The Horrors of Biking in Snow

I’d always been skeptical about biking in winter, but with fat bikes popping up around Bozeman like balsamroot in June, curiosity got the best of me and I decided to give it a shot. Trying new activities has always been fun for me, so I took to winter biking with the same attitude. If nothing else, I’ll build rock-solid legs for mountain-biking season, I thought.

Eager to get started, I pored through the winter gear in my closet throwing on ski mittens, a beanie, and a down sweater. At first, I thought I would look like a badass, but after gearing up, I felt more like a doofus with my helmet digging the hat into my forehead and the mittens making me look like Gumby. 

For my first outing, I headed out on a shakedown ride up Peets Hill. Immediately, dust-size ice particles began pelting my face and stinging my eyeballs. After a few pedal-strokes my hands and ears were completely frozen. Footprints from pedestrians left icy ruts along the Gallagator, and I teetered like a toddler on a bike for the first time. Along the trail, someone called my name, but between the jumbled mess of my hat and helmet and my laser-focus on the ruts, I was afraid to look up.

“You could be on skis” a septuagenarian dog walker said as he jumped out of the way to avoid being hit.

Once I reached Peets Hill, the snow softened, and riding became more stable. For a second I thought things were looking up, but alas my ride quickly returned to a slow, tedious trudge. Then my bike began clanking, and I had no idea where the problem was because everything was jammed with ice. Winter biking was not living up to my expectations. It had only been an hour, and I was frozen, frustrated, and done with it.

Before heading home, I made a pitstop at the library to warm up. Inside, my fingers and ears screamed as blood rushed back into them. I ran my hands under warm water, looked into the mirror and noticed my face was red and splotchy. My forehead had morphed to the shape of my tight helmet—I looked like a mess. I began dreaming of carving effortless ski turns down a mountain and could hear my backcountry ski buddies mocking me for going biking.

While I’d love to ride my bike year-round, the reality for me is that winter biking sucks. There’s a season for everything and proper gear for all types of weather. But it didn’t take long for me to realize that when there’s snow on the ground, it’s best to strap skis on your feet and save biking for spring.

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More about biking. This time it was fun. http://annvinciguerra.blogspot.com/2013/07/fat-tire-exploration-in-gem-city.html