Autofocus Doesn't Work at 15 Below!

This morning was my coldest ride ever. I carried a temperature datalogger with me, and it recorded a temperature of -14.8 degrees F (-26 degrees C) near the mid-way point of my commute. Traveling at a sluggish 10 miles per hour created a wind chill factor of -35 degrees F (-37 degrees C). I was as prepared as I could be for those conditions, and I arrived at work warm... but exhausted. A co-worker took this picture of me with my cell phone camera that I carried in my backpack, but the cold seemed to kill the autofocus! What I wanted to show was that NO skin was exposed - because it would have meant frostbite within minutes. I wore a full face mask with ski googles, with an insulated bike helmet on top. I wore a windproof jacket and pants over 3 layers of fleece/polypro on my body. I wore "Thinsulate" ski gloves on my hands, and Sorel boots with two pairs of heavy socks on my feet.

What I learned is that I can dress up for the extreme low temps... but I wasn't prepared for the impact on the performance of my bike. It seemed like the grease in the axles and my 8-speed internal hub turned to mollases and it made it significantly harder to pedal. On flat, straight sections where I would ordinarily be easily cruising in the 8th gear, I was instead alternating between the 5th and 6th gear. To add even more difficulty, my nice warm Sorel boots are HEAVY. Lifting them up with each pedal stroke seemed to get more and more difficult through the ride.

The only real concern I had during my ride was when my goggles started to fog up with about 2 miles to go. It happened quickly. For the first 3-4 miles of my ride, the goggles performed perfectly. Then, the fog started creeping in - from the top down. By the end of the ride, I could only see clearly through the bottom edge of the lens. At these temps, taking the goggles off really wasn't an option, so I had to continue on - even with limited visibility. I'm going to see if applying an anti-fog treatment makes a difference on the ride home.

Anyway, it was an interesting challenge - but I won't be sad if I don't have to ride in temps this cold again this winter!

Finally.

I finally accumulated the parts I needed to put together my perfect Vermont winter commuter bike. I picked up the two crucial pieces from the Denver craigslist. It seems that there is a lot of honesty in the biking world, and I was able to get exactly what the sellers promised. I ended up with a used Surly 1x1 frame (completely built up as a nice single-speed) and a used Shimano Nexus 8-speed hub, built into a 26-inch wheel. Combine this with the studded Nokians I already owned, and my new MiNewt Mini-USB headlight (and tail lights, of course)... and I now have a dependable, safe commuter bike that will take me through all but the worst of conditions. I've been riding it all this week and LOVE it. Bring on the snow and ice. I'm ready.

Swapped the bike for my skis.

I've wanted to try this for years - and finally pulled the trigger. We've had almost two feet of new snow in the past several days, so I thought it would be cool to ski in to work. The only problems: my skis are pretty crappy, I'm a pretty crappy skier, and my route is pretty crappy. It took my about an hour and a half to ski the 5 miles to work. I was either on plowed bike path/road (sometimes plowed down to asphalt... with some sand/gravel thrown in) or breaking trail through 2 feet of snow (exhausting). I didn't wear double socks, and I ended up getting really bad blisters on the backs of both feet. I also plunged knee-deep in an ice-cold stream near the end of my trip. At least that made my blisters feel better. Anyway, it was cool to try it once - but I think that a bike is the best vehicle for my commute!

First Tracks.

One of my favorite times to ride is right after (or during) a fresh snow. Everything is so quiet, and the ride is super-soft. It is kinda surreal. I'm really fortunate that I can stay off the road for most of my commute, because it was not a day to be sharing the road with cars. The roads were really slick, and the shoulder/bike lane was a mess. I took a route that kept me off the main road entirely (on bike path and condo roads) for the first 5 of my 6 miles, and I walked the last mile in the snow off the side of the road. It took me 50+ minutes to get to work (compared with 18 minutes on my old ten-speed in the summer), but I didn't risk my life or make life more difficult for motorized traffic.

Trip Pics.

These are pictures from today's commute. The top one is from my morning cruise to work, and the bottom one is from my ride home this evening. Most of my ride is paved bike path or bike lane on the side of the road. This is just a little "shortcut" that keeps me off the side of a pretty busy road for more than a mile. The city eventually plans to build a bike path near here, but until then, this path through a marshy field will work just fine.

Zero.

