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Kids In Finland Continue To Ride Bicycles To School In -17°C (1.4°F) Weather And It’s A Lesson In Commuting
Are you a cyclist? If so, are you one of the many who carefully puts old faithful into storage over the winter months, convinced that all that rain, snow and ice is just unsuitable for biking? Well, this Finnish town is living proof that winter cycling is perfectly possible with the right planning and infrastructure, and making us feel a little soft for getting in the car at the sight of a little snow.
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Pekka Tahkola, an urban well-being engineer for Navico Ltd. and a cycling coordinator for the City of Oulu, took a photo of the local school’s bicycle parking lot in -17C recently to show that no matter what the conditions, nothing is keeping these kids off their bikes.
Because although it might seem strange for some parents to let their kids loose on two wheels, exposed to the icy cold of a northern winter, here in Finland it’s a perfectly normal and healthy thing to do. “We organized a study tour for participants from southern Finland for them to see how cycling to school is taken care of in our city,” Pekka told the informative environmental website MNN. “We visited a couple of schools and also spoke a lot with local teachers and principals. I’m pretty sure this school is among the best ones. It is definitely not the only one, and there are numerous schools in Oulu where the majority of kids cycle and walk to school.”
Image credits: pekkatahkola
Image credits: pekkatahkola
Image credits: pekkatahkola
Image credits: pekkatahkola
Image credits: pekkatahkola
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“It’s normal; always been like that. I cycled and kicksledded to school when I was a kid, too,” he says. “And it’s the same thing even in minus 30 C.”
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What do you think ?
Nina S 6 years ago
It's hard for me as a Swede to understand why this is a big deal, people ride bikes in -27°C bikes are more reliable than a car or bus as they easily break down in the cold
Lyyyy 2 years ago
I lived in Oulu (the city in the article) the colder it got during winter, the more people wanted to cycle or take the bus, because they didn’t need to mind their cars then. The problem with cars is that you have to leave them somewhere during your work day, and if it doesn’t have electricity for pre-heating the motor, how is the car supposed to work properly in -30 degrees?(They might start, but it is really bad for the non-electric cars) Buses work just great, they don’t get cold because they are on the move whole day.
Load More Replies...
Rob Chapman 6 years ago
Kids in Finland ride bikes to school in below freezing weather, while kids in America get driven to school a block away. Let me tell you how ridiculous it is where I live (a quiet suburb in California). In the image I posted, you see a school. Yous ee houses directly across from the school. There's a woman that lives in one of those houses. She DRIVES her son to and from school every day. She backs out of her driveway, to the sidewalk in front of the school, drops her kid off, and pulls forward back into her driveway. Then repeats the process int he afternoon. Yep. Capture-5c...24-png.jpg 
Carla Rego 6 years ago
I live in a very cold northern state in the US where it gets 0° or -10° all the time in winter and kids are walking to school. They aren't wimps lol. Maybe it's just California haha.
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Yvonne Bernal 6 years ago
I believe that when you grow up in this type of environment you don't "know" the difference, nor do you care. I would imagine that the children from Finland would not care much to go to school in the California desert where my sister lives which is 90F (32C) during the warmer months... and even hotter in Summer
Lingon 6 years ago
You do know that we have summers to right? And this summer we had 35C for two months. I'm swedish, not finnish, but they are our neighbours with the same climate as us.
Load More Replies...
