Over the weekend, a wind chill warning was in effect as the temperature dipped to -41C, and my city had the dubious honour of being the coldest spot on earth overnight. The Canadian prairies have remained in a deep freeze all weekend, and the cold temperatures continued today. As I was out and about yesterday, trying to get some Christmas shopping done, it occurred to me that perhaps my temperature cut-off for biking should be -30C. Last week I managed to bike in -20C weather, but this -30C is a whole different ball game. It was just too damn much. When exposed skin will freeze in less than five minutes, I figure it's just not the right kind of day to ride my bike for 40 minute commutes.
So this morning, when I checked the weather to discover it was -32C outside, I drove. And once again, I battled terrible congestion and a very busy parkade and arrived frustrated, late, and very cold. I saw some cyclists on campus, and while it initially made me feel guilty for not biking when clearly other people could do it, I took comfort in thinking that perhaps they weren't coming from the west end and that perhaps their rides weren't 40 minutes long. A cold 10-minute ride would be a whole different story than a cold 40-minute ride.
But I digress . . . tomorrow is supposed to be -29C in the morning, which means that unless the wind chill contributes significantly to that temperature, I'll probably brave it on the bike. I'll keep you posted!!
I bike all year round, in any conditions.
ReplyDeleteBut this weekend I went into hibernation, hitched a ride with a friend to do grocery shopping, and made a long face when my furnace died.
It's cold out there.
Oh no!!! I'm so sorry to hear about your furnace! A few years ago my furnace died in the middle of a January blizzard, and it turned into quite a scary/uncomfortable/expensive gong-show of an ordeal.
ReplyDeleteHow do you dress for truly frigid temps, like beyond -30C? Do you ride any differently when it's cold? How long is your commute? It's so nice to be able to ask questions of a veteran bike-commuter!!
Hey Healthy Biker,
ReplyDeleteI rode Monday (somewhat successfully) and despite some cold fingers/toes I made the 8 km trek from Southgate to downtown.
If you're curious, here is a list of what I wore:
Feet: Wicking liner socks, Plastic bag corner midlayer (ya, ghetto, but it helps), synthetic thermal socks in some mesh top running shoes, covered by some nice new MEC shoe covers to break the wind on my feet (these did wonders actually).
Legs: Wicking long johns, spandex/poly/lycra tights.
Torso/arms: Wicking long sleeve base, cotton tee, polyester hoodie, windbreaking cycling jacket.
Hands: liner gloves, goretex outter gloves.
Head: neck warmer, belaclava, toque, helmet with vents taped with duct tape (helps a lot too if you haven't tried this). Ski goggles as well.
If you can stand the cold on your eyes, take off your ski goggles at red lights so they don't fog (this happened to me monday, and once you've got a frozen layer of condensation on your goggles, you're not getting it off easily if you are midride).
Thankfully my freehub also froze up that morning, which caused me to spin my pedals hopelessly while trying to cross streets, but I made it eventually :)
Awesome! Thanks for the gear tips, Corey! And, btw, for biking on Monday when our city was officially the second coldest place on earth, you're my personal hero. :)
ReplyDeleteI've heard elsewhere that plastic bags are a cheap and really useful tool for the winter biker for use on feet and other areas that get really cold (i.e., le junk). I haven't tried them myself because I haven't tried biking when it's been cold enough to warrant them. Perhaps I should grow a proverbial pair and try biking beyond my -30C cut-off! I'm sure there will be plenty of opportunity for me to consider that in Jan/Feb.