MId 40s is tolerable for a few hours if you’re dressed right. For me it just comes down to how safe I feel in the weather. Yesterday (in Cleveland) it was not only cold (high 30s) and rainy, but very windy. It’s early in the year, so I bagged the road ride and did three hours on computrainer. WHo needs to risk injury or wreck in April?
Any Clevelanders do the Hermes 10-miler today? Now that was some miserable stuff in which to run! The gusts off the Lake were so strong they nearly stopped runners in their tracks coming north on W9th!
In Canada we call weather like that spring and go riding
As long as you dress appropriately and there is not a driving rain to accompany the temperatures like there was for my long run this morning 44F is fine for riding. It becomes a necessity to do rides in weather like this if you plan an early or late IM and live in Ontario.
Cold weather with High winds AND rain, particularly on the bike, can be particularly brutal. You really have to have the right gear, and even then it’s hard to last that long. The cold air is not that bad, if it is calm and not raining, but throw in the other two and it can be nasty.
Toughest rides I managed this past winter in the leadup to IMAZ - were 22 degrees - sunny - roads were clear - over a foot and a half of snow on the ground (off the roads)
Multiple layers - and it was fine - managed two and a half on that day - other days - if it was upwards of 30 deg and dry - then outside we went - too bad there were not many of those days.
We have a LOT of snow today here on the east side of Cleveland - I have the flu so I am having a few days off.
I like Mark Allen’s article a few months back which talked about doing “stupid” workouts. I really think bad, awful, downright nasty conditions build character…and always leap at the opportunity.
It wasn’t nasty…but my road race yesterday was 33 degress at the start with gusts up to 35mph.
My century ride this morning started at 35 degree and gusts up to 30mph (30 of which were direct headwind). Perhaps my best ride of the year…
Get out there are ride…
“Every man will die. Not every man actually lives”
Oh no! Now that I have read the responses, I really hate to admit that I did end up doing this on the trainer. I did do the whole 3 hour workout though - dosen’t that build some type of character? It’s a trainer record for me although I am not sure if it’s something to be proud of.
Oh well - it’s supposed to be back up to 60F here tomorrow (I love Ohio weather).
3hrs on a trainer is still a good haul - helps build mental toughness - well done
some folks will chime in here no doubt and tell you three hours is nothing compared to their longer trainer rides (yes I did 6 hr and longer sessions on the trainer this winter too) but think of it this way
the three hours you did on the trainer - are three hours that one of your competitors somewhere else may not have done!
I’m in South Carolina. Two training buddies and I headed out early yesterday on a 113 mile trek that included 10,000 feet of climbing (NW corner of the state for those who don’t think there’ any climbing in SC). A cold front blasted through in the night. We started out with temps in the high 50s. We all had shorts, jerseys and arm warmers. We rode straight north into a 25 mph headwind (gusts to 40) for 56 miles. The turnaround was at the top of a climb we call Caesar’s Head which is at 3,600+ feet. It’s a 6 mile climb of 7%. DAMN it was cold up there. There’s a state park up there and they had a literature rack. We loaded our jerseys with literature to help block the wind on the way down. It was absolutely freezing on that descent.
The temp dropped throughout the day despite bright sunshine. But the really good part was that the wind picked up and we had a dead-on tailwind of 30+ mph for the entire way home. THAT was FUN! 113 miles in brutal conditions and we all agreed we’d do it again the next day if we had the chance. Of course, we didn’t … so it was easy to say.
You must be from east coast. I rode today and weather was a mirror of your description. I did 50; first 25 head-on into WSW wind, drank a cup of joe at mile 30 and blew home with an avg speed of 23 mph with wind at my back. Nice ride! Not that I am any kind of badass, but I live in DE and have ridden outside at least x2 each month this winter and usually on my long rides. Finishing on day like this makes you feel invisible and you get to enjoy a silent chuckle on race day when you hear people complaining about the weather.
Pull yourself together man! If you’re going to live in the midwest you gotta learn that not every ride is going to be sunshine and roses. This weekend up here in Wisconsin our crew was out in 40-45F, with 27-38mph winds. We did a 90 miler yesterday with 4 long intervals interspersed throughout the ride. Two of the intervals were dead into the wind. And today we rode a 40 mile recovery ride in the same conditions, after a 2-1/2 hour run. All the workouts were great! Would I have preferred 70F and calm? You bet. But these are the workouts I’ll remember when the going gets tough in race and I need to dig really deep.
If it is miserable around my house when I leave to go ride (usually at dawn) I just think of how nice it will be when I get above the clouds after some climbing. Usually I get up above all the crap and ride around through some hills, then come back into the nasty crap.
Saturday I got out before the bad weather, went up into the hills. Coming back down though, I managed to find the storm and hit it just right so it stopped as I got back home.
Make sure you drink enough water and bring warm clothes. I always carry my windvest in this part of the year. Usually knee and arm warmers as I leave the house with short fingered gloves in my pocket.
I think it was around 50F yesterday (need to check the datalog).
It was a bad thing I did, commenting earlier about being in trouble if I flatted, cuz that’s exactly what happened. About 65 minutes into a bone-chilling and wet ride my rear tire went, and although I didn’t time it, I’m guessing that it took 20-25 minutes to change the thing. THE HANDS WOULD NOT BEHAVE PROPERLY! Upon resuming the ride, I lasted for just about 25 minutes more before bagging it. Was it a character-builder? Hmmmmm. Did it help prepare me for adverse race conditions? Maybe a bit. Am I overall glad I went through the whole deal? Perversely, yes.
It’s all about planning ahead. Proper gear and a nice bag to stow them in makes the difference. This allows your gear to be there just in case, which is nice peace of mind. It also allow you to put on additional layers for long descents, or if winds really pick up, and it’s nice to be able to take off layers on long ascents. I generally ride in the San Gabriel Mountains in Southern California.
personally I think just because you have a 3 hour ride scheduled doesn’t mean you need to be a slave to that schedule. today, for example is a much better day, in which you could do the ride. i would not exceed one hour on the trainer–but that’s just me.
maybe I’m not that serious, but I wouldn’t be willing to make myself miserable.
and I have ridden in that weather. it beats the trainer anyday. we had snow all weekend (can you believe it) so I cross trained and lifted. you’ll never catch me on the trainer for more than 60 minutes tops. especially when there is a nice day the next day.
