Winter bike riding is rough ‘n’ tough. Even the best of us, have to keep our mind sharp when out on the ice with wheels. Apart from the endless risks involved, the truth is winter bike riding is the best workout for your body in the cold. At the start, it might seem nerve-wracking, but this is only because when you tread into the ice with a warm body, the temperature difference jolts your mind and body. You might feel like giving up, but rest assured, this is normal. It is a metamorphosis of our body, as it adjusts to the cold outside. So, buckle up and plunge in for a wild ride!
With our veteran eight tips below, now you can go winter bike riding effortlessly:
1) Do your clothes suit the climate?
- This is the initial ten minutes before you pedal out when your body is warm and you are freshly stepping into the icy air. Naturally, your warm body will jitter and shiver with chills, but this is just the stage of acquainting the cold outdoors.
- Being overdressed is not a problem if the weight is not wobbling your feet. Alternatively, if you are sweating in those hefty clothes, sooner than later, the sweat will freeze and ice your skin from the inside.
- Remember that after the first few minutes of riding in the snow, you are bound to feel an outburst of iciness in your spine. So, layer up your clothes because if you are lost in the snow, it can be fatal too.
2) Win Your Mind First:
- This is the last ten minutes of endless brainstorming before you plunge onto your bike to tread the snowy wilderness. The snow might seem celestial, but you know better than it is as cold as Pluto in there!
- The initial breath of the chilly air might make your mind go unsteadily on whether or not to bike in the first place. Nevertheless, look at yourself and emphasize to your mind how dearly you want to ride the snow as well, as how self-accomplishing it will be.
- The secret to get a grip on your mind is to look at yourself, earnestly waiting to have the best adventure (the best routine) of your life. Tell your mind how prepared you are for the same. Crosscheck your emergency packs and plunge right in!
3) Perpetually improvise your expectations
As the terrain is transient, unlike a normal dry route biking in the summers, you might have to walk on the roads besides pushing the bike. The best way to look at it is that your bike is an RV too. So, don’t get disappointed, enjoy the beauty of snow and move and find an apt bike road.
Another important truth is that the roads might slow you down because of its squishing and slogging topography. Be careful to keep your eyes on the road whenever you are winter bike riding biking because it is a storehouse of the best challenges in the universe!
4) Do the Perfect Warm Up: Uphill ride
- When you are winter biking, you need a good warm up that keeps your body steadily heated throughout for an ice ride. If you choose to go on an uphill ride, you can effectively increase the pumping rate of your heart and warm your body such that you can have longer ice riding throughout the day.
- On the other hand, if you start with a downhill ride, unlike summer biking conditions, you will not be inspired, but frozen. When you begin with a long downhill ride, the initial metamorphosis of your body becomes aggravated, creating an unstable body heat.
5) Cold can erase your thirst
Another prominent thing about treading on the ice on your bike is that you will be rarely thirsty. Unlike summer days, your body does not dehydrate drastically and you can end up forgetting to drink. Added to the cold climate, this can create severe medical conditions with prolonged negligence of water.
Furthermore, when you are ready to drink, your water might be Ice and ice on cold might not be the most comfortable of biking moments. Nevertheless, the accomplishment and enjoyment of the ride are certainly inexplicable when you’re done with it. You don’t have to sacrifice your thirst just because of iciness. Buy a reliable Hot Water Flask and carry it with you whenever you go mountain biking.
6) Get studded tires NOW!
For an amateur mountain biker in the snow, the slipping and sliding of the tires might seem like a challenge. Mostly, the exceptional courage helps us master snow biking without knowing that there is a perfect option to resolve this. Hence, regardless of whether you are an amateur or a pro mountain biker, studded tires are necessary.
Studded tires are your personal insurance for keeping your bike fall-proof. Although it might not miraculously grow wings and hold you every time you crash, it can certainly keep your tires grip on the ice. As there are diverse options of studded tires, try to check one suitable for you to assemble on your own!
7) Test Ride A Day:
- The art of succeeding in the wild or ice biking is not just the passion or guts, but also the knowledge of your potential. An easy way to know your limits is by testing your limits. Go out in the wild for a day of ice biking with your friends and check out how it actually feels in practice.
- Testing your limits will equip you with the courage to overcome any challenge and your mind will be furthermore prepared for a session of Pro mountain biking. Do not bike into the wild on your own, until you are sure that all your demerits on the road are made up for. Check up hypothermia and avail the medicines you might need on the trip.
8) Above all, enjoy your wild plunge!
The secret to enjoy the Wild is to have faith on yourself You are in it for riding carefree on a white expanse of ice. Your mind knows the extent of happiness as well as risks involved. Realize that you are a master of the art and keep going ahead for feats never shared before!
Challenges of biking in the winter are endless. However, the truth is, when mountain biking in the snow, every moment is a new challenge of expecting the most unexpected!
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