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So its winter time and for much of the country that means snow and ice. Bicycles don’t always do very well in these conditions but you do have some choices to increase traction and decreasing slippage. They all revolve around studded tires.

When it comes to studded tires you can either buy off the shelf studded tires or you can add the studs your self. It doesn’t end their though. There seems to be a few different methods to studding the tires your self.

Off The Shelf Studs

These might set you back a little bit but their engineered for this and I’m sure they work quite nice. There are a lot of models to choose from so you should be able to find something you like and they should be available to most bike shops.

• Schwalbe Marathon Winter and Ice Spiker Pro
• Innova Snow tires (you have to scroll down a bit)
• Nokian Winter Tires (Finland based company available in the U.S.)
• Kenda Klondike tires

Do-It-Yourself Studs

Now if you are a bit adventurous or just cheap and you want to make your own, these sites give some instructions and explanation of the way they did it. Each one is a little bit different.

• Stud Your Own Tires by Byron Kuster
• MORC How-to: Build Your Own Studded Tires
• Tricks of the Trade: Make your own studded ice tires

I’ve not tried any of these options my self. So if you have, please share your experiences by leaving a comment. Did you make your own or did you buy them? What model? Did they work? What problems did you have? You know stuff like that.

The photo is from Mark Hohengasser of the IMBA and ORTA. Thanks Mark.

There is an epidemic that is growing every day in this country. That epidemic is obesity and generally poor health. With every passing day people are getting fatter and fatter with ever more degrading health and quality of life. There are more and more quick fix, fat burning, diet pills and scams popping up every day.

The underlying issues here are poor diet and sedentary lifestyles. With the growing use of technology and automation driving today’s work force, workers have to do less and less actual labor.

Most of those employees get up everyday, eat breakfast and hop into their gas guzzling SUV to drive only a few miles on city streets to work. Once they get to work, they man some machine or desk chair where they don’t have to move very far for the majority of the day, except to get lunch. Then at quite’n time they drive the SUV back home to eat dinner and watch American Idol.

This all adds up to taking in more calories than are used during the day. This, any way you cut it, will make you fat. When deciding what to do about getting into shape you have to ask your self a couple of questions.

1. What can I do everyday that will improve my health and quality of life?
2. Can I continue that action for the rest of my life?
   

One solution to this would be to simply ride a bicycle to work and for the other short commutes about town. I know, I know, you think you live too far or it’s too dangerous. Well it’s probably not as far as you think and by planning a good route you can usually find a route that is just a block or two off the main thoroughfares so you don’t have to deal with as much traffic.

I live roughly 5 miles from my office. It takes me 10 to 15 minutes to drive to the office in the mornings depending on weather, traffic, and how I catch the stop lights. When I ride my bicycle to work it takes about 16 or 17 minutes. That’s only a 2 to 5 minute difference. I take all back streets and an alley. The busiest intersection I go through is a four way stop with no light. That route just isn’t practical in a car though. Too many turns and stops and starts with the stop signs. But, on a bicycle, it’s no problem at all. I ride along at a leisurely pace.

How do you carry your stuff?  Well depending on what I’m toting around, I either wear a backpack or a messenger bag. You can even go to the grocery store and stuff it all in you backpack after you check out as long as you’re only picking up a few things. I often carry my notebook PC back and forth with me. You just need to get a good bag that is comfortable and is big or small enough to meet your needs.  In the post, I Can’t Ride A Bike To Work, I Have To Carry Stuff, I list multiple options for carrying things by bike.

What if it rains? Just put on a poncho and go. I use those cheap, little, plastic, fold up types that you can pickup at gas stations and just about everywhere else for under five bucks. Just put on the back pack or messenger bag, and then put on the poncho over it. Your pants may get a bit wet but all you other goods stay dry. I always change cloths once I get to the office anyway so getting a little wet on the way is no big deal either.

I can’t go to work all smelly and sweaty! I’ve got that covered too. See, sweat itself does not smell bad. It’s our natural body odor added to sweat and heat that makes some people smell bad when they exert themselves. So with that said, take a shower before you ride (a lot of people shower in the morning already) and give your self enough time to make the trip without riding like its some kind of race.  I carry a change of cloths with me. That way if I should get dirty or have to hurry a bit I can change when I get to the office. Sometimes If I know I’m going to ride to work in advance I take some cloths in and leave them in a desk drawer so I don’t have to drag it in when I’m riding. I have a little mini travel kit with hair gel, travel size deodorant, and a wash cloth in a zip-loc bag too. When I get to the office I get the wash cloth damp but not wet and towel off the sweaty bits. Then I rinse my face in the sink, do my hair, redeoderize, change cloths, and I’m good as new.

