So I got back on the bike, and it's amazing how much happier I am overall. Sure I'll probably be on the train a couple days a week, and that's fine, too. A bad day commuting is almost always better than a bad day on the train. And yeah, wintertime commuting is the best, especially on the greenway.

Another obstacle is the perceived lack of safety. Even the NYCC message board had a thread on "Is the greenway safe after dark?" I posted that I've ridden the greenway in the evening all year round, and it's fine.

Yup, if you like to log 100+ miles a week in NYC, best days are the ones where the wind chill drops below 35 degrees, clearing the wimps and obnoxious folks out of the scene! The most frustrating rides in NYC are on gorgeous days, when every 5 yards of bike time pits you against another stroller, frisbee, roller blader, gang, out of control car, cluster of pedestrians or summer-only-incompetent biker that swerves in your way, endangering both of you.

GIVE ME SLEET!

My city is pretty mild. The lowest temperature I've biked in is probably 40 degrees. It's not bad as long as you're dressed properly. I think it's fun to cycle in the rain!

I would love to bike in the snow sometime.

Mind you, I stopped biking when it got to -15, because the only thing that can keep that kind of cold out of your hands and feet in that kind of wind chill are heavy-duty winter boots that make biking awkward. But that was still most of the winter. Paradoxically, ice wasn't much of a problem because it never really formed. Most of the snow got plowed off the roads and sidewalks, and sand covered the rest for better traction. Moreover, with that kind of cold weather, the snow never melted enough to *form* ice in the first place. Winter coincidentally also lasts from at least November to the beginning of April, and sometimes longer.

Now I live in Vancouver, which presents much different challenges. For the most part, it doesn't snow much here. But the roads will freeze overnight many times in December and January, and that makes a morning commute scary! Thankfully, you can buy studded tires that make your grip on ice as effortless as if the roads were bare and dry.

The other winter weather issue in Vancouver is the rain. When we have a winter storm here (every week), it doesn't rain. It RAINS! SIDEWAYS! For 3 days straight! However, I still made the commitment this year to bike through it. So I bought some nylon rain pants with a liner in them to keep me warm, a good gore-tex biker rain jacket, *nice* wool socks, and wet-weather gloves (not especially warm, but dry). And that made the trek tremendously better. Keeping warm was a piece of cake since I was exercising, so it really wasn't as unpleasant as it looks. That's the operative phrase though - "as it looks" because when anyone around here looks outside when it's nasty, well, it looks nasty. And noone wants to go outside if they can help it.

This last year, I helped a friend get a bike and start commuting to the subway. It's been an eye-opener. From choosing a bike and a lock, to actually using them, to regular maintenance, none of this is as easy as I thought it was.

We regular riders would benefit from more cyclists on the road, and should try to learn to help others over the hurdles (that seem like nothing to us).

I actually take my vacation days on this very basis -- at my job they know that, if they see a "9" in the temperature, then they aren't likely to see me at the office that day.

But there is absolutely no way I will ride in the winter. No matter who else is doing it.

So I will admit that, for me, bike-riding is strictly a warm-weather activity. This is because it is always significantly colder when moving on the bike (at least at chest- and head-level) than it is in the normal air.

As a person who digs the hot weather, I detest wearing layers. I am most comfortable riding in just a single shirt (temps 85 or above). In lower temperatures I wear two t-shirts (temps 80-85), or else a light sweatshirt over a t-shirt (temps 75-80).

But below that, you start getting into the unfortunate zone where a jacket is necessary over the layers (60-75).

And I have to realise that that's about it for me. Therefore, I guess my lower limit for *comfortably* rideable temperature is about 60. I will ride *if necessary* when temperatures are below that -- but it won't be *comfortably* , I'll tell you that right now!

But, below 55 or so? Forget it -- get yourself another boy. I'd rather walk. Temps in the 50s or below result in breezes that are just too chilling. And, as I mentioned, wearing layers is too uncomfortable. Even worse than that, my nose runs constantly at those temperatures.

So, if a given activity is an absolute joy to do in the summer, but is a hassle-filled chore to undertake in the winter, then I think that, for me, this activity firmly qualifies as a "summer activity"!