This morning was my first really cold winter ride of the year. Really cold. It was hovering around zero when I rode in - and windy. The wind chill factor was between -15° F and -20°F.

The road conditions were worse than the temperature. Just a few days ago, temps were around 50°, so the roads were pretty warm. Yesterday, it got cold quickly and snowed - and it turned to a layer of glaze ice on the roads. Lots of accidents last night, and it wasn't much better this morning.

I took a route that keeps me off the main roads for all but the last mile of my ride, so at least I didn't have to deal with a couple of tons of steel sliding at me. I just had to worry about keeping myself upright, because I still haven't put the studded snows on. Another evening project for this week...

BIKING THROUGH WET CONCRETE.

Brutal ride this morning. We got an inch or two of wet snow yesterday, which was plowed into the bike path and froze into chunks the size of billiard balls. I left home fifteen minutes early this morning... only to arrive right on time. I'm wiped.

It was, however, a beautiful morning. Bright sun, no wind, and about 15-20 degrees F. Perfect winter riding weather if the road/path conditions weren't so tough.

LIGHTS OUT.

For me, the toughest thing about winter in Vermont isn't the cold or the snow... it is the darkness. Since late November, I've been biking home in the dark - and frankly - I'm sick of it. Yesterday, however, marked a turning point. I was able to make it home without needing my headlight. To be honest, I left it on for safety (it was dusk by the time I got to the house), but I didn't NEED it. It is reminding me of the 8+ months each year when I don't need lights to get home... when riding my bike feels more like fun and a little less like a chore. I needed that.

"DON'T FALL, DON'T FALL, DON'T FALL..."

This is what I say under my breath when I find myself out of control on ice. The bike path has been scary the past few days. We had freezing rain followed by a couple of freeze-thaw cycles - and it made some stretches of the path virtually unrideable. This was my view yesterday morning on a particularly slick stretch.

I have a really good pair of studded snow tires - which I thought would make me immune to icy conditions. Not true. This particular ice is virtually frictionless, and it is so hard that the studs don't seem to get a grip at all. Sharp turns are impossible... you literally have to come to a slow stop, dismount, physically aim your bike in the new direction, and start riding again. I've had a few close calls where I've been barely able to get a foot down before my bike slipped out from under me. The scariest episode was when I touched the rear brakes at the top of a steep hill, only to have the bike accelerate. I put my foot down to stop the bike, but my boot slid just as fast as the bike! I was lucky to be able to guide the bike off the path into some crunchier snow while still on my feet.

Riding while being constantly vigilant for an impending fall is exhausting. I'm looking forward to being off my bike for a couple of days... and hoping the ice clears by Monday.

ROAD FRECKLES.

It was an ugly morning to ride. Freezing rain last night and this morning made the bike path treacherous. The icy spots looked wet. The wet spots looked icy. The dry spots were icy! My ride was very slow on the way to swim practice this morning at 5:15am, and I did a lot of brake checks.

Unlike the bike path, the roads were salted and wet. There is a winter's accumulation of oily dirt on the roads, and every time we get a thaw my front tire sprays these road freckles on my face. This is mostly my fault for not having fenders on my winter bike, but I've been struggling to find fenders that fit. I need to visit the bike shop WITH MY BIKE next time so I don't have to make another return.

WIND CHILL - A FACTOR OF HOW FAST YOU RIDE.

One of the interesting things about commuting by bike through the winter is the influence of wind chill factor. Even on a dead-calm day, bike riders have to consider the wind chill factor that is a direct result of how fast they ride.

For example, I have biked to work several times in the past couple of weeks when the temperature hovered around the 0 degree F mark. My average speed in the winter is about 15 mph, which creates the same wind chill effect as standing still in a 15 mph wind. The wind chill factor at 0 degrees F with a 15 mph wind is -19 degrees F!

Check the chart above or go to the NOAA windchill information page at: http://www.weather.gov/os/windchill/index.shtml

This is why it is so important to wear a "shell" in the winter. Without it, the "wind" created by your bike ride would pull the heat off of you faster than your body could replace it.

Yesterday and Today's Rides: I think I have officially hit the "winter blahs". I'm getting weary of all the extra clothing I have to wear, the gray days, and the slow winter rides on my studded tires. I don't dread getting on my bike every day to go to work, but I'm not excited about it either. It's not a big deal, just a natural part of living in a northern climate with long winters.

NICE RACK.

