Winter riding using BionX and studded winter tires

I have ridden BionX down to -10F will no noticeable loss of performance, although the battery pack was stored inside and the ride wasn't that long (3 miles.) Plus I'm not really going to go for speed record on snow and ice. What sort of conditions do you expect to ride in? Studded tires would be nice about 2 days per winter where I live in Colorado. The rest of the time they would be overkill or worse. Mountain bike tires have done just fine for me.

it's different for me here, in Canada we get much more snow.
I'm looking forward to this upcoming winter :D

people might think i'm a maniac biking in the winter, but with BionX it's not really that bad.
The only problem is find roads that are safe enough to ride on in winter time.

i've already prepare a set of 26" Schwalbe Ice Spiker Pro, i was using Marathon Winter for my 20"
i'll try a few runs on early winter to get a feel for the season, 45KM ride one way (27mi) might not be do-able even with BionX when the temp is too low.

the BionX will have no problem at all... it's me, i don't know if i can stay out for 1.5 hr under -20c temps :p
i expect it not to be as bad, as long as i'm riding i'll always be hot, the problem is only if i stay still for too long, then it might become a problem.

i got my face mask from last year, when i was riding in winter without the BionX but back then it was only 13KM, that just barely 20min ~ 30min ride, and i didn't feel any cold except when i'm waiting on the red lights.
most of the time it was dripping a mixture of melted snow and sweat.

hell even now in summer, my glasses still fogs up, that's how much heat our humans body generates under stress.

You sound like a good candidate for studs then. I've run across postings about them from Canadians and Scandinavians a few times. They are mostly useful for packed snow and ice. Not much helps with fresh snow. I don't have any firsthand knowledge to contribute.

I do worry about your pack making the distance, though. It's going to be pretty close to ambient temperature by the time you arrive at your destination and no battery pack likes those sorts of temperatures. Plus the bike is going to be working harder anyway due to the uneven surface. Add to this the optimal range for a BionX kit is about 30 miles anyway and you're asking a lot for the kit. I know LiIon batteries take deep discharges better than lead acid, but flatlining them twice a day is going to expire a very expensive pack very quickly.

Here are two video that talk about winter riding with studded tire together with electric bike.

one with Molly, which has a lot of good information and tips
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZh-Kq3CbCQ

another one with Cremson, it has much faster winter riding video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7kYZlL6zUY

Ken

Youtube: http://ca.youtube.com/powerinmotion
Website: http://us.itselectric.ca

I have rode my bion x system the last 3 winters to tempature down to 32c

Have use Nokian 106 and 294 wouldn't suggest the 294 to soft on the side walls

The Bion system work well in all condtions remeber we are only dealing with a
wheel rolling on bearings here

Contact me personaly at sanderskd [at] accesscomm.ca if you care to discuss
i am also a Dealer for Bion X

Where I live, we have snow on the streets about 5-10 days a year, but black ice a little more often. For soft snow my regular Schwalbe marathon cross work very well. When the snow is packed and icy, I put a Nokian (forget which one) studded tire on my front wheel and this is OK. I have a spare front wheel with the tire already on it, so I can quickly switch it on/off. While it would be a lot better to have studded tires front and rear, it is too much work for me to switch tires back and forth on my rear wheel all winter and I don't have enough money to have a spare Bionx wheel with a studded tire already mounted!