Yulia Hilli 6 years ago
I moved to Finland 10 years ago with close to none cycling experience. And I have been cycling here all those 10 years regardless of the weather. Trip to university approx 7 km takes about 15 min by bike and buses are rather expensive here. Cycling in winter is not that hard even for inexperienced person. Cold weather does not mean ice on road. Most of the winter roads are covered with pressed snow and it is not slippery at all. I normally don't even have spike tires, just the regular ones. If roads get icy, then city workers cover them with sand/gravel and everything is fine again for cycling. And you are not getting cold, if you are dressing properly: layered closes, wool long underlayer and so on. And, since you are cycling, you are getting warm pretty fast. Even international students, who are coming from contries without snow, learn quickly how to dress to keep warm and cycle here without problems. I have never seen here anyone who broke a bone falling from bike, some bruises yes, that happens every so often. And there are no warm parking, because moving your bike from +18 to -20 temperature to cycle is not really good for bike parts. And we do have locks in bikes most of the time and there are people who are stealing bikes here
Petra Schaap 6 years ago (edited)
I'll ride my bike as long as the roads arent slippery. You'll warm up on your bike when its cold outside. Just wear the right clothes! I got a temp cleaning job once and when the asshat boss saw I was arriving on bike every day, he asked the agency I worked for "how will she get here when its cold or raining" the lady told him "by bike. She's Dutch" :-D (I live in Belgium)
diane a 6 years ago
I thought (according to Donald Trump) that the Finns were all busy raking their forests
Yvonne Bernal 6 years ago
That's hysterical - lol, I imagine they have to rake when they get home haha
Load More Replies...
R.s. Potter 6 years ago
I've ridden to work in temperatures as low as -28 C, but it wasn't easy. Glasses or goggles fog up within seconds every time you stop. A temperature of -17 C is actually not bad - cold enough that there isn't any wet ice, not so cold that you have trouble with numb fingers or fogging glasses.
Lars Lasersson 6 years ago
In the cold you can actually feel your bike getting a bit "stiff": there's extra friction in the hubs, you lose some tyre pressure, rolling resistance is bigger and at -20°C even the air is about 10% more dense than at +20°C. All this plus the thick clothing you're wearing adds up to a slower kind of a cycling experience.
Load More Replies...
Paula Mattila 6 years ago
I live here and my 8yr old son cycles to school every day, 2km one way, and even when we had around -27 degrees (for several days) in January. And he hasn't complained once or asked for a ride. We got him a good mountain bike before he started school and he loves biking! Cycle paths are well maintained in Oulu and are ploughed first when it snows. When it's cold enough snow isn't slippery or icy but dry and good to ride on.
Jude 6 years ago
I hope you'll answer my question! I lived on the Canadian Prairies for a number of years so I'm familiar with very cold winters. I found when temperatures were much colder than -12°C, even a slight breeze was freezing cold on my face - it quickly felt numb. So when one's riding a bike in cold weather, it's like having a light breeze on the face. My question - do you have to wrap a scarf over the face or don't you notice the cold on your skin? I understand how the rest of the person would stay warm, properly dressed but not bare skin on the face. I looked at all the photos and everyone has their face exposed.
Load More Replies...
Vlad Horobet 6 years ago
I am amazed by how the bikes are left. The trust and security there is simply amazing, at least for me, a person from a country were the bikes are stolen even from the chained up places.
Jomppe Vesa 6 years ago
Most bike thefts in Finland happen at the hours between 2am and 4am from friday to saturday, and are often solved by searching the nearest taxi pole or residency neighbourhood from the thefts location in the city centre.... ;)
Load More Replies... Nina S 6 years ago
It's hard for me as a Swede to understand why this is a big deal, people ride bikes in -27°C bikes are more reliable than a car or bus as they easily break down in the cold
Lyyyy 2 years ago
I lived in Oulu (the city in the article) the colder it got during winter, the more people wanted to cycle or take the bus, because they didn’t need to mind their cars then. The problem with cars is that you have to leave them somewhere during your work day, and if it doesn’t have electricity for pre-heating the motor, how is the car supposed to work properly in -30 degrees?(They might start, but it is really bad for the non-electric cars) Buses work just great, they don’t get cold because they are on the move whole day.
Load More Replies... Rob Chapman 6 years ago
Kids in Finland ride bikes to school in below freezing weather, while kids in America get driven to school a block away. Let me tell you how ridiculous it is where I live (a quiet suburb in California). In the image I posted, you see a school. Yous ee houses directly across from the school. There's a woman that lives in one of those houses. She DRIVES her son to and from school every day. She backs out of her driveway, to the sidewalk in front of the school, drops her kid off, and pulls forward back into her driveway. Then repeats the process int he afternoon. Yep. Capture-5c...24-png.jpg
Carla Rego 6 years ago
I live in a very cold northern state in the US where it gets 0° or -10° all the time in winter and kids are walking to school. They aren't wimps lol. Maybe it's just California haha.
