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Tyre grip when it gets cold…

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  • December 8, 2014 at 11:07 pm #22837
    Shades

    When the temperature gets down to 5 degrees(ish) do some tyres lose grip, perhaps because the rubber is cold? I run Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres (32s) on my winter commuter/hybrid but they seem particularly ‘slippy’ in cold weather, even at 80psi. They’re great for puncture protection but were a complete nightmare on a cold commute this morning. I ‘hit the deck’ on a slightly frosty bit of cycle path (apologies to chap behind me who also went down avoiding me). Carried on cautiously feeling like I was on a skid pan only to have 2 chaps on road bikes steam past at 20mph. Might have been some ‘mind over matter’ going on with my brain telling me I was about to fall off when there wasn’t anything to worry about. Even though it isn’t freezing, tarmac does get that ‘greasy’ feel at 5 degrees.

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  • December 11, 2014 at 4:04 pm #822971
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    Streamliner

    I swear by GP4000s in when
    I swear by GP4000s in when it’s warm, but in the cold and wet of winter they feel pretty sketchy. Switching to GP 4seasons was a massive improvement. I’ve tried a few tyres and I always expected them to feel rubbish in the cold, until I tried these ones. I must admit I’ve not tried the GP4000s II but I imagine they are basically race tyres similar to their predecessor. Give the 4 seasons a try, the grip and feel in the winter months is by far the best I’ve tried.

    December 10, 2014 at 1:12 pm #822969
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    Anonymous

    I think once you’ve had an
    I think once you’ve had an off or come close you tend to tighten up with fear that it’s going to happen again when you encounter ice, damp, mud (all 3) etc.
    The act of tightening up changes your riding style meaning the bike feels even more weird e.g. light at the front end so you may increase your chances of coming off.

    December 10, 2014 at 12:30 pm #822967
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    JudgeDreddful

    Ah, so it’s probably more a
    Ah, so it’s probably more a case of being more careful and aware than needing to replace my tyres? Although that does make perfect sense, as it was bloody freezing on Saturday and the place I came off is in the shade pretty much all day in the winter so even though I came off at about 11AM and the sun had been up for a couple of hours it was still frozen there.

    At least it was 2 miles away from home after a nice long-ish (for me) ride rather than 2 miles from home on the way out….

    December 10, 2014 at 12:17 pm #822965
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    joemmo

    glad you’re ok. Roundabouts
    glad you’re ok. Roundabouts are dodgy, combination of fuel spills, tyre rubber and a tight bend. I had a similar incident, front wheel went out and just hit the deck before I could even react, can just remember scrambling to get out of the road onto the roundabout island. Drivers also stopped to check I was ok, which was nice.

    No tyre (apart from a spiked one) is going to do anything on black ice though. I had marathons for a while but I didn’t really find the tread made much difference to a slick tread, plus it tended to pick up more glass that worked its way into the tyre over time.

    Oh, and white road markings make things worse so dont try turning on a mini-roundabout ‘disc’. That’s asking for trouble.

    December 10, 2014 at 11:53 am #822963
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    JudgeDreddful

    This is all useful info for
    This is all useful info for me, thanks. I had my first spill and went down face first on black ice on Saturday morning whilst negotiating a mini roundabout. All drivers stopped and asked if I was ok, which was nice (although maybe its because I’m in genteel Cheltenham) It did shake me up slightly though. No real damage to me – other than hurt pride and a skinned knee – and a slightly bent brake lever on the bike.

    Ironically me and my equally noob mate had been chatting 10 minutes previously about how we had both been told by more experienced cyclists that the occasional spill was inevitable and how we weren’t looking forward to it happening.

    New tyres needed I think as I will happily sacrifice speed for grip. I’ve not got any speed anyway and so would much prefer more grip….

    December 10, 2014 at 10:45 am #822961
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    harman_mogul

    Yes, good riding technique is
    Yes, good riding technique is the best advice!

    But for what it’s worth, I have found the Schwalbe Marathon Supreme grips ever so well and is worth the extra money over the regular Marathon.

    December 10, 2014 at 10:41 am #822959
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    TallerThanTheRain

    From an unfortunate
    From an unfortunate spontaneous experiment I “conducted” in October I can conclude that gravity on a hairpin bend is greater than gravity on the flat. Also, tarmac is harder than hip.

