Winter Bike Check

 Hello Friends.  Happy SUNNY Thursday! It feels good that (while I am in door while the sun is up) the sun is out today!

I know I promised a good recipe today, however there really was no recipe involved with our stir fry last night.  Yes, it was lovely-sugar snap peas, zucchini, carrots, chicken, ginger, garlic, salt and pepper over some rice.  But nothing fancy.  My bad.  Next time I cook something good, I promise to share.

Moving on....now that Winter is officially here and I have put away my other bikes for the next few months, lets take a minute to scoop what I am riding now, shall we? (this is inspired by my friends at Grease Rag-a RAD community of WTF's that like to bike and like to learn how to take care of and fix their own bikes)

 As I mentioned the other day, I got a few new parts for my Winter wip that I recently put on my bike.  With these parts added, I feel my winter bicycle is almost as good as it will get for the season.  I say almost because I am still *hoping* for a few things....but you can read about that below.

You can see that I have flat bars on this bike.  My first year winter riding I had flipped and chopped bullhorns.  They were alright, but I felt I wasn't upright enough to be in control when on ice/snow.  So I switched to risers, however they were from a polo bike, so they were too short.  This year I went to the Hub (Minnehaha) and bought a 5 dollar flat bar from their used parts section.  5 bucks, and I feel WAY more in control than I ever have on a winter bike.

 Also, note that I have a knobby tire on my front wheel.  This is because I have a 27 1 1/4" rim.  These are and OLD size.  This means that they do NOT make studded tires for this size wheel.  Now you may be asking, "Cayla. why don't you just buy a new front wheel?"  That is a fair question.  My answer is: Because this one still works!  This is the original wheel that came on the first fixed gear bicycle I ever bought 4 years ago.  It came in a pair, but the back one got taco-ed 2 summer ago at polo.  I am sure that one of these days the wheel will die, but for now, it is still working and I have no need for it on any other bike.   I will also say that this is one of the things I'd like to adjust. I'd like to buy a 700c front wheel to throw a studded tire on it and then I can switch on days that are crazy icy/snowy.  But I need something on the cheap, so holler if you hear anything.

 new clips.  These guys are similar to the Hold Fast straps, but made by local polo cat, James.  I had been using power grips, which worked well for the last 3 season, but I was looking for something that held my feet in a little better and were more comfortable.  I saw that James had his own company going, so I thought I'd support a local guy.  I love them.

 that top tube pad is mainly because there is a piece that holds the cable housing to the top tube, but it sticks out a lot and last year it caught a pair of my pants and ripped it from crotch to calf.  YIKES!  so I threw that on there for safety.

 I like the idea of fenders.  And I like cheap things that work well.  I have plastic planet bike fenders that came with my first fixed gear.  They are cheap, and plastic, but they keep me dry.  Having fenders in winter is crucial.  Being in the cold is not too hard, but being in the cold when you are WET?  well that is just a dangerous mess.

While you can't actually tell from the photo, I ride fixed in the winter.  For me, I feel like I have much more control.  I think it is easier to stop, and feel the road/ice/snow under me when I'm riding fixed.  Right now I have a good ratio 43:17.  I can still get going (mini) fast, but it is easy enough to ride in the brutal wind, or over huge snow banks.  However, just because I ride fixed and rarely use my brake, I still have a front brake installed.  In "oh shit" situations, it is smart to do.  Also, last winter my back wheel (fixed side of the hub) stripped out on me and out of nowhere, I started coasting (on my fixed gear) which was a bit of a shocker and an ALERT SIREN went off in my head.  I used my brake at that point.  then I locked up my bike and had a sad walk home.
Most of the other stuff on this bike are just parts I had around(old/off my old builds).  Because Winter bikes often get the salt beat into them, I tend to go for things on the cheap, because they will have to be replaced in a few seasons (more often than not.)  Even if I clean my chain every day and take great care of it, in time Ill need a new one. That is just sort of how I look at all things winter bike related. 

So there you have it-My winter ride.  Now you go out and make one for yourself. need help?  let me know.