46/18 right now. did 40/18 last winter and it was too slow and all i did was get antsy. 46/18 is a good balance of control and speed, for me at least.
I rode 40x18 for a bit on one of my bikes. Too spinny, but I could skidstop at will and had absolutely no need for a brake. 42x18 worked quite well for me last winter, with a 46t chainring you would need a 20t cog to get the same GI, albeit very slightly lower. I’ll be running 42x18 again this winter, and I live in Wisconsin, for whatever that’s worth.
Thanks for all the advice, i’m gonna go for a 19-20t cog depending on what deal i find
what do you guys think of this one?
http://cgi.ebay.com/New-19-t-19T-1-8-Pista-Track-Cog-Sprocket-fixed-gear_W0QQitemZ260482603718QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item3ca5f91ac6&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14#ht_500wt_1182
the shipping is $11 so i can probably get it for the $1
i think a 19 or 20t is way too big, you’ll be spinning way too much
downhill will be a beezy
Blicks, what?
Greg,
idk about your riding style, for me, I don’t think riding suspension bikes or mtbs on snow covered roadways is the best route. they’re probably great for snow covered off-road.
When I’m riding on snow I like my ass planted on the saddle the whole time, and as much over the rear wheel as possible. Track bikes and skinny tires are surprisingly awesome in good snowpack with no ice or very cold ice. Snow bikes don’t need a front brake, IMO, which possibly reflects more of my riding style. I think smoothness is the key to successfully riding in the snow, so a fixed wheel seems like the perfect option.
Now I think your globe is a good choice for your winter bike.
The body positioning on the mtb you’re looking at requires a lot of body movement to pedal, the seat isn’t much over the rear wheel, so less traction, the saddle is low thus requires standing to pedal comfortably, making the bike unstable on the snow and takes the weight off the rear wheel even more. But… a fatty set of tires could make up for all those problems. Will they?
Here’s what I know,
Do you remember Bruiser, the gold bike I had with the Cetma rack? Rode horribly in the snow. Slack wheelbase, big commuter tires, touchy V-brakes. I hated it. Great bike otherwise.
My track bike was a trick to learn in the snow, but was hands down better than bruiser. No front brake, 23c tires at 115psi. Seems counter intuitive, right? This method has worked for me for years. But, Portland doesn’t get a lot of snowpack… how deep does the snow get on the roads?
This year, I’ll be trying the cx bike in the snow, I might have different opinions on the matter afterward.
Alsos,
Gearing, this is just me, but I LOVE 44x19 in the snow.
for pedals, I recommend toe clips or platforms and to stay away from clipless.
we’ll see how everything plays out.
i might borrow a CX bike from a friend to see how i like it
[quote=GRHebard]today it rained in the city and snowed in the mountains, so it got me thinking about cold weather clothing.
which led to thinking about cold weather bikes.
the new bike i got at interbike is:
i want to get fenders and a basket and use this for winter/snow/rain
what fenders will work best? it has really low clearances
whats a good basket/flatbed for the front
are cyclocross tires a good idea for snow
thanks
Greg[/quote]
did you get that specific bike? or specialized Globe credit? I feel like I’m reading different things in different threads…
If you got play money, and you want fenders and a basket, why would you get that model pictured over any number of options that have baskets/fenders built in? Or the disk brake one for winter?
I love riding in winter. I can’t wait.
Here are some pics of my bikes in winter to get me excited:
I got the spokes and shit for my wheelset so this weekend I’ll be building up the wheels for this year’s winter monster. I can’t wait.
[quote=Haagenize]Thanks for all the advice, i’m gonna go for a 19-20t cog depending on what deal i find
what do you guys think of this one?
http://cgi.ebay.com/New-19-t-19T-1-8-Pista-Track-Cog-Sprocket-fixed-gear_W0QQitemZ260482603718QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item3ca5f91ac6&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14#ht_500wt_1182
the shipping is $11 so i can probably get it for the $1[/quote]
I would avoid sketchy cogs, as they tend to have poorly machined threads that destroy precious track hubs. Go with an EAI or Surly, it’s worth it.
