Bicycle Touring 101: Fighting a headwind

A 50 km/hr headwind day during my Lake Michigan tour. Cyclist heading with the wind had wonderful distance stories to share!
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Few aspects of bicycle touring can seem so cruel as a persistent and overpowering wind that seems to be doing everything it can to push you back to your starting point. My first eight days going around Lake Huron seemed to consist of days with constant headwinds even though each day I was changing my general direction as I followed the coast line of the lake. As bad as the headwinds were the hardest part was that each day they seemed to increase until the eighth day when I fought against the wind for hours only to come upon a windsurfer roaring along the water at full speed courtesy of my friend the wind. As both a windsurfer and a cyclist the contrasts between heaven and hell all packaged into one made for some interesting thoughts during the remainder of the ride.

Eight days gives you plenty of time to really think about things to try to make you go that tiny bit faster. I discovered that removing my rain covers appeared to add another two km/hour to my ground speed. Cinching the front saddlebags horizontally tighter seemed to add another two km of speed. Moving stuff off the rear rack also had some real impact as well.

After these experiences and many more I've discovered a few things that seem to help me to have a much more pleasant day even while the wind is blowing.

1) Although seemingly obvious try to pack lightly and focus on reducing the horizontal bulk on your bike. Think of a knife in water. You want your bike to present as narrow an edge to the wind as possible. Wider bikes complete with over stuffed saddlebags present a much larger cross section to the wind which results in a much slower forward progression.

2) Smaller saddlebags will encourage you to take a lot less extra gear with you. When fighting a wind it's a lot easier to push a bike loaded with 50 extra pounds of gear then one loaded with 100 pounds.

3) Keep stuff packed as low to the ground as safely possible. Studies have shown that the force of the wind increases with height. Check out a sailboat sometime on a relatively calm day. You will likely notice that the top of the sail seems to receive a lot more power then the bottom. Kite sailors use this same principle to get out on the water on the same days that windsurfers are stuck on the beach. In practical terms removing unneccessary stuff from above the rear rack seems to make a significant difference.

4) Sing, hum, whistle, or listen to music especially stuff that instills a feeling of happiness. Head winds are at least partly mental in addition to their actual physical force. If you can keep the wind from completely taking over your day then you stand a much better chance of feeling good about your day.

5) Avoid trying to muscle your way along. There is a very easy tendency to push hard against a low gear. This has the impact of working you harder then necessary so that you end up tired earlier and when you wake up you also get to feel sore too. Instead go down a gear or two and spin the pedals at a faster cadence. At certain speeds spinning can almost seem effortless as the mechanical aspects of the gearing seem to take away at least some of the load.

6) Get up with the sun on days forecast to be windy. There are many reasons why most cyclists seem to enjoy getting on the road early in the morning. For some it's an opportunity to escape the heat of the day and arrive at camp earlier. Another feature is that most of the time the wind is either calm or very light first thing in the morning.

7) Take a good long break during the early afternoon. Find a museum or a nice tree to relax under. Most of the time the wind is the strongest from around 14:00 to 17:00 in the day. If you find the wind is pushing you backwards then just stop the bike and take control of the situation.

8) Take a peek at the map. Are there any cross roads that head in a more wind friendly direction? Perhaps you could have a cross wind instead of a head wind. You may do more distance over the ground but end up getting to your destination by using a bit of creativity.

9) The wind can be a very powerful and dehydrating force. Make sure you drink fluids often and take a longer break periodically to eat some food. For most people the wind has the ability to creep inside the head and make you forget everything else other then it's powerful effects. Unfortunately running out of energy and becoming dehydrated can make the wind seem even more unforgiving.

10) A less obvious option is to simply opt out. Rather then stay in the flatlands head for the hills. At least there you will have the climb to blame for the slow speed and the valleys you dip down into will give you wind blocking benefits as well as some fast descents.

11) For some people getting down to the handlebar drops seems to add some value. For me although a short time there can be useful I typically find that dropping to the drops drastically reduces the scenery while providing only marginal benefit from the wind.

Probably the most important thing to remember is that the wind will play with your mental state. It's up to you to determine exactly how much you are willing to allow it to control your day. After all, if you were in a rush would you really be riding a bike?