Cycling
How to winter-proof your road bike
Tick these four things off your list to get your road bike through the winter weather.
It's official, no question about it. Summer is over and Winter is coming, now is the time to set your bike up for those long chilly rides. Do these four things and you'll smash through winter riding with yourself and your bike in one piece!
1. Mudguards
Mudguards are the single best upgrade you can make to your bike for winter, period. Yes, they may make your shiny race bike look a bit funny and yes, they can sometimes be a hassle to fit, but once on, they’ll keep all that dirt and salt off your clothes and bike. This not only keeps you drier but should also make the components on your bike last much longer.
On most group rides, mudguards are seen as a courteous essential, as anybody going without them will soon splatter the riders behind in road grime. Nobody wants to be that guy or girl, so mudguards are well worth the investment.
Many aluminium, steel, or titanium frames will come with mudguard eyelets, meaning you can buy a dedicated set that fits directly to your bike. Although don’t worry if you have a frame without eyelets (usually carbon), as there are brands that make mudguards to fit race frames as well. Companies like SKS are a great place to start.
2. Winter Tyres
Those long chilly rides down quiet country lanes are what winter cycling is all about. What winter cycling is not all about is puncturing your sub-standard tyres on said quiet country lanes which have become filthy.
Super fast summer tyres are great for when the roads are clean and dry, however, come winter, you want something a bit bigger and a lot tougher. We’d recommend going for 25c, 28c, or even up to 30c if you have the clearance. It’s also worthwhile to opt for a tyre with more puncture protection – something like a Continental Gatorskin is a good place to start. Triathlete Gordon Benson also uses these tyres in winter.
Finally, don’t forget to run your tyres at a lower pressure. This not only helps with grip but should make your winter miles a more comfortable experience. Find our guide on tyre size here.
3. A daylight light
Obviously if you’re riding in the dark, you’re going to need some decent lights. However it pays to have a reliable ‘daylight light’ for your winter cycling.
Roads are often wet during the colder months, and when you combine this with the low-lying sun, you get a dangerous amount of glare off the roads. This can make it harder for motorists to see you, so fitting a light is a sensible idea.
Bontrager makes a dedicated light for being seen in the day, which they claim to be visible from up to two kilometres away.
4. Spares storage
During winter, you often have to take out more spares on a ride. Things like a rain cape, extra gloves, a hat and neck warmer, can soon fill up all the space you have in your rear jersey pockets.
This means you need to find some extra room to fit in all your usual spares, like inner tubes, tyre levers, multi-tool etc. A saddlebag is a great solution, but this can often end up obscuring your ‘daylight light’, so another place to hide spares is in an old water bottle or dedicated storage bottle.
These are just regular bottles with a flat, screw on lid and are ideal for shoving all your junk in. They also have the added benefit of moving some extra weight from your body to low down on your bike, hopefully making for a more stable riding experience on those dirt roads.