[quote=Rusty Piton]I love riding in winter. I can’t wait.
Here are some pics of my bikes in winter to get me excited:
[/quote]
Why do people keep saying to stay away from clipless in the snow? Coz shoe choice?
That was my winter setup for 3 years. Fixed, with Race Blades, 46x16/18, and slicks.
I don’t know what it is like in other parts of the country but Wisconsin gets plenty of snow/shitty God forsaken weather. Milwaukee does not plow. They salt like crazy but seeing plows out are a rarity. So, we tend to get all of it; the fresh powder, the hard packed stuff, ice, whatever. I’ve left the house plenty of times at 6 am for work to find unplowed streets with 4 miles of a foot of snow ahead of me. The only thing that really terrifies me yet is the ‘cheese grater’ draw bridges covered in snow.
I never felt the need to ride on anything bigger than a 28c tire. I think it comes down to personal preference at some point, however, if you put some fatty MTB tires on your bike, I can almost guarantee, that you are probably going to hate life trying to get around.
The only things that I’ve wanted to do differently from previous years, that I will do this year, is full fenders (Race Blades for my purposes have proven to be a joke) and I think I’ll forgo clips and straps. Work is going to be a distributor for Hold Fast straps so I think I’ll give those or Power Grips a try. Thus far Hold Fast are looking like the better alternative. I’ll probably build up another set of fixed/free winter wheels as I sold the ones pictured above. I’ll probably put a front brake on too.
Also, I’ve been seriously looking into getting an ENO hub. I would love the flexibility of being able to run my Double Cross fixed, if I do I’ll have to give some knobbies or studded tires a try, thus far though, I’m pretty skeptical.
Rudy, I would love to go on some gnarly winter rides with you.
COZ WHAT IF YOU SLIP N’ SLIDE!?! YER FEET ARE LOCKED IN!!! YOU WILL SURELY PERISH!
Naw, seems like keepin’ the feet warm w/ clipless is a PITA. Lake boots are 'spensive and according to Rusty’s review, ain’t the most durable thing out there.
This was mine last year.
New one is a similar frame of lesser quality (World Sport as opposed to Traveler), but will have studded tires, risers, rack+panniers, cartridge BB, two brakes, and freewheel (I’d rather do fixed but this wheelset is freewheel only so whatevs).
I’ve looked at a few of the clipless options for winter and while some of them look nice, I think I’ll go with a shoe I can get a lot of milage out of, on and off the bike, instead. Something like a Gortex North Face or Solomon shoe.
[quote=sneaky viking][quote=GRHebard]today it rained in the city and snowed in the mountains, so it got me thinking about cold weather clothing.
which led to thinking about cold weather bikes.
the new bike i got at interbike is:
i want to get fenders and a basket and use this for winter/snow/rain
what fenders will work best? it has really low clearances
whats a good basket/flatbed for the front
are cyclocross tires a good idea for snow
thanks
Greg[/quote]
did you get that specific bike? or specialized Globe credit? I feel like I’m reading different things in different threads…
If you got play money, and you want fenders and a basket, why would you get that model pictured over any number of options that have baskets/fenders built in? Or the disk brake one for winter?[/quote]
globe credit
i can get whatever globe bikes i want, i havent picked up which yet
COZ WHAT IF YOU SLIP N’ SLIDE!?! YER FEET ARE LOCKED IN!!! YOU WILL SURELY PERISH!
Naw, seems like keepin’ the feet warm w/ clipless is a PITA. Lake boots are 'spensive and according to Rusty’s review, ain’t the most durable thing out there.[/quote]
^this.
I loved riding clipless last winter but those fucking boots cost WAY too much and fell apart in a matter of weeks.
Clipless is great in sloppy conditions though because if you do happen to slide out, you can get your foot out of the pedal with considerable ease as compared to clips/straps.
I’m gonna try the platform/powagripz thing this year.
Eh I like cliplessxtoe cover collabo but I do live in DC after all…so maybe I should GTFO of the winter thread.
Yeah I’m going to keep with clipless. Riding with clips and straps makes me twitch(even though I do ride them from time to time), I would rather ride platforms.
I wasn’t gonna say anything, but…