I'm getting ready to meet tonight with someone from Burlington International Airport to talk about bike parking in their covered garage. (see previous post)

I've been checking out commercial bike rack options, and there are some pretty cool racks out there! I think my favorite is this one from Dero Bike Rack Company (http://www.dero.com/). They also have simple but elegant "bollard" designs. I found other cool commercial bike rack ideas at http://www.belson.com/ and http://www.theparkcatalog.com/.

I'm sure that the airport does not want to give up any paid parking spaces, so we're going to try to identify unused space throughout the garage where they can locate secure bike rack systems.

Today's Ride: Another chilly day for a bike ride - just above 0 degrees F for my morning ride and in the teens for my evening ride. I was comfortable though... even a little warm on the way home. The inside of my waterproof pants was sopping wet with sweat.

BIKE 'N FLY AT BURLINGTON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT?

I just got back from a quick work trip to New York City to check out an industry trade show on Tuesday. When I was working out the final details of my trip on Monday afternoon, I decided I would ride my bike to the airport. It's only about 4.5 miles from my house, and it's bike path the entire way. Easy! Taking the family car and leaving it parked at the airport was not an option - that would strand my wife and kids without a vehicle. I needed to leave the house before 5am, so it was too early for my wife to load the kids in the car and give me a ride. I could call a cab, but they are really expensive around here and I knew it would be a $20 ride each way. So, riding my bike seemed like a really good solution.

I decided to call the airport to make sure it was OK to leave a bike there. I was surprised when the woman at the airport parking office told me that I could not park a bike there! I called airport general information, and got the same answer. I even called a private long-term parking location (run by Thrifty), and they turned me down too! I couldn't believe that my simple plan was falling apart!

At this point, it was Monday evening and the airport administrative offices were closed. I left a message expressing my disappointment that I couldn't leave a bike at the airport, and called a cab for the next morning. The cab pulled into our driveway just before 5am. 9 minutes later and $20 poorer, I was at the airport and on my way. While I was in New York, a woman from the airport called back and left a message. I returned her call when I got back into town yesterday. She was very apologetic and explained that they actually DID have a bike rack at the airport. It was outside (rather than in the garage) - but it would have worked just fine. Apparently, the folks in the parking garage and at the information desk didn't realize it was there. Anyway, she told me that my message started a conversation about a better solution for bike parking at the airport, and that they were now planning to install bike racks indoors in the covered garage! I volunteered to provide a bike commuter's perspective for their bike parking plan, and she graciously accepted. An hour later, a man from the airport called and asked when I could meet him to do a walk-though of the parking garage! We'll be getting together in the next couple of days to do a survey of the airport garage and choose a location for indoor secure bike parking.

I want to thank the folks at Burlington International Airport for doing their part to make the facility more bike friendly. I can't wait for my next flight so I can Bike 'n Fly!

Today's Ride: A chilly (single digits F) return to my daily bike commute this morning - but it felt good to be back in the saddle after too much time in airplane and subway seats.

TOASTY WARM AT 1°F!

After a couple of rides this winter resulted in painfully cold fingers and toes, I was determined last night to come up with a solution for this morning's commute - forecasted to be my coldest this season.

Warm feet... no problem. It was as simple as finding my insulated duck boots in the basement and re-lacing them. I was more concerned about my fingers. I've had this concept stuck in my head since I began riding in cold weather that I NEED to wear 5-finger gloves or lobster gloves (two fingers, two fingers, thumb) rather than mitts (four fingers snugly together, thumb separated) so that I can effectively shift and brake. This morning, I decided that I would wear mitts anyway - and I would just deal with the awkward shifting and braking I was sure would ensue.

I was surprised to find that it was no problem at all to shift and brake wearing mitts, and my hands were WARM! I can't believe I'm halfway through my second Vermont winter on a bike, and I'm just figuring this out now.

Several of my co-workers expressed surprise that I biked in today, but with my current set-up, I feel like I could ride in much colder weather. I'm actually wishing for one really cold morning (i.e. -10°F or colder) so that I can truly test the reasonable boundaries of my winter commute.

Carpooling - The Secret Weapon of the One-Car-Family.

Today I didn't feel like riding my bike to work. I was tired, running late, and simply didn't feel like riding in. So what do you do if you are part of a one-car family, and you "just don't feel like" riding your bike to work?

