Cycling through winter has always been a great way to maintain fitness levels and avoid coughs and colds. If you are concerned by inclement weather, consider the pioneer adventure cyclists of the 1890s, who took to the snowy wilds of northern Canada without the benefit of modern clothing and 80 years before the advent of mountain bikes.
The Great Gold Rush in the late 1890s drew 100,000 prospectors to the Klondike region of the Yukon in north-western Canada between 1896 and 1899. Those who didn’t have the money to invest in dog teams used bicycles and rudimentary cold weather gear.
Hardy soul: The front cover of ‘Wheels on Ice’, Terrence Cole’s account of Alaskan cycling at the turn of the twentieth century
19-year-old Max Hirschberg chose to use a bicycle when he joined the gold rush in 1900. His journal gives a fascinating insight into the cold weather gear of the day:
“The day I left Dawson, March 2, 1900, was clear and crisp, 30° below zero. I was dressed in a flannel shirt, heavy fleece-lined overalls, a heavy mackinaw coat, a drill parka, two pairs of heavy woollen socks and felt high-top shoes, a fur cap that I pulled down over my ears, a fur nosepiece, plus fur gauntlet gloves. On the handlebars of the bicycle I strapped a large fur robe. Fastened to the springs, back of the seat, was a canvas sack containing a heavy shirt, socks, underwear, a diary in waterproof covering, pencils and several blocks of sulfur matches. In my pockets I carried a penknife and a watch.”
Cyclists today have the choice of a bewildering choice of technical winter cycling gear. Base layers and lightweight breathable waterproof tops have revolutionised winter riding. Another welcome development has been the advent of LED lighting, which has brought cheap, powerful and reliable cycle lighting to the masses.
Kingston Council has produced a short video to promote the use of lights and offered us six sets of LED lights (pictured above) to give away. If you would like a set, simply leave a comment at the bottom of this page.
Ethical cycle insurance
Check your small print for so-called ‘new-for-old’ replacement – many insurers use the term, but if your bicycle is more than a few years old, they devalue it severely. This means you are left out of pocket when you come to replace it.
With ETA cycle insurance, however old the bike, if it’s stolen you get enough to buy a new model. Furthermore, every cycle insurance policy you buy from us helps support the work of the ETA Trust, our charity campaigning for a cleaner, safer transport future. No wonder The Good Shopping Guide judges us to be Britain’s most ethical insurance company.
Charles
Perfect lights for my sons travel to/from school in the winter!
Kath H
These look handy little lights
John thys
Light of my life
Keith
I’v seen the light, brighten my day!
Richard
Getting these would brighten me up ..
johnny faro
Kingston council? Because my daughter wouldn’t use lights even if I tried Jamaica…….(sorry)
Ann Marie Wrigley
Seeing and being seen is so vital.
David Mayers
The more lights you show the better. Many drivers struggle to see most cyclists in the dark – these would help a lot
Claire
Yes please!
robert p Griffiths-garrod
just what i need +funds are short this month
Sam Phillips
Very good to hear of such and enlightened Council.
KIRSTY NORTH-WILD
Help me look like mobile Blackpool Illuminations……….
John Collier
I am 93 and a nervous traveller. The more lights the better.
Kris
These look great! I’d love some
Anthony
Useful for backup, but these take the likes of non-rechargeable CR2032s. The lights I’ve got have rechargeable AAAs.
Philip
Fair point Anthony.
However, CR2032’s are very small and lightweight so you can carry a number of spares without noticing the difference.
A quick search on Amazon Prime as I type shows a price of £5.99 for 20 batteries (30p each.)
I cannot provide information as to how long they will last when cycling, but I would expect longevity would be good.
John Hoare
Back in the the old days cyclists were hard
Jamie J
Illuminating…
Iain
The batteries do last a long time and these are great backup lights.
Steve K
We could do with something to brighten things a little …
Paul R
Great to see promotion of safer cycling with easy to use rechargeable lights. I use my lights day and night all year round then it is just a habit with no need to change anything when winter comes. Good lights like these especially useful for places like river path and Richmond Park which are darker than most streets.
Susan
Forever hopeful
Huw Thomas
Be seen !
Peter
See me with these!
Matt blackmore
Loving the sound of some new lights!!!
Helen
Oh please, some lights.
Kathy C
These lights look fab and we need to spread the word about the 5 tips. I can’t believe the number of people I see riding with no lights and no light jackets!
Su
These are snazzy little lights that will help to ‘go’ through the winter.
Peter Clark
You can never have too many lights
Craig
Please help me develop my “cycling Christmas tree” look ETA?!
Thanks for the opportunity
MARK
Very nice offer. I’ve been encouraging pedestrians who walk on unlit cycle paths to also wear lights at night. These would be perfect. SAFETY FIRST!!!
Mark
Rory Harkins
Yes please!
Chris Matheson
Very simple but essential advice and some swanky looking lights to carry it out too!
Toby James
More lights are always good
Jane Collier
Well done Kingston Council, more boroughs should do this. Alarming to see how some cyclists think it’s ok to ride without lights at night.
Peter Chisnall
Blinding!
Wynn James
First time I’d ever have a really decent set of winter lights.
Hollie
The more lights the better! Bringing a little disco action to the early morning commute.
Iain Shanks
Lighten up.
Stevo
These look like nice “to be seen” lights, well done ETA
Gillian Watling
I really love the elastic band attachments, so much easier to fit and way more flexible than the solid plastic brackets
James Russell
My son would love these. Complained yesterday that I had lights on my bike, and he didn’t.
Bryn Gwyndaf Jones
Brilliant!
Mark B
Perfect for my daughter. Yes please
Darren C
I can never miss a chance of getting more lights, replacing older scratched or weathered ones is always welcome.
Vick
Be seen, be safe!
Cleatclicker
what’s not to light
Stephen D.
These would be nice backup lights to my main ones, which are essential.
Arabella
More lights please!
Joanne
We’ve just moved house and increased hubby’s cycle commute considerably just in time for winter but it’s his birthday next week so these would be a winner 🙂
Karl Wallendszus
These look great as an emergency backup.
Paul
Yes please!
Douglas Milsom
Hope that I’m not to late to enter! These would also be good for night time training runs.
Peter G
Think I will need to use these during daytime to prevent another idiot pulling out and then saying ‘I didn’t see you’
Ali Crowther
My son (3) wonders whether Santa will have lights on his sleigh… good point I thought. He suggests we should leave him these ones with the mince pie and carrot just in case…
Bristol Rich
Wide-angle daylight 75 lm lamp that makes you more visible to other road users rain or shine . up to 24 hours flashing mode equals the weekly charge 😃