Essential Do-It-Yourself Winter Bike Tips

Cycling Weekly

The bad weather can take its toll on your bicycle but these winter bike hacks can keep you riding all winter long.

Transcript

00:00Riding your bike through autumn and winter can be a pretty miserable affair, especially

00:07if, like us, you live in the UK, when it can be cold, rainy and you're often riding on

00:14roads that are completely strewn in potholes, muck and salt.

00:19Now here at Cycle Weekly, we cannot promise to make your winter rides as fun and enjoyable

00:24as they are during the summer, but we have come up with a few ingenious little hacks

00:30and hints that can help get your bike ready and hopefully alleviate a little bit of the

00:34pain.

00:35Now these go a little bit beyond the usual recommendations for how to get your bike ready

00:40for winter.

00:41To be honest, we've already made those videos, so if you look in the description below, you'll

00:44see links to those videos there.

00:46So let's just dive straight in.

00:53One of the things that I've found really, really useful to have during the winter is

00:57extra visibility.

00:58Obviously, we're going to be riding when it's a little bit dark, so anything that makes

01:02you stand out a bit more for car drives or other traffic is, in my book, a really, really

01:07important thing.

01:08So I've picked up some really, really cool little stickers.

01:12These only cost a couple of pounds, but they are ideal for sticking all over your frame

01:18and whatever components you have.

01:20The good thing is, if you've got a nice-looking bike, these are just plain little black stickers.

01:25However, when a bright light shines on them, they reflect back in bright silver.

01:30So it just picks you out during those winter rides.

01:34So you can put these wherever you want on the bike and make sure that you stay safe.

01:44One of the things that can often happen when you're riding during the winter, especially

01:47in the rain, is your hands get pretty slippery.

01:50So you operate in the shifters, and sometimes the brakes can be a little bit sketchy.

01:55One of the things I've found works really, really well in this case is a little bit of

01:59grip tape.

02:00Now, this is actually really, really simple to find online.

02:04Only costs a couple of pounds, and it comes in a roll that's long enough for you to be

02:08able to share it with all of your friends.

02:10It's sticky-backed, and you can cut it to shape to fit wherever you want it, so where

02:15you want to have that little extra grip.

02:17It's the same stuff as you find on a skateboard, so it is quite rough, so be aware of that

02:21when it comes to your gloves.

02:23But for me personally, I would much prefer to have that safer shift in the braking than

02:28worry about wearing my gloves out.

02:34We often talk about going for longer, steadier rides during the winter, and one of the things

02:38that becomes paramount for all of us is a bit of extra comfort.

02:42Now, your bar tape goes a long way to make you comfortable when you're on a longer ride.

02:47So now is the time to, first of all, take a check.

02:51Have a little look at your bar tape and see if it's worn.

02:54If it is, it's time to change it, and what I'd recommend you do is to change it for something

02:58with a bit more grip or a bit more cushioning.

03:01Some people double-wrap their bars during the winter, which makes it a lot bigger but

03:05also very, very comfortable, or you can get some little gel pads.

03:10Now, again, these are a simple thing to find.

03:14Lots of bike shops sell these, and they don't cost a huge amount, and they basically go

03:19underneath your bar tape.

03:21So you get parts to go over the top and parts to go on the drops, little squidgy bits here,

03:26and they're reusable.

03:27That's the other good thing here, so you don't have to worry about changing these over all

03:31the time.

03:32So if you change your bar tape, you can just change this.

03:35If your bar tape is in good condition, you should be able to unwind it and then apply

03:40these underneath and then put your bar tape back on again.

03:44But if not, as I said, it could be a good time to get yourself some nice squishy or

03:48grippy bar tape to keep you safe during the winter.

03:56One of my pet hates during the winter is getting a rusty chain.

03:59Now, obviously, we can all try and alleviate that by keeping our bikes as clean as possible,

04:04but sometimes it's just not possible.

04:07If you've been out for a ride in the evening, it's cold and it's wet, all you really want

04:11to do is get in and get warm.

04:14So what you can do is you can find chains that are a bit more durable and a bit more

04:19resistant to rusting, often ones with stainless steel in them.

04:23Now, they can be quite expensive, but because they're more durable and more resistant to

04:28rusting, they're often worth their weight.

04:31Now, Connex do a really good one.

