I would definitely opt for lower PISI before using winter / commuter tires (if they have any tread at all). Nothing more annoying than the buzz of a tread pattern on a roller drum or wheel-on trainer.
Iād say grit your teeth and stick with it. It is a great time to get some long miles in. The roads will be much quieter . Donāt worry about it till it happens (re mechanical), Sort your bike out take plenty of spares and use tyres that you can get on and off easily. Iām speaking from experience here, having punctured on a freezing day , new tyres, and cold hands meant I was stuck 20 miles from home. Also if youāve got spare time you can do TR sessions if its wet and just ride out when dry.
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I would recommend taking co2 in winter. I punctured in a storm at the start of the year. Could barely get the tyre onto the rim hands were so cold. But co2 saved me from standing around any longer. Survived to tell the tale 
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This. A tubeless setup, tyre worms + a tool, plus a CO2 canister will get you home after all but the worst puncture (i.e. massive sidewall tear). Yes, youāll need to sort out sealant etc when you get home, but you can do that in the comfort of your own home in the warm.
I do also tend to do fairly circular loops if I know thereās no cavalry available to call in.
Actually, come to think of it, Iāve had to do that twice this year (as often as the 3 years before combined); once with a chain drop that got completely stuck, and I knew Iād badly damage the paint if I pulled/forced it out rather than removing the cranks, and once with a stem that worked loose after I adjusted spacers the night before (and left my multitool on the workbench table 
).
Aye - also 3 tyre levers: 2 to use and 1 as a spare as they often snap. CO2 in winter, anything which minimises time by the side of the road is worth its weight in gold.
Itās a distance restriction here. In fairness, Cycling Ireland hasnāt joined other organisations looking for exemptions, which Iām quite pleased about. The arguments about cycling apply to many sports and activities, and the point of our restrictions is to limit movements. A cyclist maybe no harm, as a hill walker maybe no harm, just as a gun club member maybe no harm, but then it all multiplies up. If they gave every apparently āsafeā activity an exemption, thereād be no point of the restrictions in the first place. Anyway, thatās just my view, everyone is responsible for their own actions.
Saturday looking like an alright day in the scheme of things. I have a route planned, but Iām probably less enthused by loops than the turbo to be honest. Itās the social aspect of the group spin I miss.
Also, the previous lockdown, the people driving cars turned into absolute nutters, despite more pedestrians and cyclists (largely families) exercising within their distance restrictions. Thatās playing on my mind more than the thoughts of a crash regarding going into A&E.
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I totally understand that argument, and Iām honestly not looking for a dispute, but Iām not sure itās logical; itās the old slippery slope fallacy. That argument seems to assume that, if allowed, the numbers of cyclists on the road will increase vastly from where it stands now, and/or that they will congregate in groups. Iām not sure thatās true (at all).
If it is individuals/households, Iām not sure how a distance restriction reduces risk, given that there is no additional mixing, and they are in the open air, away from people. Ok, there is the possible argument that longer rides are more likely to result in accidents, though I think that is also flawed and based on misused statistics.
Anyway, as you note, to each their own, and Iād reiterate Iām not looking to argue.
Actually, though I did notice the odd Lewis Hamilton wannabe last lockdown, the roads were generally quieter than I can remember them being for 20 years, and that at least was a pleasure. How many more people would cycle if the amount of traffic was down by 50-60% (as was the rough figure given last time)?
It sounds like you might have a plan, but what is its objective, your goal, event date, duration, etc? Do you have an indoor trainer, Smart or not?
The considerations about exercise and distance are complex and multi-factorial. We can control to an extent our own actions, but not the actions of others.
I applied some very basic risk/benefit analysis to long rides during the previous lockdown, and I could not justify the potential risks.
Again, not wanting to stir up a hornets nest, do we want to be part of the problem or part of the solution?
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This isnāt a hostile response - itās hard to convey tone in a short written post - but I think thatās a false dichotomy. Without suggesting we all go out and ride imperial centuries, I stand by my point earlier that I genuinely struggle to see how a 2-3 hour solo ride (which I can easily do without ever being more than 20k from home) makes the national coronavirus situation any worse.
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as already said, tyre pressure can make quite a difference. You can also try a dedicated trainer tyre as those have more rolling resistance and can help - I use 2 of those on my summer bike on the rollers all winter. Other advantage is they just wont wearā¦
tbh, Iāve come to the conclusion no point getting too worked up by the actions of others, except for anti-maskers and/or people in my space on my going out out to the shop!
However, I will say that I live in the mountains, and when there werenāt the same restrictions, the local village and shop were overrun with people - cyclists, hill walkers, day trippers etc. It made it difficult, particularly for the vulnerable, to have any sense of normality.
The argument may be that people are outside and sticking to that aspect of ārulesā, but it seemed that inevitably they also didnāt want to bring the picnic, or not have the coffee stop. To the degree that they had to extra parking enforcement, extra car parks open, and ultimately (to enforce restrictions) close car parks and and remove access!
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Fair enough and quite sensible; I certainly wonāt be travelling anywhere special, and would only stop for emergency supplies (at a garage or similar) if I had to. I think going from and returning to your own home, making sure you have thought through the route and that you are adequately prepared (basic tools, food, hydration) is the key to being responsible (and is imo common sense anyway).
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I agree that we are unlikely to catch or transmit COVID through long rides. But for each of us the balance of risk is different. How we each plan and account for every eventuality will be different depending on our circumstance, and influence how we balance that risk.
Yeah I carry park tool steel cored ones and a tyre boot at all times now
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TR Pre-Lockdown Ale Consumption Leaderboard ( England Division , Day #Final)
- @JoeX 4
- @RecoveryRide 0
(Apologies @martinheadon its been a helluva week, which got even worse yesterday, and @TheWelsh title amended, but not @TheScottish because we never took their freedom anyway 
)
Actually, itās @JoeX 4, @RecoveryRide 2, though the GC remains unchanged 
Couldnāt pull it back on the last stage!
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In Scotland, the current restrictions are related to the Tier you are in. Iām in a Tier 3 local authority and should not leave that authority. Tier 1/2 can. Tier 4 is more like a full lockdown.
However, in Tier 3, for exercise purposes, you can go up to 5 miles outside your area (example, leaving Edinburgh to goto the Pentlands for hill walking) . You can also leave your local areas to do the following :-
local outdoor informal exercise such as walking, cycling, golf, or running (in groups of up to 6 people from no more than 2 households) that starts and finishes at the same place
As an Audaxer, this basically means unrestricted cycling 
but obviously Iām not actually going to do, but the key is that cycling outdoors is not seen as something you shouldnāt do, and is actually encouraged for positive mental health reasons.
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Iām afraid I canāt face another winter of Sweet Spot Base 
The āseasonā just gone with workouts 3x per week, as well as weekend rides, which resulted in nothing in terms of racing/fun events has left me burnt out ā more mentally than physically. Iām hoping to spend the winter doing Z2 bumbles in Zwift with a weekly race.
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