Winter Bike Riding Tips

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Winter is the perfect time for riding bikes. No other season is as suitable as winter for you to give long rides with your bike. But some people hang up their bikes when they see snowflakes. But if you do the same but are missing one of the perfect opportunities for cycling along with its benefits of riding in the winter.

Riding in the snow is incredibly fun if you gear up perfectly and know how to ride in the snow. Not all gear is suitable for riding in the winter. This goes the same for the bike category. Not all bikes are suitable to ride on the snowy road.

Keep in mind snowy roads are extremely dangerous if you don’t know how to ride on slippery snowy roads. Thus it is highly recommended to take full precaution and gear up properly before going out with your bike.

Types of the Bike for Winter

In winter, roads are very slippery due to the accommodation of snow. The melted snow makes all the road slippery. But snow doesn’t fall in every place in Winter. Only in extremely cold places have the snowfall.

In the places where snow never falls are suitable for a cyclist to ride with any type of bikes such as road bike, hybrid, or Mountain bike.

But if you happen to live in a place where usually snowfalls occur then you might need to choose a bike to ride in winter.

Best Bike for Riding in the Snow

For riding on snowy roads, road bikes should always be avoided. Because the thin sleek tires that come with road bikes won’t give you the grip you need on a snowy slippery road. Thus, you might lose balances and fall off. This could lead to a severe accident. Thus, avoiding the road bike is the best option in the snowy winter. For hybrid bikes, it’s the same.

In a word, you should avoid the bikes that have sleek and slim tires.

Mountain bikes are perfect to ride on the snowy roads. Though it is recommended to have grippy tires on your mountain bikes. Otherwise, you might face some problems.

Fat bikes with very fat tires are the best option for riding in the winter. The fat and grippy tires of the fat bikes will provide you the extra grip that you need to ride on the most slippery road in winter.

Fat bikes are a bit hard to ride and require more energy to ride on. Thus a fat bike could provide you with the most opportunity to burn most of your fat without sweating in the winter.

Getting a new bike in Winter

Getting a new just to ride in the winter is a bad idea. It’s a waste of money. But you could change or upgrade some of your bike components which can be your perfect opportunity to ride in winter.

Only the tires change could make your bike suitable to ride in the Winter. So, you shouldn’t sweat over spending more money on other parts. But keep in mind you will need layer clothing and gears to keep you warm while riding in the winter. You also need to spend some money on those.

Bike Tire Selection

Fat, Thick, grippy tires are recommended. Never install a sleek tire on your bike in winter. It could be the cause of severe accidents during that time.

Dress Code to Ride in Winter

In winter while cycling you should avoid wearing casual tight clothes you used to wear. Try to ride in normal winter dresses. Though it could be difficult for some riders to ride wearing thick winter clothes. it’s best to do to keep your body warm while riding and from being frosted from the cold air.

Or you could try to put on some layer of dresses. Any kind of warm or thick layered dress is recommended. Just don’t let the cold from the frosted air to get into your body and had you caught a cold.

Gear Recommendation

There is no specific gear recommendation to ride in the winter except for clothes. Clothing recommendations are given above. But for gear, you should get gloves and booths.

Not the usual cycling gloves or shoes. Instead, get some warm thick layered gloves and winter grippy booths.

Cyclists often forget about these and later in the ride their body gets frosted which later can cause accidents and some severe problems for health. Always keep in mind that while riding your hands and legs get colder fast. Thus wearing a good pair of gloves and boots should be your first priority.

Lighting Recommendation

In winter the weather remains foggy. Thus make sure your visibility and that you are visible to others. Other car drivers might not able to sell you and could hit you if you don’t wear properly visible gears. Getting some reflectors and tail light is necessary. It is also recommended to get a good headlight so that you could see further if the fogs get oo thick.

Final Words

Winter is the best time to take out your bike instead of hanging it up. Just dress up and gear up properly and check if your bike is ok with a new pair of grippy tires and go out. Also, take full precautions as snowy roads are very dangerous and ride with your sense sharpness.

Enjoy riding and don’t catch a cold.