    Conti GP4000 25mm at 90/95 psi – normally good, grippy tyres, but a bit of moisture on a “greasy” surface will challenge any compound.

    Of course, it was my own fault for riding my “Sunday best” bike on a Thursday…

    December 10, 2014 at 9:41 am #822957
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    joemmo

    Reggie Plate wrote:bikeylikey

    Reggie Plate wrote:
    bikeylikey wrote:
    When you say tyres ‘feel’ or ‘seem’ slippery, as a few have here, it would be helpful if you could be more specific – have you actually skidded, or is it more just an impression that you might?

    Further to my earlier post about how it felt riding on greasy roads. It’s hard to explain but it’s as though the front tyre is barely touching the road surface. Steering just doesn’t feel as precise. I have disc brakes and braking has also been a bit scary at times.

    usual rules apply – brake before the corner in a straight line, take a smooth line round the corner and stay off the front brake. A bit of back wheel sliding is controllable but losing the front wheel generally is not. You might also try getting your weight forward a bit more, put your weight on the outside pedal and just lift off the saddle slightly and move your hips forward. If it feels really sketchy then unclip the inside foot and reach forward with it ready to dab if it really goes wrong . As others have said, it’s not the time of year to explore the limits of your tyre grip.

    December 10, 2014 at 9:39 am #822955
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    Man of Lard

    @hampstead_bandit – you’re
    @hampstead_bandit – you’re describing understeer…

    From wiki:
    Simply put, oversteer is what occurs when a car turns (steers) by more than (over) the amount commanded by the driver. Conversely, understeer is what occurs when a car steers less than (under) the amount commanded by the driver.

    December 10, 2014 at 8:46 am #822953
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    hampstead_bandit

    @Reggie Plate
    my experience
    @Reggie Plate

    my experience of what you talk about is what I guess would be called “oversteer” in a car?

    Where you start to make a turn but don’t find traction and it feels like the car / bike wants to go in a straight line rather than turn in the direction you want.

    The rear wheel also seems to have less traction when climbing. I am also running disc brakes, but the tires seem to the limiting factor in these conditions

    December 9, 2014 at 8:42 pm #822951
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    Reg Molehusband

    bikeylikey wrote:When you say

    bikeylikey wrote:
    When you say tyres ‘feel’ or ‘seem’ slippery, as a few have here, it would be helpful if you could be more specific – have you actually skidded, or is it more just an impression that you might?

    Further to my earlier post about how it felt riding on greasy roads. It’s hard to explain but it’s as though the front tyre is barely touching the road surface. Steering just doesn’t feel as precise. I have disc brakes and braking has also been a bit scary at times.

    December 9, 2014 at 8:38 pm #822949
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    Reg Molehusband

    I know the feeling. I’ve got
    I know the feeling. I’ve got Continental Grand Sport Race 25c tyres fitted at the moment with very little tread to speak of. Just recently on an early morning ride, the front felt as if it was going to fold at any second. The road surface seemed to have a greasy layer on it. Not a good sensation. If I’m going to carry on riding through the winter I’ll have to try and squeeze on pair of more treaded 28c. I don’t think the bike will take anything bigger.

    December 9, 2014 at 8:07 pm #822947
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    amazon22

    gmehje1 wrote:Just csme back

    gmehje1 wrote:
    Just csme back from quick hours ride using these for first time:

    Vredestein Fortezza Senso Xtreme Weather

    £25 each from ribble.

    Thanks, I’ll give them a go – they’re actually £45 for two at the moment – just bought a pair – cheaper than than the physio I had to pay when I last fell off.

    December 9, 2014 at 7:41 pm #822945
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    johnnymcg259

    J90 wrote:Winter isn’t the

    J90 wrote:
    Winter isn’t the time to be going balls out.

    +1 =D>

    There are so many combo’s/different factors involved so whichever tyre you run on tarmac in the UK winter will cope ok most of the time…….but not all of the time.

    Just keep the pedalin’ smooth and steady, keep seated if poss on climbs and don’t bank the bike over too far when going through corners or kick the power on too much out of the corner.

    Good luck all!

    December 9, 2014 at 7:28 pm #822943
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    J90

    Winter isn’t the time to be
    Winter isn’t the time to be going balls out.

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