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I posted this on my blog at http://www.tgrignon.wordpress.com a while ago but I think it's useful information for those who commute through the winter.
There’s a certain type of snow that is not slush but is drier and cakes
up. Some drivers call it ‘greasy’ conditions. It shifts as you bike
through and is among the most treacherous of hazards for a winter
cyclist. Your tire pushes it aside but doesn’t really gain any grip in
it. Any imperfection or ice below the surface will make your progress
unpredictable. The trick is an easy hand on the handlebars. Too tense
and you react too woodenly to the bumps and shifts in your balance.
Therein lies the danger. You have to be loose and as soft as the snow.
It is hard to do this in practice, though. You really have to enter a
zen state and not allow your adrenalin to dictate your grip.
As the winter invariably leads to shorter days, it becomes increasingly
important to ensure that you have flashing lights front and back. I
like to keep the lights off my bike and on me. This is so drivers are
made aware of the more important bit not to hit.
The other key, where it is often impossible to avoid the cars using
trails, is to stay a little out from the rightmost part of your lane
(if you drive on the right, that is.) Car and truck drivers tend to
have tunnel vision in the winter. They usually aren’t expecting bikers
and so you have to drive a little more in ‘their’ territory when the
bike lanes don’t exist or are buried in snow. This keeps you visible
and allows a little leeway when the snow outflow from driveways or
intersections crowds you either way.
There are drivers who ignorantly will honk their frustration or drive
too close to winter cyclists but these are, in my experience, becoming
less frequent. It is hard to say whether this is an improvement in my
own, humble driving skills or if drivers are becoming better at sharing
the road. I hope both.
There may, too, be a guilty admiration for those who choose to fight
global warming. I like to think that. It makes me sit taller in my
saddle.
Edited by tgrignon : July 9, 2008, 2:45 pm |
