A Brief Book Review of Frostbike
Rocky Mountain
Books. ISBN 978-1-77160-048-4
Having been a winter cyclist for some
years, I had to buy this book. I never dreamed that anyone would publish a book
about winter cycling.
Mr. Babin, a cyclist and journalist in Calgary, has done his homework. Attempts to cycle in winter started over a century ago. He recounts the development of winter bikes from rigs with spiked wheels and runners on the front, to the fat bikes invented in Alaska. He describes his own personal journey into winter cycling, and his visits to Copenhagen, and Oulu, Finland, the Mecca of winter cycling.
Mr. Babin shows how winter cycling need not
be the sole prerogative of extreme athletes. In winter cycling cities like
Oulu, people just do it because it’s practical, given the right attitude and
clothing, and a bike-friendly city. There are only a few days each winter when
the roads are too horrible, or the weather too cold, to ride a bike. If you’ve
ever wished you could cycle in winter, quit wishing. Read Frostbike and do
it.
Doug Yardley
