This past year, right when December hit we had crazy cold temps all of a sudden (after a gloriously warm November)! It dipped into the teens, the single digits, and below zero for about a week straight. And right on cue we received a bunch of calls from customers whose brake and shift cables had frozen, causing brakes to brake and then stay broke, and shifters to shift, but not shift back.

It was a flurry of problems all caused by this cold snap, and we realized we’d better be more proactive in educating people about this spectre of winter biking, which lurks amidst all of us when temps are warm but only waits to strike when it’s cold.

So, check out this cool video we made and learn! You may not be the one doing the service on your cables and housing to free it of moisture, but it’s cool to know why this happens. And more importantly, you’ll know that it does happen, so next year you can come in before the cold months hit and have us do a winter check to make sure your housing and cables are free and clear of water.