Winter Cycling in Ohio

As Cleveland begins to enter the typical season of wacky winter wonderousness usually attributed to bitter winds, driving snow, sleet and ice, short days (I already miss the sunshine) and the arduous act of preparing oneself to go outside and face the weather many of us are packing up our more mild weather goods. From kayaks to lawnmowers, wind surf boards to kites, many of our "toys" are prepared for the long winter hiatus. Being a Clevelander I won't go into how even our grills never really get put away, instead I am going to concentrate on another "summer sport", cycling.

For many cycling is more then just a leisure activity, it is a means of responsible and healthy conveyance and many Clevelanders actively enjoy it. Personally I love my new bike and actually taking the time and effort to do a little bit of research and investing in a bike that was by far more comfortable (and a touch more expensive) then my Big Box Brand generic ride keeps me interested. While I will actively bemoan the fact that my new job does not currently provide facilities for those that would like to commute into work via bicycle I like to think that someday (with enough prodding) that amenities will be created.

I am sure that many would argue that expecting to ride a bicycle into work is fine for the summer, but, as the previous paragraphs suggest, what about the winter? Well my friends, there are quite a few people that enjoy their bikes in the winter too. Enough that the Ohio City Bike Co-op held a seminar on that very topic. The Winter Riding Seminar included tips regarding proper attire (quite a big portion of staying warm in the winter), cycle maintenance, and proper equipment. If anything it is an easy read and should at least make you realize that winter cycling isn't really that difficult or intimidating.

Of course there are many such places to find good tips about winter riding. Just Google search will bring up a plethora of tips and ideas. I suppose though, the most difficult portion of bike riding, bridges the seasons. By that I mean the legalities and laws of riding a cycle on a public way.

Recently Ohio updated it's bicycle safety laws with the passage of HB 389 which actually became effective in September of this year. While not perfect there are some noted improvements and anyone who is going to be out on a bike on a public road should do their best to educate themselves on the proper way to operate their vehicle. I suppose I could go into an entire rant on how bikes ARE considered vehicles and SHOULD be allowed safe operating space and should be respected but I don't think I could go down that line of thought without also pointing out that a lot of cyclists don't follow the laws themselves and actually could be aggravating the aggressive behavior of many drivers out there. Some of you jerks know who I am talking about.

Regardless, it would behoove you to check out some of the nice resources I went through all the trouble to collect for you. Besides, a lot of the people involved in said resources are pretty nice and fun to talk to anyway.

Ohio Bicycle Federation
Cleveland Bikes
Ohio Revised Code
Chapter 45 XLV (Traffic Laws)
Chapter 45.11 (Rules of the Road)
Chapter 45.13 (Equipment Rules)

-Image taken from Crash Course another site offering winter riding tips.