Load More Replies... Yvonne Bernal 6 years ago
I believe that when you grow up in this type of environment you don't "know" the difference, nor do you care. I would imagine that the children from Finland would not care much to go to school in the California desert where my sister lives which is 90F (32C) during the warmer months... and even hotter in Summer
Lingon 6 years ago
You do know that we have summers to right? And this summer we had 35C for two months. I'm swedish, not finnish, but they are our neighbours with the same climate as us.
Load More Replies... Yulia Hilli 6 years ago
I moved to Finland 10 years ago with close to none cycling experience. And I have been cycling here all those 10 years regardless of the weather. Trip to university approx 7 km takes about 15 min by bike and buses are rather expensive here. Cycling in winter is not that hard even for inexperienced person. Cold weather does not mean ice on road. Most of the winter roads are covered with pressed snow and it is not slippery at all. I normally don't even have spike tires, just the regular ones. If roads get icy, then city workers cover them with sand/gravel and everything is fine again for cycling. And you are not getting cold, if you are dressing properly: layered closes, wool long underlayer and so on. And, since you are cycling, you are getting warm pretty fast. Even international students, who are coming from contries without snow, learn quickly how to dress to keep warm and cycle here without problems. I have never seen here anyone who broke a bone falling from bike, some bruises yes, that happens every so often. And there are no warm parking, because moving your bike from +18 to -20 temperature to cycle is not really good for bike parts. And we do have locks in bikes most of the time and there are people who are stealing bikes here
Petra Schaap 6 years ago (edited)
I'll ride my bike as long as the roads arent slippery. You'll warm up on your bike when its cold outside. Just wear the right clothes! I got a temp cleaning job once and when the asshat boss saw I was arriving on bike every day, he asked the agency I worked for "how will she get here when its cold or raining" the lady told him "by bike. She's Dutch" :-D (I live in Belgium)
diane a 6 years ago
I thought (according to Donald Trump) that the Finns were all busy raking their forests
Yvonne Bernal 6 years ago
That's hysterical - lol, I imagine they have to rake when they get home haha
Load More Replies... R.s. Potter 6 years ago
I've ridden to work in temperatures as low as -28 C, but it wasn't easy. Glasses or goggles fog up within seconds every time you stop. A temperature of -17 C is actually not bad - cold enough that there isn't any wet ice, not so cold that you have trouble with numb fingers or fogging glasses.
Lars Lasersson 6 years ago
In the cold you can actually feel your bike getting a bit "stiff": there's extra friction in the hubs, you lose some tyre pressure, rolling resistance is bigger and at -20°C even the air is about 10% more dense than at +20°C. All this plus the thick clothing you're wearing adds up to a slower kind of a cycling experience.
Load More Replies... Paula Mattila 6 years ago
I live here and my 8yr old son cycles to school every day, 2km one way, and even when we had around -27 degrees (for several days) in January. And he hasn't complained once or asked for a ride. We got him a good mountain bike before he started school and he loves biking! Cycle paths are well maintained in Oulu and are ploughed first when it snows. When it's cold enough snow isn't slippery or icy but dry and good to ride on.
Jude 6 years ago
I hope you'll answer my question! I lived on the Canadian Prairies for a number of years so I'm familiar with very cold winters. I found when temperatures were much colder than -12°C, even a slight breeze was freezing cold on my face - it quickly felt numb. So when one's riding a bike in cold weather, it's like having a light breeze on the face. My question - do you have to wrap a scarf over the face or don't you notice the cold on your skin? I understand how the rest of the person would stay warm, properly dressed but not bare skin on the face. I looked at all the photos and everyone has their face exposed.
Load More Replies... Vlad Horobet 6 years ago
I am amazed by how the bikes are left. The trust and security there is simply amazing, at least for me, a person from a country were the bikes are stolen even from the chained up places.
Jomppe Vesa 6 years ago
Most bike thefts in Finland happen at the hours between 2am and 4am from friday to saturday, and are often solved by searching the nearest taxi pole or residency neighbourhood from the thefts location in the city centre.... ;)
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