Is this too windy?
Cape Town Cycle Tour, March 2017.
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Reminds me of a race I did many years ago in northeast Oregon. The course was a square 17 mile “loop” with some up and down but no climbing. Very windy at the start, and pretty soon I was off the back and crawling along against the wind. I abandoned after the first of 2 laps. Found out only 5 finished, and I would have been in the prizes. Also found out that several boxcars on a nearby RR were blown over that same afternoon.
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A drive out and full on tailwind 150-200 Kim ride is my ultimate dream. I’m going to get my wife or kid to drive me out one day so I can tick that one off.
All the while humming the Rocky theme song while flying down the road in zone 2 HR.
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I did ride home from work 60km im a storm once, with a tailwind all the way. It was freezing cold, not the air, just me. I had all my warmest winter kit on, but because I didn’t have to pedal much, I couldn’t get warm.
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Good timing:
I missed the worst of it. It wasn’t as windy during the day when I was commuting Friday, racing Saturday.
I rarely consider wind a reason not to ride outside. Maybe if I saw a branch fall just from the wind, I’d bail on a commute ride and drive instead.
For recreational rides I’m pretty sure the wind has never been a primary or deciding factor to not ride outside.
For training rides (from a previous home with fewer stop signs and stop lights and more available routes) I’ve always just tried to point myself directly into wind for the majority of the ride, and avoid crosswinds. If those routes aren’t available, or I think that the gusting wind would negatively impact my concentration on training, that’s when I hit the basement. I’d say that gusts under 25 mph (40kph~) aren’t terribly impactful in most cross wind conditions for me and my bike. 88-92kg, 190+ cm (6-3).
Where I live, gusts over 25mph are usually accompanied with some other negative weather risks like lightning or vision-impairing precipitation. That’s when I usually make my call not to ride outside.
I was going to link just this clip 
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I love this event, on Youtube anyway 
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I rode in some fairly strong Santa Anas last week.
Didn’t exactly want to, but there we were.
Probably 15-20 mph with gusts to 30-40 where I was.
Small branches were blowing off of trees and blowing around. Lots of debris in the air, a bit of grit in every breath.
The headwind uphill was the least fun part.
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I typically will ride unless it’s over 35mph sustained. I rode in 100mph+ gusts the day of the Boulder fire last month and I had to get a pickup less than a mile from my place. Living in the front range has definitely changed my perspective on wind. I’m 67kg and constantly surprised how even 60mph gusts don’t blow me over (you will be riding at an angle though).
The only time I’ve been in a “too windy to ride” situation, it was in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, and a group of about 15 of us were ~30 miles into a planned century. We’d just completed a very scary descent with 40+ MPH gusting cross-winds, and were discussing if it was too windy to continue. Especially important since the next mountain pass we were scheduled to ride has sketchy cross winds on normal days. While we were discussing the situation, a sustained gust came through and ripped a road sign off its post across the street from us. Decision made. We took the very sheltered bike path back to the cars, and had an early lunch & beers.
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I’d say it is too windy when it is no longer fun to ride outdoors. At that weight, you should be fairly stable and it shouldn’t be super easy to push you into traffic. But it could still rob you of the fun that is to be had by riding outdoors. Because it seems you are assuming the wind will always come from the side. But it might turn into a headwind for you, which is often a buzzkill.
Alternatively, can you go on a gravel or mountain bike ride instead?
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Only time I’ve set a limit to cycling in the wind is when I was fairly new to regular cycle commuting. I decided gusts of over 30mph on the Forth Road Bridge in an east or west direction would be a bit tricky 50m above the drink. The bridge designed in the 60s has pedestrian height (ie too low for cyclist) barriers. I have actually been over the bridge in worse now but if it’s windy and I’m not cycle commuting I go another way. When I was commuting it was something like a 40mile cycle detour or 2 to 3 miles detour for the Train.
30 mph gusting to 49 mph is the strongest winds I’ve done long rides (more than 130 miles) in. But then I ride a recumbent these days and I’m not affected by side gusts at those speeds. Me and bike are as stable as a rock. I’ve done same on road bike and I get home feeling like I’ve wrestled a crocodile.
For the speeds you mention, I wouldn’t even register it, if I saw it in the forecast. It’s fairly common to see those kind of speeds most weeks of the year.
I’m sure it’s been said at this point, but defo design your route so you’re out leg is into the wind, and the return is with a tailwind. That’s just 101 stuff.
It depends on the season as I can hide in the woody/shaded areas. If it’s cold and windy, I’m out. In the summer if it gets really windy (over 80kms/hr), I stay home. It’s common to have fallen trees and branches, as well as micro-bursts that can be dangerous. Normally where I live (Boston metro) it gets windy year-round, worst months in the spring. I have a war veteran as a neighbor and I gauge by his pow-mia flag. However it’s so windy that his flag is in tatters. One curious fact that I never thought existed was high humidity coupled with heat and high winds. Crazy, unimaginable weather, but here we are. Also, I weigh around 75kgs and ride 30mm deep wheels (Zondas), which keeps me relatively grounded on windy days.
Generally in the UK TT races are cancelled once the wind speed reaches the black gust circle level on the BBC weather website - that is when gusts hit 40mph with average speeds at 20mph…that’s on TT bikes with discs on the back and deep 90mm front wheels. If its over 15mph I ride a 60mm front with the disc. Head winds are fine…it’s the cross winds that are the issue. I only weigh 61kg but will ride provided the race isn’t cancelled. Last year I rode a 55min 25M TT on an out and back course where it took 33mins to the turn and 22mins back… 
…on a road bike I will ride in most conditions…but often use the turbo as you can end up with half the ride being to hard and half to easy.
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I try to gauge what direction more than speed, but anything in the 20’s and up is a no unless someone capable is willing to do some heavy pulling. (If it’s been that stressful, fighting the wind, swearing at it, giving it the finger, being determined that it will not hold you down, is a great mental release!)
But I will trip out if it’s a moderate headwind heading out, fight it as hard and as long as I can, and then get blown back to the car. (Although several years ago I took off into a head wind on a rail trail with huge trees up both sides so it was like a wind tunnel outbound, and damned if it didn’t quarter around and start blowing up the trail on the way back)
The wind is a fickle thing. It can love you and bite you, and do both on the same ride! Oh, watch for predictions of storms. I hate the rides that start out windy with ‘little chance to storm’ that develops into a near gale and people start kissing pavement.
The met recorded data for our ride today.
When you have to pedal down a 20% incline then you know it’s windy! What normally takes me 20 minutes took 35mins today 
At the moment we are on the edge of Storm Malik, meant to be much worse further north - apparently winds of 150mph were recorded on the summit of Cairngorm. I doubt the ski tows were running 
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