As anyone here in Southern Ontario knows, last Friday brought our first real winter storm. It wasn't a bad one, as winter storms go, but it put a little wrench in Bee's bicycle wheels. We have a Bixi subscription (earlier Bixi post here) so we can use their sturdier bikes on days when it's a little messy underfoot, but Friday was just a little more than we bargained for.
There is a "shared motivation" group out there on Facebook that we've joined called The Winter B-icicle Challenge (Facebook page). It provides our incentive to keep cycling on lousy days, so there was no way we were about to let a little wind and snow deter us. And so, off we went...
One of the "tools of the trade" is a sturdy brush to get rid of the frozen rain droplets that have coated the seat.
It was tough going. The snow was thick and wet, so staying in control was a challenge. And just when you had things in hand, the gale force winds pushed you back into the deep stuff. Splatter from passing cars was also an issue. The City had salted the streets but there had been no actual snow clearing. The bike lanes were mostly obstructed except for an 18 inch wide strip where the action of the traffic had melted the snow, so riding was done perilously close to the cars. We tried a couple of quiet side streets, but they were much worse.
We made it most of the way, but called it off at a Bixi docking station about 4 blocks before our intended destination. Oh, well...props for trying, we told ourself. Luckily, things were much better by the end of the day, and we managed to cycle back home without any trouble.
One thing we'll say about riding in the snow- the effort involved is gonna keep you nice and warm! It may have been -10C outside, but underneath all our layers we were working up a sweat. We arrived at the office with red cheeks and a feeling of exhilaration- not a bad way to start a work day!
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