Thursday, January 13, 2011

Zip Ties vs Snowpocalypse?

It's all ice and snow for the United States these days. Last night on the news they reported that every state except Florida has snow! So what is a cyclist to do when the frost was a surprise and studded tires are way expensive? Zip ties!!!!


Dutch Bike Company put up a post last November about this DIY solution to slipping and sliding through a winter wonderland. Makes me want to take the Bat up to Tahoe and give it a try!

Has anybody out there tried this? Did it work for you?
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15 comments:

  1. James TJanuary 13, 2011 at 10:46 AM

    I tried it, and it worked great...even better than I expected. See a picture and read more here:

    http://bicycledesign.net/2011/01/diy-snow-tires/

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  2. AnonymousJanuary 13, 2011 at 12:43 PM

    I haven't tried this but definitely will on our next snowfall.

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  3. DeliverymanJanuary 13, 2011 at 2:12 PM

    Can't see why it wouldn't work! My Worksman has good tires,and am able to still deliver pizza ,in the snow!

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  4. AnonymousJanuary 13, 2011 at 4:06 PM

    I guess you cant apply your brakes with these applied, unless you have disc of course.

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  5. jjfantasticJanuary 13, 2011 at 4:42 PM

    yeah, how *does* it work with non-disc brakes?

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  6. AnonymousJanuary 13, 2011 at 6:21 PM

    Disc brakes, coaster brakes, roller brakes, or fixed.

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  7. everettJanuary 13, 2011 at 8:42 PM

    I'm curious about the brakes thing too. Do you only do one wheel? If so, which one?

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  8. Adrienne JohnsonJanuary 13, 2011 at 11:12 PM

    I am not the authority on this particular issue, but I think it is safe to say this will not work with any brake system that requires the squeezing of the wheel to work. But v-brakes and the like aren't that great in snow, anyway. At least that is what has been told to me.

    Should this be an issue, I suppose you could just fall into a snow bank to stop.

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  9. Courtney HiltonJanuary 14, 2011 at 5:20 AM

    From a year round commuter in the mid-west I can say that those don't work. I have a couple friends that use small chain in the same method but it still only kind of works. I use innova studded tires on one bike for days when there is actual freezing rain and ice accumulation. Any other time any mountain bike/cross tire works just fine. Yes studded tire are expensive but hospital visits are more.

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  10. l' homme au veloJanuary 14, 2011 at 2:03 PM

    I have seen this idea posted on a French Cycling Web site and on it's Facebook page.

    http://www.lecyclo.com

    It wont work with Rim Brakes only on Roller or Hub Brakes as on Dutch Bikes. It is a cheap idea to try out when it is not to bad but it would not work out in the really heavy icy Snow I do not think.

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  11. James TJanuary 14, 2011 at 2:07 PM

    I did it on just the rear wheel and zip-tied my brake straddle cable to the frame. The front brake was enough for riding in the snow, but I did have to be careful not to let the front wheel slide out in a corner.

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  12. AnonymousJanuary 14, 2011 at 8:35 PM

    Please don't try this if you have rim brakes (i.e. any type of brakes that use brake pad friction on the rim to stop the bike - V-brakes, cantilever, center pull, or side pull - i.e. most of the bikes in north america). As many people have already pointed out, rim brakes won't work with this, and disengaging your brakes for a little more traction is an unsafe option.

    If you're only doing one wheel, do the front wheel. If your front wheel slips, you're down, while if your back wheel slips, you can often keep pedaling and recover thanks to angular momentum.

    I prefer studded tires myself. If they are too expensive, you can make your own by with wood screws and nubby tires plus an extra inner tube to line it. It takes between 1 & 2 hours to make one. Even just having one on the front makes a huge difference.

    This is my tenth winter riding in Edmonton, Canada.

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  13. AnonymousJanuary 15, 2011 at 3:12 AM

    I don’t think this is a good idea. After the winter the snow will melt and torn zip ties will be lying everywhere.

    Nico

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  14. UnknownJanuary 15, 2011 at 3:13 PM

    i would have never thought of that - good idea

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  15. the_big_smileFebruary 16, 2011 at 1:08 PM

    I tried something simillar back in the 70'ties.
    I had a thin rope, wich didn't make it too long.
    The traction gets really good, but you can't use any type of rim brake.

    I prefer studded tires on both of my bikes.
    I have a Yuba Mundo and a randoneur-type bike both on studded tires.
    Only studded tires will give you traction on ice!
    In the snow the zip-ties will work as good as any nobby tire.

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