I have discovered the coveted secret of winter bicycle commuting. I have discovered two pieces of gear, which, used properly, keep me comfortable from about 30 degrees Fahrenheit, all the way down to 0 degrees. I almost didn’t even write about this, considering the uber secret nature of this information. But no one is talking about these incredible pieces of technology, so I have decided to share my discovery with my readers. You won’t find this information anywhere else.

So, what are these two items, which together form the holy grail of comfortable winter bicycle commuting? Brace yourself, and I’ll tell you: a windbreaker and a sweater. Yes, really.

For some time, I experimented with different layering schemes. Eventually I found this windbreaker + sweater combination, but I didn’t realize exactly what I’d stumbled on. I wore this combination for some commutes in the 20s. Then it got colder, in the teens. I thought “surely, I need to add another sweater.” I wore an extra one, and I was too hot. Once temperatures reached down into the single-digits, I again thought I needed two sweaters. Still too hot!

Today, I once again strayed from the formula. It was 30 degrees during my commute this morning, and I thought “surely, if a sweater is enough in single-digit temperatures, it will be too warm now.” I didn’t wear the sweater. As you might have guessed by now … I was cold.

Now that I think things through more carefully, I realize that the same gear could extend to a higher temperature range, as well. Just the jacket, without a sweater, should be good from about 35 to 55. A sweater alone should get me up into the 60s. Above that, there’s no need for either a windbreaker OR a sweater.

Therefore, I conclude that I can go from 0-60 in a sweater and a windbreaker.

Ray, of the Bike Noob blog, posted a question about how to improve at climbing. I don’t consider myself an expert on the topic, or even a particularly good climber, but I have done a whole lot of climbing, especially since we moved to Pennsylvania.

I definitely agree with the comments on that post: you need to practice climbing hills to get better at riding them. Furthermore, I find that each hill becomes less daunting as I become more familiar with it and know what to expect. The first time I climb a hill is usually the worst.

Here are some other lessons I’ve learned; your mileage my vary, of course.

1. Pace yourself. This can be hard to do if you don’t know how long a hill is, but try to save energy in case you need it later in the climb. Maybe you’re just getting started, and it gets steeper toward the top. You never know. I used to worry about trying to take as much momentum as possible into a climb, but I’ve found it’s better to save that energy for later in the climb.
2. Spin in an easy gear. Keeping a high cadence in a low gear is easier and I’ve found I can climb for miles this way without stopping. Some cyclists act like there’s some shame in using the granny gear, but that’s just ridiculous. That’s what it’s there for!
3. Be patient. Climbing a long hill takes time. Try to settle into a groove. You might even enjoy it! When necessary, I will sometimes stop during a climb. But rather than walk, I will stop long enough to catch my breath and then continue climbing on the bike. I don’t feel like I’ve “conquered” a hill until I have done it without stopping, but stopping doesn’t mean you have to walk.
4. Reward yourself. Whether this means enjoying the view from the top, relishing the speedy descent, contemplating what you’ve just accomplished, or just having a snack, it’ll help you feel better and make the climb seem more worthwhile.
5. Ride lots of hills. The more you do it, the better you become and the more fun you’ll have.

This is what works for me. Some people are great at “power climbing,” mashing up hills in a higher gear. This may be a viable option, depending on the hills, you, and your bike. I’ve learned that trying to climb this way on my Long Haul Trucker is not very effective, so I don’t do it very often, so I really can’t help you there.

What is your climbing technique?

Today’s commute was particularly fun. The past few commutes had been a little routine and not boring exactly, but a bit less invigorating. But something happened this morning that made things fun — there was more traffic. Yes, incredibly, having more traffic improved my ride this morning.

For one thing, I figured out a really cool trick that I’ve been working on perfecting, but sometimes it’s hard to find the right opportunity to practice it. The trick I figured out is a way to accelerate much faster from a stop. Yesterday, I my rides to work and home were almost nonstop. I had to stop a few times this morning and got to practice the trick.

Maybe it seems obvious, but it wasn’t to me — here’s the trick. You need clipless pedals. When you stop, keep one foot clipped in (I use my left). When you are ready to go, start pedaling and clip in with your right foot as quickly as possible. When your right foot reaches the bottom of the pedal stroke, stand up, lean forward, and pull your right foot up and forward very quickly. If you’re in the right gear (use a higher one than you normally would when stopping), you’ll shoot forward — I can reach 10 mph almost immediately. You should be pedaling on the upstroke in general anyway, but I’ve found that I can get a lot more acceleration by doing the whole leaning forward and pulling, than by pushing down on the pedals. Does anyone else do this?

I saw a lot of cyclists this morning, and blew right by all of them. I was going to say hi, but I realized that they had headphones on (but no helmets, of course), so I just flew by. This is sort of a pet peeve of mine — if you’re riding, you need to be in touch with the world around you, not engrossed in music and off in another world.

Anyway, I rode harder than usual this morning, but it was just so much fun! I got to work in only 12 minutes. I was going to go slow and try not to sweat too much, but instead I had a few extra minutes to cool down, and I arrived at work with a goofy grin on my face. That’s a tradeoff I’m willing to make.