Win

ter R

idin

g

Brou

ght t

o yo

u by

: Far

id R

ener

and

Gra

ham

Bra

dley

, Th

e Fl

at B

ike

Col

lect

ive,

Le

Petit

Vel

o Ro

uge

and

Allé

go.

http

://th

efl a

t.wor

dpre

ss.c

omht

tp://

lepe

titve

loro

uge.

wor

dpre

ss.c

om

http

://su

stain

able

.con

cord

ia.c

a/ou

riniti

ativ

es/a

llego

/

Your

self

Your

out

er la

yers

shou

ld b

e w

ind-

proo

f and

wat

erpr

oof,

with

opt

ions

fo

r bre

atha

bilit

y. Ba

se la

yers

shou

ld b

e sy

nthe

tic o

r woo

l, as

cot

ton

can

feel

w

ette

r and

col

der w

hen

you

swea

t. W

ool s

tays

war

m e

ven

whe

n it

gets

wet

.

Col

d fe

et w

ill m

ake

you

not w

ant t

o rid

e! W

ool s

ocks

w

ill w

ick

away

any

swea

t and

will

kee

p yo

ur fe

et to

asty

. D

on’t

wea

r too

man

y la

yers

of s

ocks

– y

ou n

eed

room

fo

r you

r toe

s to

mov

e ar

ound

. Wat

erpr

oof w

inte

r boo

ts w

ork

wel

l, bu

t if y

ou d

on’t

wan

t to

wea

r the

m, y

ou c

an

ofte

n fi n

d ga

losh

es/b

ootie

s whi

ch g

o ov

er y

our s

hoes

an

d w

ill k

eep

your

feet

dry

and

win

dpro

of.

A he

adba

nd o

r a th

inne

r hat

will

fi t e

asily

und

er y

our h

el-

met

if y

ou lo

osen

the

strap

. If y

ou st

ill h

ave

troub

le, c

onsid

-er

rem

ovin

g yo

ur h

elm

et’s

inte

rior p

addi

ng. F

acem

asks

and

ne

ck w

arm

ers a

re so

met

imes

nec

essa

ry o

n co

ld a

nd w

indy

da

ys. B

alac

lava

s are

also

gre

at a

t kee

ping

the

heat

in a

nd

prev

entin

g yo

ur fa

ce fr

om fr

ost b

ites.

If yo

u’re

over

heat

ing,

un

cove

ring

your

hea

d is

usua

lly th

e sim

ples

t way

to d

ump

heat

. If y

ou g

et to

o co

ld, t

ry ta

ping

ove

r the

ven

ts of

you

r he

lmet

with

stic

kers

or a

win

dpro

of h

elm

et c

over

.

Feet

Out

er a

nd In

ner

Laye

rs

Hat

s

Abo

ut th

is z

ine

Rid

ing

in w

inte

r is f

un, b

ut th

ere

are

a fe

w th

ings

to k

eep

in m

ind

to st

ay sa

fe a

nd w

arm

. Eve

ryth

ing

we

pres

crib

e he

re is

opt

iona

l, yo

u sh

ould

n’t h

ave

to sp

end

any

mon

ey to

ride

you

r bik

e in

the

win

-te

r, an

d th

e m

inut

e yo

u fe

el li

ke y

ou a

ren’t

hav

ing

fun

anym

ore

you

shou

ld st

op. S

tay

in to

uch

with

how

you

r bod

y is

feel

ing

– yo

u ar

e al

read

y m

ore

bada

ss th

an e

very

one

else

for b

ravi

ng th

e sn

ow o

n tw

o w

heel

s – th

ere

is no

sham

e in

stop

ping

at T

im H

orto

ns to

war

m u

p yo

ur to

es o

r to

pull

icic

les o

ut o

f you

r bea

rd…

Win

ter

ridi

ng ti

ps a

nd tr

ix

Rid

ing

your

bik

e in

the

win

ter c

an b

e on

e of

the

mos

t sat

isfyi

ng th

ings

you

do

whe

n ev

eryt

hing

is c

over

ed in

snow

. Win

ter r

idin

g is

all a

bout

per

sona

l pre

fere

nce

-- th

e on

ly w

ay to

fi nd

out

wha

t wor

ks b

est f

or y

ou is

to tr

y it.

