I like to get off the trainer and out on the MTB as much as possible to enjoy some crisp, fresh air. Here are a few pictures from yesterday’s 2 hour ride. Conditions were quite nice, with a high in low 20’s F (normal is single digits right now), no wind (typical for here) and the snow was fairly packed on the river from the 1900 mile Iron Dog snow machine race from Wasilla to Nome to Fairbanks (www.irondog.org) that finished Saturday (Governor Sarah Palin’s first dude Todd and his teammate finished 6th).
Riding down the Tanana River, about 40 minutes south of Fairbanks (and from my house). I love being out here, no sound except my breathing and the tires crunching thru the snow at 5-10 mph.
After going down river for about an hour, I get on a back road to head home. Not a lot of traffic here either. My house is near the top the ridge in the distance. Climbing on fat tires with 10 psi is hard work!
The view from Chena Ridge overlooking Fairbanks as I near my house. Fairbanks is around 440 feet elevation and this picture is from around 1400 feet.
Awesome. You know what this post is? A nice friendly HTFU for all off us down here who didn’t go outside and ride last weekend because it was too cold. Waaaaah.
Wow. One of the best things about this forum, one of many, is the great places contributors share. We had a fellow from I believe Switzerland on here earlier today.
These are great. The incredible solitude. I’d like to see a fellow’s photos from Manhattan as a stark contrast.
I noticed your cool hand warmer thingies on your handlebars. How cold can you ride? Also, are you in the so-called “land of the midnight sun” where you only have a couple hours of darkness?
Awesome. Thanks for sharing these. Be careful out there- a mechanical takes on a whole new significance when it happens in the middle of the Alaskan outback!
I’m glad you enjoyed the short picture report. Probably my favorite part of the forum is seeing picture reports from around the world. It was such a nice day I wanted to share. We started 2009 with a serious cold snap – the temperature did not rise above minus 20F for 16 straight days (27 Dec – 11 Jan), and the low temperature on 14 of those days was 40 below or colder. The 16-day stretch of temperatures colder than 20 below fell just two days short of the record of 18 set from 14 - 31 Jan 1971. The cold snap was obliterated by a spectacular Chinook (native word meaning snow eater); on 11 Jan our low was minus 44, but by 14 Jan we had a record high of 44 above, a difference of 88 degrees in 3 days. Last night we were back at -25F and there’s a winter storm warning for 4-8 inches of snow in the next 36 hours. Welcome to winter in Fairbanks.
Ultra-tri-guy: Mavericks - you betcha! (wink)
J04: Thanks. I just wanted to share, so this wasn’t meant as a HTFU, but I know what you mean.
Pdxjohn: I run year-round. Winter here is cold and dry, so generally not very slippery. My typical cutoff is around -20F, but I have run at -40F just to say I did. We have very little wind and “it’s a dry cold”, so once acclimated, -20F is not a big deal. Birch Hill is awesome for XC skiing from Oct – Apr. I agree that summer is magical, we much prefer summer J.
Tom D: Thanks, I always appreciate your picture reports too. I’m not hard core like the serious folks, but like to get out some. The handle bar hand warmers are called “pogies” and they are essential for arctic riding. As you know, it’s critical to layer clothing to prevent excessive sweating to avoid chills or worse. The pogies let us to wear slightly lighter gloves to help avoid sweaty hands. The hard core folks ride at -40F. My cutoff these days is around zero, but I have done rides at -20F. We are 120 miles south of the Arctic Circle, so definitely in the land of the midnight sun. On winter solstice we have less than 4 hours of sunshine. On summer solstice we have nearly 22 hours of sunshine. Right now we are gaining ~7 minutes of sunshine per day. It’s amazing how fast the sun returns (and disappointing how fast it disappears in the fall).
Canuck8: You are welcome. I gather you are “next door” in Canada?