When my wife and I made the decision to sell our second car over 18 months ago, we really thought through all of the "what ifs". "What if the weather is too bad to bike to work"? "What if you get hurt and can't ride your bike"? "What if you just don't feel like riding your bike"? "What if one of us needs to travel out of the area with the car - leaving the other person stranded at home"? Clearly, the modern American lifestyle is built around a car for every adult, so you need to be able to answer these questions and more to change that formula.

During these discussions, we came up with several backup plans so that I was not 100% obligated to ride my bike to work every day. The easiest backup plan has turned out to be carpooling with co-workers. I work in an office of thirty people, and I am very fortunate that six of them live within 2 miles of my house. Three of them live less than a mile away. In my 18+ months of riding to work since we sold our second car, I have NEVER been "stuck" home because I couldn't get a ride with a co-worker. Today's victim was Shane. I called him up at the last minute, and he immediately agreed to pick me up on his way to work. It's a mild inconvenience for him, but for me, access to occasional rides is the difference between my family needing one car or two.

We checked into other backup options too. Some have worked out, others have not:

Bus: Unfortunately, the bus is really not an answer for my commute. Although we have a decent bus system in the Burlington area, it is intended to get people in and out of Burlington rather than between Burlington suburbs. Although I only work 6 miles from home, I would have to take a series of three buses, one heading into Burlington - and two heading back out to Williston where I work. This would add up to a 45-minute to 1 hour commute each way.

Taxi: In a pinch, I could call a cab, but it would cost approximately $15-$20 each way. So, this is not a solution I would want to use very often! However, it is certainly good to have this as an emergency backup plan.

Rental Cars: This has turned out to be our second car solution on the rare occasions that one of us travels out of town without the other. We just happen to live within walking distance of three rental car companies. The closest one, Enterprise, has weekend rates under $20/day with unlimited mileage. So, for about $50 for a 3-day weekend (Friday noon - Sunday noon), we can have the second car we need, when we need it. It also keeps the miles off our one car - so the person leaving town usually ends up traveling with the rental car, leaving our own car at home.

Walk: We've found that a natural result of having one car is that we walk rather than drive when it is reasonable to do so. We walk to the local bagel/coffee shop (about a mile), we walk to local restaurants, and in good weather, I will even walk into Burlington with my girls (3 miles each way). Even though we have just one vehicle now, I think we put fewer miles on it now than either of our cars when we had two!

My advice to those families considering dumping car #2: Work out a detailed back-up plan before committing to one-car solution. It worked for us.

BOOGER FREEZIN' COLD (BFC).

When I was growing up in northern New York, we used this term to describe the kind of cold, dry weather that flash-freezes the boogers inside your nose when you take a deep breath. It has to be pretty cold... usually single digits (F) or colder. This morning was BFC.

I realized this morning that my gloves are just not cutting it for cold rides. It was 9 degrees F this morning, and I will probably have a couple dozen mornings colder than that before winter is over. Yet, my fingertips got really cold. I actually stopped twice along the way so I could ball up my hands inside the palms of my gloves to warm them up. Being cold just sucks, and I don't want to deal with that kind of discomfort for the rest of the winter. So, I will probably be making a gear purchase today.

The lesson I'm learning from this is that it is not worth it to go cheap on gloves. Your hands are probably the most difficult thing to keep warm when biking in extreme cold because you need to have enough flexibility to allow you to shift, brake, etc. I've been really happy with my "lobster" style gloves for moderately cold weather (Manzella Micromesh Windstopper), but they have minimal insulation and don't really do the job when temps drop below 25 degrees F. I need to bite the bullet and spend about $50 on a good pair of winter biking gloves. I'm deciding between the Louis Garneau Magma Glove and the Pearl Izumi Amfib. Both are lobster-style gloves that keep your fingers together in twos for warmth, rather than individual fingers like a regular gloves. It really makes a difference!

Other than that, I'm pretty happy with the layers of clothing that I have put together to get me through the winter. It's not rocket science... just layer after layer of fleeces and other non-cotton stuff with a windproof/waterproof shell as the top layer. Add a balaclava for the head, and winter boots for the feet, and I can bike in weather well below 0 degrees F. Well, except for those damned gloves...

(I biked in yesterday, but forgot to post...)

GEAR ENVY.