Th i

s litt

le ‘z

ine

will

ho

pefu

lly h

elp

you

mak

e in

form

ed d

ecisi

ons a

bout

how

to p

repa

re y

our b

ike,

and

ho

w to

pre

pare

you

rsel

f!

Why

rid

e in

the

win

ter?

Rid

ing

in th

e w

inte

r is f

un! W

e se

e it

as th

e m

ost p

ract

ical

win

ter s

port

– o

nce

you

get u

sed

to h

ow y

our b

ike

hand

les i

n th

e di

ff ere

nt ty

pes o

f sno

w, y

ou w

ill fi

nd it

is

the

only

com

fort

able

way

to g

et a

roun

d.

Surp

risin

gly,

ridin

g in

win

ter t

ends

to b

e w

arm

er th

an w

alki

ng o

r tak

ing

publ

ic

tran

spor

t. Si

nce

you

are

mov

ing

your

bod

y so

muc

h, y

ou e

nd u

p ge

nera

ting

your

ow

n he

at. S

tand

ing

arou

nd w

aitin

g fo

r the

bus

is a

sure

-fi re

way

of g

ettin

g co

ld

and

mise

rabl

e, a

nd st

eppi

ng o

ff th

e ov

er-h

eate

d m

etro

with

you

r ful

l win

ter-

pen-

guin

-out

fi t is

a g

reat

way

for y

our s

wea

t to

keep

you

nic

e an

d fro

sty. O

n yo

ur b

ike,

yo

u ta

ke a

dvan

tage

of t

he c

risp

air t

hat t

he w

inte

r pro

vide

s – lu

ngfu

lls o

f tha

t will

ea

sily

lift y

ou o

ut o

f tho

se w

inte

r blu

es.

Th e

best

part

of r

idin

g in

the

win

ter i

s the

way

it p

eaks

all

of y

our s

ense

s. R

idin

g at

nig

ht, r

ight

afte

r a p

owde

ry sn

owfa

ll w

hen

all t

he c

ars a

re sa

fely

tuck

ed a

way

in

thei

r gar

ages

, the

re is

an

inte

nse

silen

ce. Th

e o

nly

thin

g yo

u he

ar is

the

snow

ge

tting

cru

shed

und

er y

our t

ires,

a no

ise y

ou w

ill c

ome

to c

rave

dur

ing

the

mug

gy

sum

mer

. Th i

s noi

se v

ibra

tes t

hrou

gh y

our w

hole

bod

y, an

d ev

en th

ough

you

are

al

mos

t fl o

atin

g ov

er th

e ro

ad, y

ou fe

el c

ompl

etel

y co

nnec

ted

to it

. You

will

star

t le

arni

ng th

e di

ff ere

nt ty

pes o

f sno

w a

nd ic

e, a

nd th

e w

ay th

ey c

hang

e ho

w y

our

bike

feel

s und

er y

ou. Y

ou w

ill re

alize

how

diff

eren

t car

s sm

ell i

n th

e w

inte

r – th

eir

engi

nes s

trai

ning

aga

inst

the

cold

(but

you

onl

y ge

t stro

nger

as t

he w

inte

r get

s co

lder

!). Y

ou w

ill ta

ste th

e sa

lt, th

at a

wfu

l stu

ff th

at w

ill d

estro

y yo

ur h

umbl

e ste

ed

if yo

u ar

en’t

care

ful…

Rid

ing

your

bik

e is

also

a g

reat

way

to g

et fr

om A

to B

. Th e

re is

no

shor

tage

of

park

ing

spot

s!

Win

teri

ze Y

One

of t

he b

igge

st m

istak

es th

at p

eopl

e m

ake

is ov

erdr

essin

g. E

xerc

ise g

ener

ates

he

at (a

nd sw

eat).

If y

ou a

re sl

ight

ly c

ool w

hen

you

step

outsi

de fo

r you

r rid

e, y

ou'll

like

ly b

e co

m-

fort

able

whe

n rid

ing.

Dre

ss in

laye

rs to

regu

late

te

mpe

ratu

re th

roug

hout

the

ride.

