First snowy commute of the season

I headed out for work on my fixed gear Surly Cross Check this morning. It had started snowing a few minutes before I left the house. The forecast called for a slight chance for flurries. I have yet to put my studded tires on this season. I rounded the corner and headed uphill. I start my day with a 1.5 mile climb. The street around the corner was covered with snow, unlike the one you see above. Why the difference, it's a mystery. Regardless, I learned very quickly my summer tires were not going to get me up the hill. The back tire started to spin with every down stroke on the pedals. I had to turn around. I switched out bikes and headed back out on the Blue Truck (Xtracycle). It has 2" wide tires. I thought it would give me a better chance of having traction on the hills. It also started to spin out on the steepest ramps of the hill. I stopped and let about 30 lbs. of pressure out of the rear tire. That did the trick.
I was able to enjoy the rest of the ride in. I consider todays type of snow some of the hardest to ride in. The temp was right around freezing. The snow at this temperature has a real high moisture content and makes the snow very greasy. It creates some of the slickest conditions I'll encounter on bike. Luckily I don't have much traffic on my morning route.

Looking forward to more snow. I hope we have a snowy winter!!

After work I decided to come straight home. The legs haven't been feeling as good this month. I don't seem to be able to do the high miles I did last month. I'll rest them a few more days and start increasing the miles again soon.

Wednesday: 20 mi
Thursday: 39 mi
Friday: 15 mi
November: 212 mi
2007: 6,868 mi