In general, I'm pretty content to continue riding the bikes that I have owned since before I started commuting regularly almost 2 years ago. I have a $40 church sale bike that is my primary ride (a mid 1990s Schwinn High Plains mountain/trail bike with city tires), and I have a pretty sweet mountain bike that I use whenever there is snow or ice on the ground (2001 Schwinn Homegrown with studded snow tires).

However, familiarity breeds contempt, and I'm beginning to detest the derailleur system that comes with most modern bikes. This is, essentially, my "transmission", and it's completely exposed to the elements. Exposure to Vermont weather is tough on any equipment, and bikes are no exception. My gears were skipping like crazy this morning, so it really got me thinking about a solution.

I was thinking about getting a brand-new bike with an 8-speed internal gear hub, but now I'm thinking about just replacing my rear wheel and a few other parts with the Shimano 8-speed internal gear hub... keeping my trusty church sale bike frame, front wheel, and other parts. Seems like a less wasteful solution.

Time will tell if this is just idle gear envy, or if I actually pull the trigger and buy something.

Easy ride in this morning. I'm heading out now to some black ice. Won't be a problem for me on my studded tires - I just hope the folks driving thousands of pounds of steel past me have as much control.

WHAT BIKE DO I RIDE TODAY?

This is what I asked myself this morning when I looked out the window to see a coating of wet snow on the ground and road. I have two bikes set up for commuting: my winter bike with studded snow tires and my summer bike with relatively fast city tires. My summer bike is fine in wet snow/slush like this as long as the temperatures are above freezing... and I have full fenders so I stay pretty dry. However, if this stuff freezes to the asphalt, I will be riding on miles of black ice. That is when I want my winter bike outfitted with studded tires... it is awesome on ice.

I chose my summer bike - which turned out to be a good decision for this morning's ride. The tires cut right through the light covering of wet snow to the asphalt, and I didn't slip once. It was an easy ride. I'll find out later if I made the right choice for tonight. If it continues to rain/snow during the day, and drops below freezing before my ride home, it will be treacherous. I may have to hitch a ride home with a co-worker. On the other hand, if it stays above freezing, it will be just another wet but easy ride.

The picture above was my view this morning riding up a steep section on my ride to work in the morning. I have about 350 feet of ascent and 250 feet of descent on my way to work, and the opposite on my way home. Quite hilly for a 6-mile ride!

(Temps stayed in the mid 30s, so my evening ride was a breeze)

SO LONG, JANUARY THAW.

It literally was SO long this year. Instead of 2-3 days of 40-something degree weather (normal), we are wrapping up an entire week of temperatures ranging from 40 to 60 degrees F. The picture above, taken in my front yard, is deceiving - virtually all of our snow is gone except in shady areas and where the snow plows left huge snow banks from all our December snow. Tomorrow, temps will stay in the mid-30s, and by the weekend - we will be back to freezing temps or below.

With clear bike paths and roads, I was able to ride my trusty summer bike to work yesterday and today. While I enjoy the challenge of riding my studded tires through snow and ice, it is a nice break to ride slick city tires on pavement for a couple of days. Tomorrow is back to snow and rain - so this will probably be my last ride on this bike for a while.

About this bike... It is a Schwinn High Plains that I picked up at a church sale a few years back. It was in like-new condition when I picked it up for $40 - I doubt it had any more than 20 miles on it. It still had plastic film over the Schwinn logo on the front, and the tires still had those little rubber thingies sticking out all over. This bike has been bulletproof for the past 18 months - I definitely got my money's worth.

"I THINK WE BROKE THE PLANET"

This was a quote from one of my co-workers in December of 2006 when temperatures regularly climbed into the 50s and 60s... WAY above early winter norms for northern Vermont. I was reminded of her comment today while riding to work wearing just wind pants, a t-shirt and a medium-weight long-sleeved shirt. In January. In Vermont.

This is a picture of the bike path about a mile from my house. When I left for vacation just 5 days earlier, there was about 18" of snow blanketing the ground with even deeper drifts. Just 5 days of weather ranging from the 40s to 60 degrees wiped it out. January thaws are a pretty normal occurrence, but a warm stretch like this is out of the ordinary. And these out-of-the-ordinary events are becoming more and more ordinary...

Aside from the unsettling reminder of unnaturally warmer days to come, it was a nice way to transition back from 5 days in the Florida Keys and get back to my daily routine. My only complaint was the wind. It was brutal today. It was strong and gusty and blew me all over the bike path. It also seemed to shift between my morning and afternoon rides so that I was heading into it both ways.