DIY Snow Tires for Your Bike

Photo Caption: Studded snow tires cost upwards of $65 apiece!

Winter 2011 in St. Louis is less than halfway over and it's already been the snowiest winter on record. Ok, that's a lie, but it sure as hail feels like it. Even the hardiest all-weather cyclists seem to take snow days or even snow weeks from cycling due to the snow- and ice-covered roads. Thanks to the DIY ethic of hipster cyclists, we are proud to bring you a low-cost solution to transform your bike into a snow machine.

The folks at the Dutch Bike Company blogged about how they transformed their bikes into all-weather monsters with nothing but a package of zip ties, a pair of scissors, and a beer (optional).

Photo Credit: Dutch Bike Company

Aside from the great how-to photos on their blog, my favorite part of the post was the authors admission that he didn't invent the technique:

It pains me to admit this not because my ego suffers, but because the zip-tie-DIY-bicycle-snow-chains idea appears to have originated with my favorite bicycle industry whipping boy: fixed gear hipster culture. Several years ago, I'm sure, some bright child with extremely tight pants and an asymmetrical haircut had a genius-caliber idea, and I hate that it wasn't me. So here it is: Fixed gear street bike hipster guys, I'm sorry for the things I've said over the years. It's not true that the only drink you like is 4Loko. It's also not true that you're not allowed to wear shoes that don't match your bikes. You can wear whatever you want. And finally, you have come up with a good idea besides brightly colored deep-section rims.

Check out the full post and photos here:
http://www.dutchbikeco.com/_blog/Dutch_Bike_Co_Weblog/post/Seattle_Snowpocalypse/