Why Ride in the Winter?
Quaker Hill (Dutchess County)
Riverdale (Bronx)
Pine Island (Orange)
Pawling (Putnam)
Ride Design #1 – Ride With the Wind
Wind chill is the big contributor to cyclist discomfort. The most effective way to mitigate is to ride with the wind. Because the prevailing wind is out of the west, select routes that travel west-to-east. Take a train at the start and/or finish.
Mahwah> Fort Lee (train outbound)
Manhattan> Patchogue (train inbound)
Ride Design #2 – Stay Urban
Willis Avenue Bridge (Bronx-Manhattan)
- NYC is a heat sink and averages a few degrees warmer than suburbs.
- Buildings block the wind.
- Start later in the day if it gains you a few degrees.
- Hot Tip! Finish an hour before dark to give people time to get home.
Old Howard Beach (Brooklyn-Queens)Winter Maintenance – Because you don’t want to be “that guy.”
Jamaica (Queens)
- Replace cables and housing.
- Re-pack hubs with light grease.
- Get new batteries for electronic shifters.
- Clean chain with orange cleaner. Re-lube with light oil or WD-40. No wax.
- Wash road salt off bike after each ride. Wipe down braking surfaces
- Hot Tip! Drip light lube (TriFlo, WD40) into nipples so they don’t corrode.
Flat-resistant Tires:
Studded Tires? – Talk to D-SIG organizers.
Lake Dutchess (Erica Jacobs on thin ice.)
Ward Pound Ridge Reservation (Westchester)
Hot Tip! Just don’t leave them on a bike unattended. They will be stolen.
Barmitts
Complete George 