It snowed yesterday in Seattle – and pretty suddenly. I was eating breakfast at Roxy’s when it started and before I could get home I had to park my car in Wallingford and walk the rest of the way home. Capitol Hill was a complete mess. The walk was nice – I found $20 in the snow, helped 2 little old ladies move their cars out of traffic, and watched several dozen cars spin out at the bottom of the hill. Time to strap on the studded tires and go for a bike ride!
Funny story – I have studded tires for my bike, but not my car. Go figure.
The Nokian W295′s are not the biggest volume 29er tire – in fact at 2.1 inches from knob to knob, it’s one of the more narrow tires I have. However, in the snow and ice, these things really are pretty great. I sorta wish they offered these in a 2.4 inch for more float (when the weather goes to hell my instinct is to run for tires with greater surface area) but truthfully I can’t complain. After you drop the PSI to around 25, the grip and traction is a truckload of fun. I’ve been pedalling around Cap Hill for the past two days and haven’t eaten it once. Climbs, corners, and descents are all handled with aplomb .
(also – small secret. See the dynamo hub there? Getting there – slowly but surely.)
Onward.
I need to borrow those tires for that long log-ride at Duthie.
We can probably come to an arrangement.