6/26/23 6:18 PM

Forgot how bloody enjoyable a cooling summer rain can be. Did 70mi on Saturday and most of it was in rain coming down decently hard. Ambient temps were low 80s (already past my comfort level) but with the rain it was absolutely perfect and I never got hot. It was really just a glorious ride and I was loving every second. Maybe one of my best rides ever.

6/27/23 7:40 AM

I think us big-uns benefit from the extra cooling. I remember one Aug yearly NJ 180 miler was 5 hours of rain. I was the clyde of the group, one of the leanest guy Saged out. I was fine with it. Other years so hot you got swimming pool chest from fluids.

The only bad part was all the wet washed crap into piles you couldn't see with wet glasses and was banner flat numbers for that year. No one got less than 2.

6/27/23 10:41 AM

Ugh! No way! If I get rained on during a ride, it's a mistake and I never do it voluntarily.

It's happened to me twice in recent years:

A few years back at the Muddy Onion gravel event in VT, we had planned to do the shorter route due to the risk of rain later, and didn't bring rain gear. When we got to the point where the decision had to be made whether to extend the ride or not, we allowed ourselves to be talked into it. We got about halfway through the extended part of the course when the rain started and it poured the rest of the ride. One of our group hit a huge tire rut and crashed, getting seriously concussed. We stood around in the freezing rain for the better part of an hour until an ambulance carted him away, then had to do a 3-mile descent which left us borderline hypothermic.It was a bone-chilling, drivetrain-destroying nightmare that I will never repeat! If we had stuck to our original plan, we would have been almost back before the rain started.

The most recent wet event was the descent of Krank the Kanc back in May. I spent too much time hanging out and eating at the top before heading down. Fortunately, the rain was light enough that neither the road nor I got soaked and I dressed heavily enough after reaching the top of the climb that I stayed warm. No damage to the bike this time, either. I consider this one as "dodging a bullet". Lesson learned.

6/27/23 10:48 AM

Well, a gravel ride in the rain sounds like a completely different animal. I wasn't getting covered in mud last weekend. Sure there was some grit on the bike when it dried off but overall I was pretty clean.

6/27/23 11:05 AM

That reminds me of a Crank the Kanc (the actual event) where I did not dodge the bullet. It was cold and pouring rain at the bottom, turned to snow on the way up, so they shortened the course by eliminating the 5 mile climb to the top. I had aerobars and early on I thought my hands would fall off, then they turned numb or something. I was absolutely soaked at the end, and there was snow on my bars. Most people had arranged car rides down, but not me and Mike. We just turned the bikes around and headed down. I had to pull over after a couple hundred yards and take my glasses off because they were iced up. I am basically blind without them. At the bottom I was freezing and shivering. You got free pasta at Firehouse 21 (or whatever that place is) and I could barely eat because my hands were still shaking.

Then there was the time I rode the Death Ride in the Sierra Nevadas at about 85 F and then a couple miles before the end a hellacious wind and rain/hail storm ripped through and I got hypothermic, again still shivering when I got back to my hotel in Tahoe.

And oh haha there was the time I rode a 2man tt in pouring rain, it was not cold but you could not see, and while in front I ride right into a water-filled pothole at about 28 mph - didn’t flat but dented a rim - thump thump thump. When we figured out I could ride we just kept going, and maybe got 2d I think.

6/27/23 11:27 AM

Yeah, cold rain is horrible.

Many years ago I did an out and back 3hr training ride with a friend the week after Thanksgiving. Sky opened up literally as we were turning around, so at the farthest point from home. Probably 36 degree (F) ambient.....that was a brutal ride back...took us 2.5hrs instead of 1.5. Could barely move, when I got in the lukewarm shower my skin turned to fire as the capillaries all opened up. Couldn't fully straighten my hands the rest of the day.

That remains as one of my top three worst rides of all time. Can't remember what the other 2 were

6/27/23 1:16 PM

Got that near ice rain once on MC. We parked North end of Blue-ridge parkway, took bikes outta the back of the pickup. Went short ride came back to hotel.