Sca

rves

are

eas

ily

rem

ovab

le a

nd c

an b

e us

ed a

roun

d yo

ur n

eck,

face

an

d ea

rs.

Glo

ves g

ive

you

mor

e de

xter

ity to

use

you

r bra

kes

and

gear

s. H

owev

er th

ey a

re c

olde

r tha

n m

itten

s, w

hich

can

be

hard

to u

se o

n a

bike

. You

can

get

‘lo

bste

r’ gl

oves

whi

ch a

re a

com

prom

ise b

etw

een

the

two.

You

can

put

pla

stic

bags

ove

r you

r glo

ves

to p

rote

ct y

our h

ands

from

the

win

d.

Sung

lass

es a

re u

sefu

l whe

n sn

owy

or w

et ro

ads b

e-co

me

refl e

ctiv

e su

rface

s tha

t blin

d yo

u on

a su

nny

day.

If yo

u ar

e rid

ing

in a

hea

dwin

d, fa

lling

snow

or

rain

, eye

pro

tect

ion

is al

so v

ery

help

ful.

Lab

gogg

les w

ork

wel

l at n

ight

to p

rote

ct y

our e

yes f

rom

th

e di

rty,

slush

y an

d sa

lty c

ity sn

ow. W

rap

a sc

arf

arou

nd y

our f

ace

or w

ear s

ki g

oggl

es to

pro

tect

you

r fa

ce!

Win

ter r

idin

g is

hard

wor

k: y

ou u

se a

lot o

f en

ergy

kee

ping

you

rsel

f war

m. Th

is m

akes

yo

u su

scep

tible

to d

ehyd

ratio

n. D

rink

frequ

ently

! Exp

osed

skin

can

free

ze in

the

win

d if

you

are

ridin

g fo

r mor

e th

an a

n ho

ur. I

f you

star

t fee

ling

num

b sp

ots (

espe

-ci

ally

on

your

face

), sto

p! F

ind

som

ewhe

re

war

m (c

afé,

gas

stat

ion,

supe

rmar

ket e

tc.)

befo

re y

ou fr

eeze

!

Ove

rdre

ssin

g

Sung

lass

es

Glo

ves

Dri

nkin

g

Ligh

ts

Lubr

ican

t sho

uld

be p

lace

d on

all

mov

ing

part

s, in

clud

ing

cabl

es a

nd h

ousin

g.

Gre

ase

shou

ld b

e ap

plie

d to

bal

l bea

rings

pre

fera

bly

to a

ll sc

rew

s, nu

ts, b

olts,

se

atpo

sts, s

tem

s etc

. Win

ter m

akes

thin

g se

ize if

they

are

n’t p

rope

rly lu

bric

ated

. H

igh-

visc

osity

lube

is b

est f

or c

hain

s and

driv

etra

ins (

e.g.

mot

or o

il, P

hilW

ood

Tena

ciou

s). D

on’t

use W

D-4

0 on

cha

ins,

it br

akes

dow

n lu

bric

ant!

You

can

cove

r sp

okes

/nip

ples

with

Vas

elin

e to

pro

tect

them

from

salt

(they

do

get k

inda

gro

ss).

Lube

bre

aks d

own

easil

y in

the

win

ter,

so re

gula

r cle

anin

g an

d gr

easin

g is

nece

ssar

y!

Lubr

ican

t and

Gre

ase

Your

Bik

e

Th e

best

way

to k

eep

your

bik

e in

go

od sh

ape

durin

g an

d af

ter w

inte

r is

to b

ring

it in

side

and

let i

t dry

whe

n-ev

er y

ou c

an. P

repa

re a

spot

in y

our

hom

e w

here

you

can

stor

e yo

ur b

ike.

U

se o

ld ru

gs o

r tow

els u

nder

you

r bi

ke to

abs

orb

the

mel

ting

snow

. Wip

e yo

ur b

ike

dry

and

clea

n w

ith a

rag

afte

r eve

ry ri

de. I

f it d

oesn

’t ha

ve th

e tim

e to

dry

, lea

ve it

out

side

to st

op th

e sn

ow fr

om m

eltin

g th

en fr

eezin

g in

to

solid

ice.

