black ice anyone?

[ben]

today was the first day i ever had to walk my bike due to ice.

it was fine out near my house (37th and belmont).
but i started to notice that crossing any painted lines out near 82nd was pretty slippery.

when i got out to the gateway transit center is where i first went down.
just the typical "bike slides out from under you and you skid a few feet on your pannier".
i was going fairly slow...but it was just black ice to the max.
as i was cutting thru that fred meyer/strip mall area, i decided to just crawl along, taking super-wide turns.....and once again, going completely straight....*thud*.

so i just walked the last mile to work.
the parkrose area was so slippery that i had to use 2 hands to walk my bike the whole time. even then, it kept slipping around.

though i was walking, i kept my lights on and stayed vigilant to the surrounding traffic.
considering how poorly many portlanders drive in sketchy road conditions, i was just waiting for someone to plow into me.

i got to work safe and sound.
i hope you all did too!

[alex26]

I got about four blocks from my house and went down. I didn't know if it would continue to be bad all the way into downtown or not, so I ended up walking my bike (very, very carefully) back to my house and taking the bus in to work. It's the first time I've not biked to work since April. Sigh.

[mizake]

i didn't hit any ice on the way to work. that i know of anyway. i guess i was lucky.

[nishiki]

I stepped and it was icy... I was already wearing bike gear so I decided to bike.
Well, I probably did not go any faster than 7mph but I made it. Sorry to hear you had to take the bus.

[Val]

Check out the posts in the "Tips & Advice" section under "Quit for winter?" I've said it many times, and it's still true: studs rule. There are quite a few more available now than there used to be, if you feel like supporting the industry. Most of these are 26", but Schwalbe has some 700c now. For those who prefer to stay low budget, pan head sheet metal screws installed from the inside of an old tire, which is then mounted on the rim with a liner to protect the tube from the screw heads, will change your life. I've been using this system for years, and it has enabled me to ride up steep slopes covered in inches of pure ice with total confidence. If you do make your own, try to make them short enough that they don't mess up the handling on dry pavement. Knowing when to install them is crucial, too. (Spikey) rubber side down!

[mizake]

if i think that there's gonna be ice, i lower my tire pressure to the lowest recommended psi (any lower and i fear damage to tires and rims). unfortunately i don't have enough clearance for studs, prefab or dyi. i also try to keep my weight more to the rear of the bike (which you should really do anyway).

i'd like to build a cold weather, bad condition (mud), traction-crazy bike though.