The last time that I rode in the winter (and I mean "last" in both senses: "most recent" and "final") was during the transit strike. This could not have been a more different experience from a typical summer ride.

I always feel very strong during a hot day; as I indicated earlier, riding 30 miles on a summer day is pretty usual for me, and 40 or 50 is not out of the question. But, on that December day, the cold sapped me, and I struggled to do the mere 10 miles to work. I even had to stop to rest on the Williamsburg Bridge -- which has never happened to me anywhere before. (And it wasn't because of not being in shape, because I do much more than 10 miles easily on the first warm day of spring.)

So, never again. I am an avid warm-weather rider; but riding in the cold just ain't for me, even if other cyclists are doing it.

I often will walk instead of using mass transit when I don't have my bike, even though it takes longer. I have read that this is a syndrome endemic to motorists--that a slower travel mode without stops feels "faster" and more efficient than one with an overall shorter point-to-point travel time but that incorporates pauses and delays. That's why motorists will choose detours with less traffic over congested direct routes, even when the direct routes take less time despite the congestion. But in the case of walking over mass transit, it's simply more pleasant.

Really, the problems of winter cycling are the problems of cycling in the city in general: no good place to park your bike, no good place to clean up, and not enough measures taken to protect cyclists when they ride.

Not necessarily. I just started commuting by bike in August, in middle age. Lots of people go skiing or skating, I read, and this is no different.

The die hards are those who do it every day, no matter what. Three or four days per week is achievable by non-die hards. I didn't ride in today, and skipped Monday because of the St. Patrick's Day Parade (I park the bike on 5th and was worried about it). But Tuesday, Thursday and Friday is three days.

What's needed is better infrastructure on the streets (bike lanes, traffic calming, enforcement of traffic laws) and better facilities at cycling destinations (secure parking, showers, etc.). Without those two things, the weather will be a minor factor keeping people from riding.

Maybe it's from growing up cycling in the Catskills, where it's colder, and where I'd never ride anywhere if I waited for a community of bike commuters. I think I would be more likely to ride if there were a lot more cyclists on the road, but that would be because I'd expect there to be safety in numbers and better facilities.

I think Alex does describe a phenomenon that's valid for many people, though. It could be a field dependence thing.

I actually rather prefer the New York/New Haven winter to the summer for biking - just wear some gloves and a nice pair of glasses to keep the cold wind out of your eyes, and you don't have to worry about getting sweaty as much.

This winter I've photographed so many people who seem to feel the same way. Here's my set from February, which was definitely the coldest month:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bicyclesonly/sets/72157603848862349/

God, we are a nation of wimps. Granted it's colder in NYC and you tend to get more snow, but it's ok to not be like everyone else, and ride your bike in the winter.

Maybe I should stop eating Mexican food too.

My big problem is that the bike gets stiff when it's really cold, and it's harder to pedal than in warm weather, and sometimes my cables freeze inside their housings, so it's impossible to shift or apply the brakes. Winter is probably a good time to ride a fixie.

I could also do without those days when the wind blows ice pellets in my face.

I think one of the things that bug people about riding in the winter in the US is the lack of a warm winter helmet (I'm not a helmet-nazi but I wear one because US streets are much more dangerous to cyclists then those in Amsterdam).

Anyway, I struggled for years to find a way to keep my head warm and to wear my (summer) cycling helmet. Then about 2 years ago it dawn on me that ski helmets are design to keep ones head warm and are designed for roughly the same level of protection. Ever since my head has been nice and warm and there is even a place on my "winter" helmet for me to use goggles on those really cold days.

It helps that my main vehicle is a sturdy, road-worthy mountain bike. And that I have a solo office where I can dry wet gear. And that I keep identical (and terrific) rain pants in office and at home, so I don't have to worry about bad weather sneaking up on me.

The result is that I've already passed the 500-mile mark for the year, with nary a single "recreational" ride. I'm in great shape and I get to be outdoors at least twice a day.

Braving the elements gives a special buzz. A couple of Saturdays ago I got caught in a heavy, swirling rainstorm -- sheets of rain, wild gusts of wind. It felt great to be alive.

Sure, I can't wait for warm weather when I can wear pants and peel off all those top layers. But winter cycling beats not winter cycling. It's as simple as that.