Ultimate Wet Weather Bike?

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Yep, I’m with you on the alloy forks! I too used to commute.

Single speed is a good idea for short distance stuff, today I was in the hills and enjoyed having a granny ring

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Always had a hack for winter riding .BITD I rode an old Raleigh Triathlon . £50 back in about 2000! As parts wore out I found other second hand bits with wear left or cast offs from my best bike.
My then commute was 14 miles each way all year round . Full mudguards {I added flaps for winter} ,14 speed,good tyres . Home made front light.
Cleaned it every time I got home with a fresh brew on the go .

Raleigh by rebalrid, on Flickr

I still use knee length spats for winter riding . The ones I have afford full top cover of your shoes and have a full length zip at the back .

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I like those blue mudguards!

A hack bike it is for me too. Essentially it's a sacrificial lamb. I don't bother with mudguards though as the water around here tends to run off the steep hills quick enough and gather as giant pools of 6+ inch flood water.

Bad weather bike:-
Full guards, floor length mudflap on the front, carbon fork, ally frame, everything slathered in grease/copper slip on assembly, hubs stripped and packed with grease before use, boggo 9 or 10 speed kit with a dinky double, maybe 38/48 (105 and ultegra on mine right now) inline gaiters on the gear cables, decent pads (eagle claw II work better than shimano stock, but wear out quicker), 28mm tyres. If i had the money, and needed a new frame, i'd get discs, but this frame predates road discs.

Winter bike:-
No guards (because it's well below zero), studded tyres in 35-40mm size, basically a cross bike prepared in the same way as a bad weather bike.

Hardcore winter bike:-
MTB, rigid forks, studded tyres, cheap kit, because you ARE going to hit the deck at some point......

Just converted my Holdsworth Mistral from a summer 'gravel grinder' into my winter runabout and wet weather training bike...

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Spy photos ..... the MOD won't like that

You can spend years waiting for an aircraft carrier...then two come along at once... :roll: :facepalm:

Splatter Paint":2s6fvqer said:

I saw one pillock on

Click to expand...

It might be his only bike.

Wind and rain might not bother him.

He might have been looking forward to that ride all week.

He was probably having fun and, do you know what, that's what counts

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Good options there chaps.

@ Jonny69 When I see people with carbon wheels that cost more than my bike(s) being used in winter I simply wonder why they don’t get a second bike. On that day it was really, really windy deep
section wheels must be a pain to ride. At least he was out though.

SP