04:33This is the 11SX, 11-speed chain, and this has got stainless steel links in it, so it

04:38should last a long time even when there's lots of salt on the road.

04:43Obviously, we still are going to tell you to clean your bike as much as possible because

04:47it is going to work much better through the winter, but now's your time to get yourself

04:53a new chain.

04:59Another safety tip is to do with your brakes.

05:02So here, we're not just talking about making sure that your brake pads are clean and that

05:08they are in good working order, but the actual compounds of those brake pads.

05:13When was the last time you thought about this, for example?

05:16Now, if you've got rim brakes or disc brakes, you can find brake compounds that are better

05:22for use during the wet and the mucky conditions of winter.

05:26If you've got rim brakes, you can get brake pads such as the Swiss Stop BXP that are designed

05:32for use during the wet and mucky winter months.

05:36So they have a compound that lasts longer, but it also provides much more reliable braking

05:42power during wet weather use.

05:45You can buy them either as full kits or as the brake pads themselves as a pack of four,

05:50and that would be certainly something you might want to consider.

05:53If you've got disc brakes, here we're talking about sintered brake pads.

05:58Now, you can often check which brake pads you have by taking out the brake pads from

06:03your brake and looking at, first of all, the back of it.

06:07A lot of them have it either printed or stamped, whether it's a resin pad, an organic pad,

06:12or if it's a sintered pad.

06:14But a sintered pad is designed to last longer and also be more reliable in wet weather.

06:19So it's made up of not only the standards of resin, but lots of metallic particles which

06:25are designed to provide that extra braking power.

06:28So if you don't have sintered brake pads on your bike, it's a good thing to try to fit.

06:39Okay, so this one is a given, but mudguards.

06:42I know they're boring, but they are a really, really good idea if you are going to go riding

06:49outside in the wet, especially if you're riding with your friends.

06:53They will all appreciate it.

06:55Now, if your bike has got eyelets for mudguards, then you must fit a good, proper set of mudguards.

07:03There's nothing quite like it.

07:04These provide the best coverage.

07:06However, if your bike doesn't have those, then there are still options.

07:12You can get some really cool, very small and discreet mudguards like these ones here.

07:17And these are designed to fit most bikes without those mudguard mounts.

07:23They don't obviously provide the same amount of protection, but they will keep your bum

07:28dry or keep a little bit of spray off your face when you're out in those wet conditions.

07:38Dirt doesn't like clean bikes.

07:40There, I said it.

07:41Having a clean bike is a good starting point during the winter for keeping everything running

07:46properly.

07:47But there's one extra level of cleanliness you can go to to keep your bike extra clean

07:54through the winter, and that is to apply some polish to it.

07:58Now, we're not talking about spraying it everywhere because that would be crazy, but applying

08:03some silicone polish to the frame and the forks will give mud and muck less chance to

08:11grip onto that frame, keeping your bike cleaner, and it means then it's going to be easier

08:16to clean at all times.

08:18You can either apply it directly to the frame or you can apply it to a rag and then wipe

08:22it on.

08:23But the best thing is, because it's nice and slippery then, that dirt just doesn't stand

08:27a chance to stay onto your bike.

08:29If you don't want to use silicone spray, one thing you can do is you can get some invisible

08:34protection.

08:35So you can get tape that will fit onto your bike, which will then protect it, first of

08:40all, from dirt, but also from any knocks as well.

08:43So that could be another option, another little extra tip to keep your bike working

08:49perfectly through the winter.

08:55And my last tip today is one that we've been banging on quite a lot, and that is going

09:02tubeless.

09:03Yes, I know we keep talking about it.

09:06I know there's people out there that don't really like the idea, but if you've ever stood

09:11on the side of the road with a puncture, when your hands don't work, everything's covered

09:16in muck and it's raining, it's a miserable feeling.

09:20So anything that should prevent that from happening is going to make sure that you're

09:25going to enjoy your ride a little bit more during the winter.

09:29So if you can, try tubeless.

09:33Well, I hope you find these little hacks and hints useful and that they should make your

09:39winter riding a little bit more enjoyable.

09:42Now if you've got any different tips or hacks that you use to make your winter riding a

09:46little bit more bearable, please put it in the comments section below.

09:50And don't forget to like and subscribe to keep up with our latest releases.

09:54But until the next one, we'll see you soon.

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