This so-called winter has not been bad for commuting by bike. I’ve only taken the bus on two days, and that was because my mountain bike was in the shop. I thought I’d share some thoughts.

I see winter riding in three big areas: weather, darkness, and traction.

Weather. It’s cold. Dress warmly. The question I get most often is “aren’t you cold?” I reply that I have four layers on and they seem shocked, like it never occurred to them to dress appropriately. Sometimes thermal long-johns under my pants. Warm socks. I bought a little hat that fits under my helmet to keep my ears and head warm, and sometimes, when it’s really bad, I wear a fleece hood. I have some awesome lobster gloves that keep my hands warm. The thing to remember is that your body temperature will increase as you ride.

Snow? Or, in our case, rain? Waterproof clothing is the bomb. I was gifted a pair of waterproof overpants and they are perfect. They don’t have any kind of lining, they go on quickly over my pants, and they keep my pants from getting soaked. It is not fun to be cold and wet, and it’s worse when your wet clothing starts to freeze. This is the voice of experience talking, here.

The only thing I haven’t figured out how to beat, yet, is the wind.

Darkness. It’s dark on the ride in, and it’s really dark on the ride home. The answer? Lights. This winter I’ve been running three different lights on the back, one of which is on my messenger bag. They all flash different patterns. On the front I have two lights, one which flashes and one which is steady. And my monkeylectric lights.

I’m sure I look ridiculous. But at least drivers can see me. It’s so frustrating to see people riding around in black coats with no lights. I can’t even see them. Lights are cheap, people. Get some.

Traction. In the fall I ordered a wicked pair of studded tires, so I’ve been itching to use them all winter. They are really great… when there is snow and ice on the road. They dig right in and I’m not worried about sliding or spinning out, even when braking.

But all we’ve been getting is rain. Monday morning the “big snow storm” was all slush. Running the studded tires on bare pavement is a pain in the arse. They are heavy and slow. Climbing hills will kill you. And the studs are starting to show signs of wear. So it’s worth spending the time swapping them out.

I’ve enjoyed riding this winter. How’ve you been doing?

When my partner and I go on vacations, we always take Zoe (pictured above). We also always want to get out on our bikes. This presents a problem, because it is always too hot to leave her in our car, and the other campers wouldn’t appreciate our leaving her in our tent. We know that she would bark the whole time. Our previous solution has been doggie day care. but this year, I finally convinced her that we should get a doggie bike basket. If you want to bring your canine companion with you, this is a good solution for a small dog. (Zoe weighs 8 pounds.)

Tanya had her handlebars shortened in order to fit her better, so the basket only fits on my bike. It really didn’t slow me down much at all and I kept up with her pretty well, especially surprising since she’s generally faster than me. Zoe was unsure about it at first, but seemed to settle in pretty quickly.

So far, I’ve only taken it on bike trails and side streets. I would be hesitant to bike on a busy and/or hilly road with it, because the extra weight on the bars takes some getting used to, and I felt like it slowed my reaction time.

A great bonus is that it seems impossible for another rider to pass without smiling and saying, “Aawwwwww,” with the inflection rising at the end.

This is so cool. Make your own blinking bike patch, jacket with glowing buttons, or turn signal cycling jacket.

Way beyond my capabilities, but way cool.

Some very nice handlebar bags are now available from Velo-Orange.

I saw an ad in the Metroland today that this weekend is Steiner’s Sports Annual Bicycle Tent Sale. At the Glenmont location only. Lots of stuff is on sale. Details here.

I can’t believe nobody has bought this yet. It’s been up for weeks.

This is my new bike. It’s a Trek Allant. I got it from Downtube in Albany. I’ve been riding it to work and loving it. I sit upright, instead of all hunched over. It’s smooth and agile, nimble, unlike my beastly mountain bike. As you can see, it’s got fenders and a rack. I had mixed feelings about the grips. They look weird to me. But they’re really comfortable. They provide a lot of support, and cushion my hands when I hit a pothole. Which I try not to do, but I mean, it’s Albany, right? My only “complaint” with the bike is that if I have to stand up to pedal up some hill, the handle bars are not really angled for that and it’s hard to keep it in a straight line. Fortunately, it’s easier to just downshift and slide up the hill.

Here’s my “vision.” The ABC website puts some useful content up there. Things like “how to ride safely” and “how to keep your bike from being stolen” and “how to buy a new bike.” Then they make up little cards and tags bike, like this.

On the last Critical Mass, I rode a bit with Rohan, who runs the ABC website. He agreed that they really need some content up there and offered to sign me up. I agreed. I haven’t heard anything. But seriously people. You can’t spend all your time and energy bitching at the government because they won’t make you a dedicated bike lane. You have to help people have fun riding their bikes.

Really digging these handmade cycling caps. (Via Urban Velo)

Today’s Link of the Day has to be this one, with pictures of bikes made in Oregon. One of them has a flask.

For those of you without Xtracycles, BikeTrailerShop.com is running some deals on their trailers until March 22nd. Their trailers are single-wheeled for agility. They have two models for cargo hauling, and one model for panniers. Read more here.

This? Looks awesome. Via BikeHacks.

Pardon me while I dork it up a bit…

BikeHacks has a bit about the Fibre Flare, which looks like a light saber for your bike.

My new favorite blog, via Cyclelicious: Bikes For The Rest Of Us.

A break light that flashes when you slow down, and is not wired to your bike? Yep. (Via Cyclelicious)

And if that’s not enough of an eye-sore, how about making your WHOLE BIKE reflective? (Via Commute By Bike)

From the always delightful Yehuda Moon & The Kickstand Cyclery:

12 sexy custom vintage bikes to drool over during the new year. My bike DevilWing was selected as Miss March. You know you want it!

http://www.cafepress.com/ratrodbikes.345663037

I’ve combined my love of bicycles with many things, but who’d have thought I could combine it with my 95-year-old-man fashion sense? But now my dream has come true:

That’s right, kids. It’s a bicycle bow tie from the fine folks at Beau Ties Ltd of Vermont. Perfect for that special someone who is … well … just me, I guess. And yes, you can also get it as a necktie, if you’re a wimp.

Super stylish and super expensive: the Rapha Tween Softshell

(Thanks, Paul)

Today’s “neato” link is this one, from BikeHacks. It demonstrates how to recycle an old peanut butter jar and turn it into a waterproof, crushproof saddlebag.

This looks super cool (and classy too): Bike Burrito