Where do you draw the line for riding in the wind?

sounds like you did good.

it's tough riding in wind like that, 3-1/2 hrs is a lot.

also there's the safety factor riding on the roads. so...good job!

You shouldn't spend one more second feeling bad about that workout. 

I've voluntarily gone out in >20mph in the past, but I don't anymore.  Happy to switch up and do a run or swim instead and pick up the ride on a less windy day.  I think as long as you feel like you can handle those conditions if they happen to be like that for your race, you don't need to punish yourself.

Race day might be windy and 50% of the field would not have bothered to train in the wind so you immediately have an advantage over them as you know you can handle it.

We've had similar winds lately and i've been disappointed afterwards as my HR stats showed I wasn't putting the effort in but I tell you one thing - my next ride in better conditions was even more enjoyable than usual as I appreciated it more. 

So look forward to that!

I once did a charity century ride in 35mph sustained, gusts to 50mph.
I decided that day I wouldn't ever complain about the wind again.

Getting ready to head out for a 3.5 hour ride in 24mph sustained winds. It will be awesome when I'm finished!  

Wind...now that's a 4-letter word.  Wind is bad enough by itself, but coupled with cold temps that combo is probably the bane of my existence.  

My only 2 bits of advice are:

1:  If you don't feel safe in it, don't ride in it.

and 

2:  Whenever possible, ride into the wind to start.  Finishing with a headwind just plain sucks!

btw, you went for a 3 1/2 hour bike ride!  You didn't cheat yourself and you should be proud of yourself!

i had the "pleasure" of visiting Kansas a few times in the past year for up to a month at a time each visit.  being in Kansas is drawing the line for riding.  

seriously though, just get out there and ride unless you feel it is unsafe to do so.  remember: when you aren't getting your ride in, someone you will be competing against is.

OP--you did good.

Me, I love the high head winds and bright hot sun and 4-5ft seas.  Why, because it is harder on my competition.

IMO--A lot of triathlon and high physical effort is psychological.  Learn to excell in adverse weather conditions and you will be less stressed come race day.  I look forward to adverse conditions because I know how to use it to my advantage.

A cycling trick I learned a long time ago about riding into high wind is to stay as low and out of the wind as much as possible and focus on my cycling techique. Focus on your heart rate, not your ground speed. Set your bike up so that you are comfortable for hours in the most aerodynamic position possible.

Hope this helps

I'd draw the line at gusts over 50 mph.

But...as mentioned before, if it's in the direction of a Strava KOM...I'd take the bike out.  You can tell when people do that...average over 30 mph on a segment where 21-22 mph is usually an all out effort.

I used to skip it if winds were over 10 MPH (and do the trainer, I wouldn't skip the workout), deeming it unsafe.  I just did a tri where most of the ride had 15-20 MPH winds and 25 gusts, and it wasn't that bad!!  So now I will probably go out there in ANY conditions and just come back if unsafe.  It was hard, but not unsafe, and I don't care about difficulty, just safety.  My coach does say that depending on the strength of the wind, if you're gonna do 50 miles and it usually takes you four hours to go 50 miles, and because of wind it takes you those four hours to do 30 miles, just go for the time and stop there.  So with strong wind just ride for time what the distance usually takes you.

I think wind makes you tough!  Last year was my first year in the sport and riding and so forth.  I would skip days when it was really windy because I didn't want to deal with the wind.  This year though I have yet to cancel a bike workout outside because of wind.  Save for this past weekend all my 2-3 hour rides the past weekends were 18+mph winds out of the NNW/West with gusts over 30 on some days.  I dealt with it.  I found it a lot harder to watch and keep myself in zone 2 though when riding into the headwind but I think I can say that I did a good job of it.

My thoughts on it is that "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger."  Like a few others have stated though if you don't feel safe riding in it then by all means don't go out.  Somewhere along the line though you will need that training in the wind to feel comfy in a race.  I think over half my races last year were all 7-15mph+ winds it seemed.

NE FL? This thread makes me feel like a baby. If you're riding in this Nor'Easter we're getting hit with I definitely salute you! It's practically a tropical storm out here. The wind along the beach made my longer run tough yesterday. Living at the beach if I don't get out early/go on a long ride, I get hit with a headwind the whole way back. The gusty wind+rain bands=me on the trainer today

Yes, NE Florida.  What the heck is up with this weather!!!???  I'm ready for some stagnant heat and humidity already!