Got out early next morning and rode south bunch of hours. Started to rain so we popped off onto 460 in valley to the west to shoot back north in a straight fast line. It was so cold and raining so hard, yikes.

All i could see was blurry red tail lights of the vehicles in front of me and a sheet of grey wet wall of water. I just tried to keep that in the distance so as not to splash into the back of anything.

My friend laid down behind a mini fairing [I had none] and just left me for dead. Caught back up like an hour later. I was shivering for hours...

6/27/23 1:24 PM

I love riding in the rain, with certain provisos...

I would not do it competitively (but I've never been competitive).

Since the early 2000s, nearly all of my bikes have been equipped with fenders and lights.

I always carry a rain cape.

Unless it's incredibly blustery, the cape and fenders are the best possible solution to keeping (reasonably) dry and keeping the bike (reasonably) clean.

Another reason for fenders, of course, is that given by BSNYC, and having recently returned from a trip to that fine city, I can attest: "Because it's probably urine."

6/27/23 3:44 PM

Fenders are great, but you still gotta lube the chain. OK, that takes about 3 minutes, but I’m pretty lazy. Though I just ordered some Dumonde Tech, which some consider very durable.

6/27/23 5:00 PM

"Dumonde Tech"

Blue summer, yellow winter. Probably about 9ish years now.

I clean chain with WD-40 and rag, let that flash off overnight, rag wipe and then the Dumonde Tech.

If you drive to/for the ride, suggest putting it on outside the car before you ride after getting to ride start. It will stink up your car pretty bad otherwise.

6/28/23 5:50 AM

Dan, we were at the actual Crank the Kanc event last month.

Andy, properly equipped as you are, I can see how riding in the rain can be a decent experience, though I still prefer to avoid it. I like riding off-road in snow, but again, it's all about being properly equipped.

6/28/23 5:57 AM

Sorry, I forgot it was in May, thinking it was later in the year. Great event.

6/28/23 6:40 AM

Scattered downpours forecast, but I thought odds looked good for my short commute so I rode in - halfway the skies opened and it poured - I had fenders, lights and was carryng a rain jacket, but still got soaked....Main prioblem was I didn't pick up a planned breakfast sandwich....

6/28/23 6:53 AM

All joking aside, the loss of a breakfast sammich is fairly tragic. Love them.

6/28/23 9:31 AM

The equipment makes it possible; riding on wet pavement makes it worthwhile.

I suspect that the rain "fills" tiny gaps in the pavement. Riding on relatively new pavement in the rain is a heavenly experience in my book. It's quieter, it feels faster, and there's typically less traffic.

Just a nice experience, in my view. And even better, now that (post cataract surgery) I have distance vision, so I can just plop on anything in the way of glasses that keeps water out of my eyes while riding!

6/28/23 12:24 PM

Never really "enjoy" riding in the rain but had a memorable experience several years ago when we got caught in a shower on new asphalt. It rained hard enough that there was a sheet of water on the road (fresh asphalt makes the water stay on top) and then the sun came out and we were riding on a mirror. You could see our bikes on the surface of the water like we were riding on metalized glass. Only time in my many decades of riding that I've ever seen this.

6/28/23 4:52 PM

Andy, I guess we'll have to take this as a case of "different strokes". If you enjoy it, more power to you! Stay safe out there!

That said, I can't think of a single good reason for me to voluntarily ride in the rain, but there are plenty of reasons not to:

- The water and the grit it carries damages the drivetrain, rims, saddle shorts/bibs, leather shoes, exposed cable and brake pads. If it gets into bearings, it will trash them, too.

- Riding in wet shorts is uncomfortable and can create skin issues.

- Reduced visibility makes all types of mishaps more likely,

- Reduced traction makes crashes more likely.

I'm sure I missed a few things, but I've made my point.

6/28/23 5:07 PM

I don't care for it simply from a visual acuity standpoint. The wet and cold don't bother me much.

But with rim brakes, yuk. Too much work cleaning and eating up rims, pass.

6/29/23 5:25 PM

Yup...all my road bikes have them. Come to think of it, I forgot to include reduced brake efficiency in my list above, which is a pretty major omission. Shame on me. ;-)