I bundle up and keep riding, but switch to my regular bike when it starts to freeze because battery.
I’m debating turning my bicycle commute into a transit commute, as the latter is a lot faster during the winter, and it’s a lot less fun to bike in cold and snowy/rainy conditions.
I’m going to try winterizing my bike and upgrade my riding gear to cope better with cold climate conditions, and try riding a bit. If it doesn’t work out, then nevermind, I can just ride transit for a few months until the snow starts melting.
I put my electric unicycle away, after making sure it’s charged to ~40-60%, and take the bus more frequently. A single contact point on a rather smooth basic tire doesn’t mix well with ice.
I know that there are people who still ride in winter, but it’s just not a risk I’m willing to take. I’ve looked for a studded and/or winter tire before, but unfortunately never ended up finding anything.
I know someone who uses a studded tire on their EUC, so they definitely exist now.
That said, yeah, winter is risky. The self balancing relies on traction, and while it can deal with small slips, like the tire shifting in gravel, any instance where grip is lost for more than a couple centimeters is irrecoverable.
I need to run my ebike battery down to ~50% soon myself. You bring your battery inside?
I live in an apartment, inside is my only option. But as I understand it, Li-Ion batteries have a liquid electrolyte that you don’t want to let freeze to avoid damaging them.
Yep, never let your battery freeze
I stop riding my eskates entirely, I might consider using one in the cold if I had a LaCroix or FluxMotion, but with my longboards, even a little snow makes em unrideable.
So I use my normal, unpowered, bicycle.
It doesn’t, but I’m cheating. I live in Imperial Beach, California. We have two seasons. Warm Spring for about 8 months, and cool autumn for the other four.
Pile on more layers of clothing. If things are really bad then I just bail to public transit
Some trains are cancelled because drivers are sick :(
I stop using my powered bike and switch over to my trusty old steel hybrid.
Also, I bundle up.
It’s only really affected my recreational, long-distance bike rides. I don’t enjoy below freezing temps, especially with 50km/h winds, or when it gets dark as early as it does.
But errands are still being done by bike, and if anything, the cold has made me more efficient by bundling multiple errands into one outing or day.
Admittedly, I don’t mind running errands every day during the summer months.
When i was riding e-scooters more often, I would stop riding them when it was colder than -10C or when salt was dropped on the ground.
An e-scooter is waiting for positive temperatures. But my e-bike is still in use.
I’ll see if it does. I just got my first ebike but don’t imagine I’ll put it away for any battery issues. I live in the city, where ambient heat and plows result in snow only lasting for a few hours. It’s probably healthy to bundle up either way, and if I’m going a longer distance or downtown I’d be taking the train or bus.
Try to keep your battery from freezing: Bring it in at night at least if temperatures get to freezing temps.
