Lets start with a story. Living in Alberta, Canada, it was not uncommon to go trick or treet-ing on Halloween with the costume under a parka or snowsuit. The full body rabbit costume was one of the most popular, as you could put coats and long underwear inside. Cold, but very Albertan. I miss those days. For close to 20 years the winter has come later and later. In recent years there has been no meaningful snow on the ground until Christmas, and once January.
This little anecdote comes back to me as I sit inside looking at 5cm (2″) of snow, on October 15th. Is it back to the old days? No. Tomorrow is going to be 15 degree Celsius.
This years Blog Action Day is on climate change, and it is a perfect time to talk about green transportation, and snow.
As the weather gets colder, and snow covers the ground, more people go back to taking their cars for their daily needs. Many people just do not feel like they can ride a bike for commuting in the winter. This increases the number of cars on the road, and therefore more CO2 inton the atmosphere. This is tough, as these are people are already somewhat inclined to green transportation, and are “not able” to continue.
Here are a couple of this that can prolong your riding season, and maybe even retire the car. (oh to dream)
Traction is everything when it comes to winter riding. There are two theories on how to best achieve this. First is your classic studded tire. Getting a tire with large lugs and metal inserts will dig into the snow, and still catch on any ice below. Tires like this run anywhere from $65-$150, or you can take a course from a group like the Edmonton Bycicle Commuters on how to stud your own tires. For general commuting these are the best options. The other option for traction is to have a slick tire. Yep, no ridges or lugs at all. The idea is that you will get a larger footprint of rubber to the road. Lugs will raise the tire of the ground, and only ride on the small outer surface of the lug. With this style of riding you loose on side to side motion control, but gain contact with the cement through the snow. This does take a more technical riding style and is not recommended for those just starting out with winter riding.
There are many little tricks tor winter riding. This Blog Action Day, head into your local bike shop, Mountain Equipment Co-op, or Bicycle Commuting Association to find out more. Or better still, keep checking back here at Seeing Change for more ideas.
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Chris Field Has Written 34 Articles For Us!
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