky since you still have to shift/brake. Lobster-style gloves give you more dexterity then mittens and let your fingers buddy-up for warmth.
As with shoes, you want to promote good circulation to the fingers to keep them warmer. If you add a liner glove, make sure than the fingers are not tight in the fingers of the outer glove.
Gloves such as the Pearl Izumi Inferno shown here are popular for the most extreme cold weather. They are designed to keep your fingers warm but also allow movement for shifting. Gloves that keep your fingers together such as these or "lobster gloves" are quite popular.
Full finger bike gloves may be enough at around 40F, but below freezing add a outer windproof over-glove or wear a windproof glove with light insulation. You hands will sweat a lot still, so make sure they are breathable. Shown is an example of a good mid-weight gloves.
Legs
When it gets really cold, it can be nice to have a pair of loose pants (shown right) to go over your tights to add an extra layer of insulation. You can find light weight riding pants such as the Novara Headwind, or opt for even warmer pants such as the Mountain Hardware Windstopper. Most of these are made so that the cusffs seal out and stay snug as to not get into your chain.
Value Alert! Use regular sweat pants as your cold weather outside layer.
Feet
When the weather starts to get cool, toe warmers (shown right) are a popular choice. They provide extra insulation for your feet and are very easy to put on and remove.
There are a number of full shoe covers that can be used over your existing shoes. This will give you enough warmth for cool and moderate cold weather.
Heavy wool socks, like ski socks, will help keep your feet warm. You should make sure that your shoes are not tight fitting. This will prevent good blood circulation to the feet and quickly make them cold.
Value Alert! Popular low priced show covers are the Performance booties
You may want to get one size larger then usual to allow for room for extra thick socks and chemical warmer packs.
Another option is to use regular insulated boots and platform pedals. For the worst extreme cold, -20F and below, this may be your only option.
If all else fails or you are someone who has feet that just won't stay warm, Mycoal Toe Warmers (shown right) are a good choice and can be used in just about any shoe (as long as you have the room).
Bike Considerations
Tires
For riding on hardpack icy snow, you may want make homemade studded tires, or buy a set of studded tires. Pre-made carbide-studded tires can also withstand extended use on pavement. Nokian is the best known manufacturer of carbide-studded bike tires.
See Also: Tire studding
Suspension
Cold temps are not always real friendly to shocks and suspension forks. The cold temps can cause air to leak past the seals on air sprung forks and shocks. Many people use their old rigid or hard tail bike with coil forks for the winter just to simplify things. Also remember that if you set your tire or suspension air pressure in your warm house, it can decrease by as much as 20% when you take it out into the cold.
Brakes
Snow riding is what originally made me switch from rim brakes to disc brakes. With rim brakes, using the brakes will heat the rims which can melt any snow on them. The water will then refreeze on your rims forming a nice ice braking surface which is next to useless. Disc brakes are less susceptible to this since they are farther away from the snow.
Freewheels/Freehubs
Freewheels/Freehubs may fail to engage if the lubricant inside of them becomes too thick in cold temperatures. A lighter lube may prevent this. Singlespeeders may want to consider getting a flip-flop hub with a fixed cog on one side.
Batteries
Cold temperatures may dramatically cut the battery life of light systems.
Hydration
Water bottles will freeze quickly in temperatures below freezing. Hydration pack tubing will also freeze quickly. Use insulated bottles to prevent the water from freezing quickly, and run hydration pack tubing under your jacket to keep the mouthpiece and tubing ice free. Many companies make hydration backs for skiing/snowboarding that work well as they keep the tubing insulated. The CamelBak SnoBlast is one example (shown left). Many hydro pack manufacturers also sell kits that provide insulated tubing for your existing packs.
Riding Considerations
Tire Selection
When you start to talk winter riding on typical mountain bike trails the first thing to discuss is the tires.
In general, the wider the tire the more traction you will have. After a few years of monitoring local trails it has become obvious that the fatter tires are out riding sooner and typically having much less trouble. You'll find the endomorph tire (typically found on the Surly Pugsly bike) able to ride a trail much sooner after a snowfall. Tires like the 2.7" WTB Timberwolf are usually next, on down to the smallest of XC tires.
Trail Issues
Just because there is snow on the ground doesn't mean there aren't trail considerations to understand before you go out and ride.
First is the temperature. Once it starts to warm up the trail will start to soften up. This typically happens near 32 degrees, but can happen even sooner when the sun is able to hit the trail. For many reasons it is best to stay off the trails during these times. (and often you will find a trail closed when the temperature rises)
Why stay off you ask? First of all, it is a courtesy to all riders that we don't go in and rut up the snow. While it might seem fairly harmless at the time, it will normally turn cold again and those ruts will freeze. Frozen ruts are not fun to ride on, are difficult to remove, and they are also unsafe. There are many individuals who work hard to "stomp" the trail in order to prepare it for snow riding. Leaving ruts in the snow singletrack is disrespectful to your fellow riders and to those who maintain the trail. At some point, depending on the depth of the snow, tires will reach the dirt and can actually damage the trail itself just as riding a trail when its wet can do (or worse!) Especially during a month like March you will find the snow melting and the top of the dirt becoming soft and subject to damage.
Rule of thumb - look behind you when you start your ride. If you are leaving noticeable ruts (1" or deeper) you probably shouldn't be riding. Simply avoiding these times will give everyone a chance to enjoy the trail again once things cool down. We all want to maximize the time we can ride in the winter, don't we?
Are Studs Always Required?
While studs can make it much easier and safer to get around an icy trail, they are typically not required. Only when a trail starts to harden up like ice will studs really do much good. Conditions for studs vary between trails, so you will want to pay attention to the trail conditions threads for more information. Check out our wiki on studding tires for details on making your own.
Bike Handling
Riding on snow is not the same as riding hardpack singletrack trail, although anyone who can ride in the summer can learn to ride in the winter.
More to come.........
Braking on ice When braking on ice, use the rear brake as much as possible and shift your weight back. If you brake hard on the front, and it loses traction, you will go down. A loose rear wheel is easier to control.
Multi-Use Trails
Yield to XC skiiers, and do not ride on XC ski trails, especially if they are groomed. Cross XC ski trails at a right angle.
Safety
Weather in winter can change quickly for the worse, injuries and mechanicals also happen. Be prepared:
- Check local weather conditions.
- Test your bike out in the cold before heading out on a longer ride.
- Hydrate! Winter air is very dry and you will lose a lot of fluids through respiration and sweating.
- Carry an extra upper body layer and hat in case you have to stop for an extended period of time.
- Chemical warmers and space blankets are compact and can be real life savers.
- Many trails are not heavily traveled in winter so don't depend on your fellow riders for help.
- Use appropriate lights and reflective clothing when riding on the street.
- Know the signs of frostbite and hypothermia
- Do not touch metal with bare skin in extreme cold. You will get instant frostbite.