Where do I park the bike? You really have a lot of options to take care of storing your bike. If you live in a real bike friendly town like Portland, OR or Seatle, WA you may have access to a bike locker. Your employer may even get tax credits for installing some. But if you live somewhere that is less bike friendly like me (fyi. I live in Central Missouri) you have to find somewhere else to put it. You can lock it up outside, just make sure you have a good lock and don’t forget to run it through both wheels. Or your boss may let you bring it inside (I even lean mine against my desk sometimes). If you work at a factory they may already have bike racks. I don’t know of any place that would tell you that you couldn’t ride your bicycle to work unless it somehow prevents you from doing your job and most employers will try to accommodate you in some way. Whether it’s letting you bring your bike inside or installing a bike locker its all good for them. If you ride your bike you will be healthier. If you are healthier you are happier. Happy healthy employees are more productive and have lower insurance premiums. See what I mean. So look around your office or place of work, come up with an idea or two of what to do with your bike and then run it by your boss or manager.

 So no more excuses get out there and ride.  If you already commute by bike please share your bike commuting tips in the comments.

This is an updated version of the article that was previously posted during the first few weeks of this blog.

So you think you can’t commute to work by bike because you think you can’t carry anything.  Maybe you think you just carry too much stuff back and forth to be able to ride to work.  Well let me tell you what…both assumptions are wrong.

I’m going to break this down into common items carried to work and show you how you can do this by bike.

You need to carry a laptop, a few documents, and a change of cloths…

Too easy.  There is a plethora, a varied cornucopia of backpacks and messenger bags that will suit the needs of all that fall into this category.  Here are some good messenger bag choices:

• Timbuk2 Commute
• Chrome Citizen
• ManhattanPortage Laptop Messenger Bag 1675

You need to pick up some groceries on your way home…

for bulkier items it is usually better to get them off your back and onto your bike.  Here are some racks, panniers, and an Xtracycle, a very cool and popular way to take care of it.

• Xtracycle -Sport Utility Bicycles
• Breezer bags and panniers

You need to carry your business suit to work…

This one would seem to be tough at first but the people at 2 Wheel Gear solved this one.

• Bicycle Garment Bag

You need to carry really big stuff like your refrigerator…

Some people, mostly in Portland I think, are really serious about living car free.  Sometimes you have to move big stuff.  You might think this could never work but look here my friend:

• Bikes at Work - Hauling a refrigerator
• B.O.B Trailers - Great for around town or touring
• Burley Nomad trailer - Another great touring trailer

This should give you some ideas for how you can go about your daily life no matter what you need to haul by bike.  So no more excuses…starting commuting by bike.

Yesterday The Pitch weekly news out of Kansas City had an article titled Two-Wheeled Discrimination about a well-to-do grandmother from Leawood that wanted to ride her bike to go shopping but found there we no accommodations for bicycles at all. She even called the shopping center for assistance with finding bike parking just in case she had missed it but they couldn’t give her any recommendations.

This is a sad story for a number of reasons. Missouri does not have any laws that require bicycle parking like a lot other states. Missouri businesses are simply not concerned with the One-Million plus cyclists in the state or maybe they don’t know they should be.

I think lack of awareness is the primary reason for business owners not accommodating cyclists. If business owners and local governments were familiar with our concerns eventually they would accommodate us. The Tour of Missouri has raised cycling in Missouri to a new level and more and more people are becoming aware of the number of cycling enthusiasts as was evident by the large crowds that attended the races.

The old adage, “The squeaky wheel gets the grease” is exactly true in this case. As consumers and cyclists we must make our selves heard and do it often. If there is a store you frequent call the owner or manager and ask about bicycle parking. One thing I have learned in sales is try and make contact with someone as high in the company as possible because the receptionist, teller, or checker cannot make any decisions and usually doesn’t have enough pull in the company to make your issue reach the top.

Everyone should also write a letter to the editor of their local news paper or write letters to the local governments to voice their concerns. If you have a busy area with limited parking make sure you point out how bicycles ease congestion and parking issues. Point out that a small bike rack can usually accommodate 4 or 5 bikes. That’s 4 or 5 cars not on the road or taking up parking spaces. In some cities they are installing on street bicycle parking in single parking spaces in busy areas. A single car parking space can hold at least 15 bikes, sometimes more. That’s a lot of parking for a few hundred dollars.

Having bicycle parking also indicates a growing and evolving community. That is a good thing. That attracts businesses and people to move there. That encourages more growth. That all comes around to make a better community with healthier, happier people.