I woke up at about 3 am, which tends to happen fairly often due to my crazy work schedule, and felt pretty good. I decided to go for a ride and test my new headlight out a bit more. I ate a little and drank some water. Got ready and started to ride. I new where I wanted to go since I had driven down the rode the day before. Driving in certain places makes me want to ride. I tend to get ideas while driving. So, as I wrote already, I started to ride. I road down, down, and down and as I went down I thought about writing this post, and I thought about how cold I was. This is general advice that I need to remember and maybe is some no brainer stuff but, when you're excited to get out and ride you don't think about anything but getting out and riding. First - Check the weather - Know what you're getting into. For all I know there could have been a tidal wave covering the west coast and headed in our direction and ofcourse I was going to head right down to it. Knowing how cold it is or vice versa will determine your attire. Going outside is one way to check the temp but checking online is ideal since like in my instance I was covering a decent amount of ground and changing 1,500 ft of altitude - pretty much going from one city to another where the temp is going to be different. The temperature difference from one city to the next may not be enough to change what you're going to wear but atleast you can be mentaly prepared for a stronger wind chill or a chance of rain.
So you know the weather - It's COLD. I checked the temperature when I got home and it was 36F which is about 2C so pretty cold. I was riding about 30mph going down hill, not pushing the pace though I was trying to keep warm by atleast pedaling which I think a good idea. If it's cold keep moving. In general I believe this is good cycling practice to keep pedaling and coast as little as possible while training (that's just my opinion) Ok, back to the advice - 1. keep moving 2. slowing down might help. I noticed when i stopped to turn around I imediately started to warm up. 3. wear warm socks! atleast some mid to high socks that will cover the gap from your shoes to your pants. I've noticed my feet get colder than any other part of my body (it used to be my hands but I now have gloves - thanks to my wife). Maybe invest in some booties. I don't own any but they seem like they'd be a really good idea for blocking out the cold air. 4. Know where you're going to ride. If I were to have ridden someplace flat I think I might have been found in the morning on the side of the road frozen. Going downhill is really really cold, going flat is pretty cold but... going up hill is warm (for the most part - besides your nose and maybe ears if they're not covered). I knew I was going to be going up hill and I had had the experience of being way too hot while riding uphill so I dressed fairly light when I went out the door which ended up being alright. I needed to wear better socks and another layer on top under my jacket. 5. Remember to hydrate even when it's cold out - water will keep you going. Eating a light breakfast before you ride won't hurt either i.e. cereal. Eating and drinking go hand in hand with knowing where you're going to ride. How long you will ride will determine how much water or food you need to take along. Why take an extra water bottle if you know you won't need it or what if you're 25 miles from food and drink and you bonk because you didn't eat! 6. Bring something like paper towels for your nose. My nose tends to run when it's cold and i'm panting like a dog and having snot running down my face is not a sensation that is desirable. Why must the paper be thick. So you can feel it with your gloves on. One day I went out riding two regular kleenex wodded up and placed on either side of my back pocket and the next i went with a paper towel torn in half also placed on either side of my back pocket. The day I went with the paper towel I was able to find the paper and dispose of the "waterfall" properly while on the day with the kleenex I was forced to use my glove which is really what I wanted to avoid doing in the first place. For know this list is what I've got in mind maybe it will be added to in the future. Some of these things are decent advice for any ride really not just while in the cold. Here they are again.
- Keep your body moving.
- Keep the pace slower if you're getting cold and or going downhill.
- Wear warm socks or invest in some booties.
- Know where you're going to ride which will determin proper attire.
- Drink water no matter what/have some food.
- Bring paper towels if your nose is an runner.
- And check the weather which will aslo determin proper attire.
Happy riding!
Update: Went for a ride this morning and was reminded of something of a necessity while riding in the cold or well most of the time. Glasses! I like clear lenses even if it's sunny outside because I don't like my vision hampered even though most "clear" lenses have some sort of UV protection and are not totally clear. Wearing glasses in normal weather keeps the dust out and in cold weather it means no more cold tears streaming back towards your ears.
So you know the weather - It's COLD. I checked the temperature when I got home and it was 36F which is about 2C so pretty cold. I was riding about 30mph going down hill, not pushing the pace though I was trying to keep warm by atleast pedaling which I think a good idea. If it's cold keep moving. In general I believe this is good cycling practice to keep pedaling and coast as little as possible while training (that's just my opinion) Ok, back to the advice - 1. keep moving 2. slowing down might help. I noticed when i stopped to turn around I imediately started to warm up. 3. wear warm socks! atleast some mid to high socks that will cover the gap from your shoes to your pants. I've noticed my feet get colder than any other part of my body (it used to be my hands but I now have gloves - thanks to my wife). Maybe invest in some booties. I don't own any but they seem like they'd be a really good idea for blocking out the cold air. 4. Know where you're going to ride. If I were to have ridden someplace flat I think I might have been found in the morning on the side of the road frozen. Going downhill is really really cold, going flat is pretty cold but... going up hill is warm (for the most part - besides your nose and maybe ears if they're not covered). I knew I was going to be going up hill and I had had the experience of being way too hot while riding uphill so I dressed fairly light when I went out the door which ended up being alright. I needed to wear better socks and another layer on top under my jacket. 5. Remember to hydrate even when it's cold out - water will keep you going. Eating a light breakfast before you ride won't hurt either i.e. cereal. Eating and drinking go hand in hand with knowing where you're going to ride. How long you will ride will determine how much water or food you need to take along. Why take an extra water bottle if you know you won't need it or what if you're 25 miles from food and drink and you bonk because you didn't eat! 6. Bring something like paper towels for your nose. My nose tends to run when it's cold and i'm panting like a dog and having snot running down my face is not a sensation that is desirable. Why must the paper be thick. So you can feel it with your gloves on. One day I went out riding two regular kleenex wodded up and placed on either side of my back pocket and the next i went with a paper towel torn in half also placed on either side of my back pocket. The day I went with the paper towel I was able to find the paper and dispose of the "waterfall" properly while on the day with the kleenex I was forced to use my glove which is really what I wanted to avoid doing in the first place. For know this list is what I've got in mind maybe it will be added to in the future. Some of these things are decent advice for any ride really not just while in the cold. Here they are again.
- Keep your body moving.
- Keep the pace slower if you're getting cold and or going downhill.
- Wear warm socks or invest in some booties.
- Know where you're going to ride which will determin proper attire.
- Drink water no matter what/have some food.
- Bring paper towels if your nose is an runner.
- And check the weather which will aslo determin proper attire.
Happy riding!
Update: Went for a ride this morning and was reminded of something of a necessity while riding in the cold or well most of the time. Glasses! I like clear lenses even if it's sunny outside because I don't like my vision hampered even though most "clear" lenses have some sort of UV protection and are not totally clear. Wearing glasses in normal weather keeps the dust out and in cold weather it means no more cold tears streaming back towards your ears.
No comments:
Post a Comment