Proper Winter Conditions
Although I worked three days between Christmas and New Year, I had 18 days off over the holiday period and yesterday was the first chance to ride cross country to work.
Having said that I got all dressed up for the weather and at the start of the first track, took quite a lot of it off as the temperature was showing 7* degrees. It was a great ride in, though there were many more people about getting their lock down exercise fix.
I use a tring, tring, bell, and got two comments of warm appreciation from walkers I passed.
Another stop for a picture and to lose another item of clothing, exercise does warm you up. After bragging about my new 2.35 tubeless mud tyre coping with a really difficult section last time I posted, I could tell it would be very difficult today so missed it out.
This section is part of my winter route which is both very beautiful and avoids a lot of mud. Sadly one of the few proper demanding single track sections has been lost by a land owner blocking it off. I now have to use much less fun tracks to get around their massive surrey pad. I do now drop into a small section of a rocky right of way as compensation before rejoining my old route.
The 10 mile road journey home was around 01:30 in the morning and definitely a bit nippy. The tyres made some quite alarming cracking noises in places where there was a bit of ice forming. There is a short cut close to home I take that is a residential road and not gritted and felt alarmingly slippy. Still no mishaps.
I followed Dom T's advise and treated myself to slightly more middle assist than normal to compensate for the extra drag of my new rear tyre. I probably used about 5% more battery but was definitely less fatigued.
The only thing about using the higher assist was that I was in my top gear and with 12 teeth this is the least resistant to wear if you push too much power through it. I guess it will be an interesting experiment to see if it starts to jump if I continue using higher assist. The rear cassette has now covered 454 miles.
The whole drive train gets hammered in winter used in the way I do as it gets covered in mud going to work, gets a splash of chain oil on the muddy chain, and then ridden hard home, and then sometimes not cleaned as I am too knackered and do not get the time.
Yesterday was the start of 5 late shifts, so if I ride to them all that is 120 miles, with 70 miles off road and 50 miles on the road with a muddy but oily chain.
Good job a 9 speed set up is cheap to replace!