If ro

ad sa

lt sta

rts a

ccum

ulat

-in

g on

par

ts, c

onsid

er ri

nsin

g yo

ur

bike

in y

our b

atht

ub a

nd c

aref

ully

dr

ying

it a

fterw

ards

. Sal

t is t

hy e

nem

y.

Cle

anin

g

Ligh

t you

r bik

e up

like

a C

hrist

mas

tree

. Mos

t driv

ers a

re

payi

ng to

o m

uch

atte

ntio

n to

how

bad

ly th

eir c

ar is

han

-dl

ing

on th

e ro

ad to

pay

atte

ntio

n to

you

. Don

’t ju

st re

ly

on a

sing

le tu

rtle

ligh

t, if

it sta

rts s

now

ing,

thes

e w

ill b

e co

mpl

etel

y in

visib

le. R

efl e

ctiv

e ta

pe e

very

thin

g yo

u ow

n. I

n th

e da

y, w

ear d

ark

clot

hes t

o co

ntra

st th

e w

hite

snow

, but

at

nigh

t wea

r thi

ngs w

hich

will

mak

e yo

u sta

nd o

ut!

Th e

mos

t im

port

ant p

art o

f you

r bi

ke! B

eing

wet

is th

e w

inte

r rid

er’s

wor

st th

reat

. You

shou

ld le

ave

som

e cl

eara

nce

betw

een

your

fend

er a

nd

your

tire

so th

at th

e sn

ow d

oesn

’t ge

t stu

ck. P

erio

dica

lly k

nock

snow

ou

t fro

m y

our f

ende

rs, o

r you

r bik

e m

ight

free

ze so

lid! Y

ou c

an m

ake

fend

ers o

ut o

f old

cam

paig

n sig

ns.

Fend

ers /

Mud

guar

ds

Wid

e, kn

obbl

y tire

s (lik

e th

ose

on m

ount

ain

bike

s), h

ave

good

trac

tion

in sl

ush,

how

ever

th

ey c

an ‘s

wim

’ ove

r pow

dery

snow

. Wid

e tir

es w

hen

on th

e ro

ad c

an h

ave

bad

trac

tion

whe

n co

rner

ing

due

to th

e kn

obs b

endi

ng

unde

r sid

e lo

ads.

With

a la

rger

surfa

ce a

rea,

thes

e ca

n ha

ve a

bet

ter p

urch

ase

on ic

e.

Skin

nier

tire

s cut

thro

ugh

slush

and

pow

der t

o co

ntac

t dire

ctly

with

the

road

. You

do

n’t ‘s

wim

’, bu

t you

mig

ht e

nd u

p hi

tting

hid

den

patc

hes o

f ice

or c

ompa

cted

sn

ow w

hich

can

be

quite

slip

pery

. Cyc

lo-c

ross

tire

s are

skin

ny, a

nd h

ave

‘kno

bs’,

whi

ch c

an b

e a

com

prom

ise.

You

mig

ht fi

nd th

at m

ixin

g an

d m

atch

ing

is a

good

idea

. It i

s bet

ter t

o ha

ve m

ore

trac

tion

on y

our f

ront

whe

el, a

s thi

s is t

he o

ne y

ou u

se fo

r cor

nerin

g –

som

e pe

ople

us

e w

ider

, mor

e ‘k

nobb

ly’ t

ires o

n th

e fro

nt a

nd so

met

hing

slic

ker o

n th

e ba

ck.

Tir

es

Low

/Dro

p ha

ndle

bars

are

a b

ad id

ea, s

ince

they

shift

you

r w

eigh

t tow

ard

the

front

of t

he b

ike,

pla

cing

mor

e w

eigh

t ove

r th

e fro

nt w

heel

. Th i

s red

uces

trac

tion

over

the

rear

whe

el, w

hich

ca

n de

stabi

lize

you

as y

ou ri

de. T

ry ra

ising

you

r ste

m, a

nd lo

wer

-in

g yo

ur sa

ddle

hei

ght t

o m

ove

your

cen

tre o

f gra

vity

low

er to

th

e gr

ound

, cre

atin

g m

ore

stabi

lity.

You’

ll ha

ve a

less

effi

cien

t rid

ing

posit

ion,

but

hey

, it’s

snow

ing.

Han

dleb

arsW

inte

rize