not great cycling weather lads.

[jags]

is this weather ever going to pick up, i know it's winter but what with global warming  we should be getting better weather should we not. its feckin lashing rain here and i cant get out on me bike.
so whats the weather like in your part of the world,post photos please..


jags.

[JimK]

Finally got out riding today, just my second time this month. Poorest showing in years. The move of residence didn't help! But the temperature has been down around 10F a lot that that is discouragingly cold! It's up around the freezing mark today for a bit and I managed to take advantage of that!

Here is my bike where I am keeping it outside our apartment. Happy to report that it can sit like this for a couple weeks then I can hop on and it just goes, happy as ever!

[Danneaux]

Hi Jim!

My, what a stout and brave little Nomad Fearless is!

I feel much better about him being tethered to a tree now I see the setting and background. It looks like it just goes off into woods rather than being out, visible to all traffic.  Very wise to cover the saddle, not only for weather-resistance but to discourage porcupines, who seem to have a particular affinity for Proofided Brooks saddles (apparently, it is the scent and salt that attracts them).

Just plain cold/miserable for riding, Jim; hope things improve for you soon so you can get out on Fearless more.

Best,

Dan.

[jags]

AHH no Jim me auld flower anto bike is kept inside where its safe and warm 

[John Saxby]

Well, I put my new black leather saddle (from Spa Cycles) onto my Eclipse the other day, & it looks very much at home.  Pondering a set of Schwalbe Marathon Racers for that come spring (700 x 35s).  Resolved a nice dilemma, and ordered Honjo hammered alloy fenders to grace my Raven, which is a-building, with a forecast birth date of the end of Feb. (Not that I'll be able to use it, unless the weather gods repent and grovel, saying "It's all been a ghastly mistake, & will be fixed right now.")

Otherwise, not much cycling going on, not even for the hard core (of which I'm not a member): we had 10 cms of snow last night, not a lot, but 60 kmh winds created colossal problems today, and tonight the temp will be -24 again, windchill -38.  I did get a nice couple of hours of X-country skiing on Saturday, when the temps eased. (We have terrain not so different from Jim's in the Catskills, just with more snow & a bit colder).

Take heart, Jim -- we won't live on a cold planet forever, only until March sometime.

[honesty]

Widdling down here in Somerset... Not great as I cycle to work. 50 miles a week, and only one where I have not had to wear my waterproof trousers this year!

[NZPeterG]

Hi All,
It's a great time to ride! today we (a work mate and a friend) had a great days ride in the Sun.



Today's Team



And here I'm with a nice Water Fall in the back ground

Yes it is Summer in New Zealand but when we have winter you all post photo's of you all out in the Sun.

Pete

[Andybg]

At the moment we have about 6 inches of snow frozen solid with temps of around -10c. This is my Nomad stripped down of all excess weight (circa 15kg as opposed to its usual 21kg) and running Schwalbe ice spiker pro tyres. Great fun on the ploughed(but not salted) ice roads but unable to deal with unploughed roads and tracks so some wheeling and some carrying required.

[doug]

"Mind the puddle matey" says the roadie as I head away from Hexton, near the Hertfordshire / Bedfordshire border.  Wow what a puddle, the water was so deep I had to push really hard on the pedals to keep going. Here's the account: http://tinyurl.com/p3qfzh4

I can tell you, I was grinning like a Cheshire cat, it was so much fun although I wouldn't have planned it that way and never mind the dampish feet either.  I'll worry about the Shimano bottom bracket's external bearings another time (these are not good).

Just to share with you, I have found myself enjoying some unexpectedly nice cycle rides this winter.  Sometimes when I have set out, it has been almost through a dutiful "I have to do this in order to keep fit" but I've ended up really enjoying myself.   As for all that snow being experienced by others, sorry, that's not welcome here for this winter!

[Danneaux]

Aw, what a fun thread and terrific photos!

Fantastic weather there in NZ, Pete, and what looks to be great fun.

Andy, the Nomad is looking fierce and ready for *any*thing -- and is dealing well with *every*thing.

Doug...that's not a puddle, but a lake!

All fun of three different varieties and just goes to show the diversity we're all facing in weather and riding conditions.

Take care out there!

All the best,

Dan.

[jags]

great stuff lads keep her lit.
Pete my son came back home from your neck  of the woods and he still can't get warm
Andy thats way to much snow and hardship you gotta move to warmer climates.
Doug you obviously new the lay of that road ahead loks more like a river any crocks spotted

[Slammin Sammy]

See Anto, here's the thing...

This is an early photo of Atilla, taken say, August last year at my place:



But, it's WINTER, can't you tell? Everyone's got jackets on!  

Sorry guys... Just had to gloat  

Slammin!

PS - Please note that I grew up in NYC and have lived in some bloody cold and snowy places, including Steamboat Springs CO and Casper WY. I have worked outside all day at -25F (-32C) for weeks, and I can tell you... I'M OVER IT!!! No more long winters and short winter days for this little black duck! 

[John Saxby]

Sam, our son & daughter-in-law and wee Hannah Rose, our granddaughter, live on the Gold Coast & are likely there for a long time, if not the duration.  We're looking at ways to spend 2 - 3 months of the year in their neighbourhood, and on our next visit, I'll take my Raven with me for sure.

Pete, your ride in

the Sun

-- ah yes, I've heard tell of the Sun, from old-timers' fond tales of How It Used To Be.

Like your waterfalls!  We have plenty, but they're all fruz just now, used by ice-climbers.

[jags]

Sammy have you any spare rooms, honest i wont be a pest you'll never know im there honest.

[Slammin Sammy]

Sam, our son & daughter-in-law and wee Hannah Rose, our granddaughter, live on the Gold Coast & are likely there for a long time, if not the duration.  We're looking at ways to spend 2 - 3 months of the year in their neighbourhood, and on our next visit, I'll take my Raven with me

John, it must be horribly tough to be that far away from your kin, especially the little ones. Our little granddaughter Evie is just ten months, and she and her brother James (8 yo next week) and Zara (6) live in our town, 15 minutes away! They're a big part of our lives.

Any idea when your next visit will be? We're about 775 km down the coast from Surfers Paradise (just a few days' ride, really  .

And Anto, come on down! There's plenty of room, and the only thing icy around here's the beer!