Winter cycling tyres

CK61938 · 18 Nov 2016 at 14:49

So today, I cycled into work as I usually do. Only I hit a few patches of ice and nearly fell off.

I have Schwalbe 2016 Land Cruiser Kevlar Tyres and they are proving to be really amazing. At least for punctures anyway. I have had them since April.

Are they good enough for winter riding or do I need a different set of tyres? Someone at work mentioned softening the tyre by releasing some pressure.

What advice can you give, please?

Thank you!

FrenchTart · 18 Nov 2016 at 15:09

You'll never grip on ice unless you get ridiculous spiked tyres. I wouldn't switch personally.

grudas · 18 Nov 2016 at 15:11

FrenchTart said:
You'll never grip on ice unless you get ridiculous spiked tyres. I wouldn't switch personally.

pretty much this!

don't cycle in the gutter, look ahead and avoid anything that looks icy/patchy.

nothing bar metal studs will save you on ice.

CK61938 · 18 Nov 2016 at 15:16

Ok. Thanks guys. Kinda what I was expecting really. Might just have to stick to the roads instead.

touch · 18 Nov 2016 at 16:15

FrenchTart said:
You'll never grip on ice unless you get ridiculous spiked tyres. I wouldn't switch personally.

I use spiked ice tyres and they are brilliant - nothing ridiculous about them at all!
They're quite heavy - close to 1kg per tyre I think - and they drag noticeably more than other tyres but they roll along fine once you get them up to speed.

The grip is amazing. Most of the time I use them incase there are small patched of black ice around but I have had them out in full scottish highland winter conditions with compacted snow/ice 3-4cm thick on the road.

tom_e · 18 Nov 2016 at 16:18

1kg each

I bet you do everything possible to avoid having to stop start on those!

FrenchTart · 19 Nov 2016 at 09:14

touch said:
I use spiked ice tyres and they are brilliant - nothing ridiculous about them at all!
They're quite heavy - close to 1kg per tyre I think - and they drag noticeably more than other tyres but they roll along fine once you get them up to speed.

The grip is amazing. Most of the time I use them incase there are small patched of black ice around but I have had them out in full scottish highland winter conditions with compacted snow/ice 3-4cm thick on the road.

Depends on where you're cycling. They would be ridiculous overkill for me but fair enough - not for everyone everywhere. I should've been more specific.

GSVBagpuss · 20 Nov 2016 at 19:21

I just try to avoid the extreme lean on corners and no big power unless I'm going straight

SexyGreyFox · 20 Nov 2016 at 19:31

I'm on Schwalbes and this happened two Mondays ago -

touch · 21 Nov 2016 at 11:37

FrenchTart said:
Depends on where you're cycling. They would be ridiculous overkill for me but fair enough - not for everyone everywhere. I should've been more specific.

If you're cycling anywhere that you may encounter ice - as the OP said he did, then it's not overkill.

You only need to fall and wreck 1 pair of shorts to make the cost of the tyres worthwhile.

FrenchTart · 21 Nov 2016 at 11:47

I disagree. I encounter ice but for the most part stick to well-gritted roads. Whilst I would indeed get better grip if I changed my tyres out it would be a massive overreaction.

oli collett · 21 Nov 2016 at 18:48

SexyGreyFox said:
I'm on Schwalbes and this happened two Mondays ago -

WTF - i assume that's ice?

Vonhelmet · 21 Nov 2016 at 19:26

That's how I came off the other week. Black ice.

SexyGreyFox · 21 Nov 2016 at 19:40

oli collett said:
WTF - i assume that's ice?

yes

touch · 21 Nov 2016 at 20:51

FrenchTart said:
I encounter ice but for the most part stick to well-gritted roads.

This is exactly the same as me. Most of the roads are well gritted around here and most of the time I wont find any ice at all on a ride. I still consider the tyres worthwhile when the main drawback of using them is losing a few mph off my strava averages whereas the drawback of not using them could be broken bones + broken bike.

FrenchTart · 21 Nov 2016 at 21:48

Well, each to their own. I don't care about losing average speed (that much

) but the hassle of swapping over for what I see as a very unlikely event to occur makes it not appeal to me.

lordrobs · 22 Nov 2016 at 08:52

It depends where you live. If I was to commute by bike I'd have a set on my old hybrid for the worst days as the gritters don't do the country roads by me.