However, is it even POSSIBLE to ride this bike on short commutes to work in a small area near Salt Lake? ...
Just trying to figure out what has to be done at this point.
Thanks!
Well, couple of days being posted up and no Salt Lake City rider stepping up with opinion yet. Your move prep time is now; so here is my take. I'm in WA state, well NW of SLC, but have traveled thru there often enough.
You're considering riding to Salt Lake, elevation 4300 ft and surrounded by higher points on three sides (N, E, and S), during the first week of January.
And then commuting to work. Work, so you need to show up reliably. You're apparently not talking about SLC proper, but smaller town on the edge. You want opinions.
Opinion A - Heavy, powerful bike = especially lousy on snow. Salt Lake traffic norms (on the N-S interstate thru city) are medium heavy traffic above speed limit in good weather, with courtesy awareness to others who are keeping up. With snow and ice multiple days per season this isn't a rider safe environment. I see SLC drivers as being more considerate of other vehicles vs. most large cities (New Orleans comes to mind). I don't know the conditions of city side streets during winter; I suspect they're plowed pretty quickly.
Smaller communities near SLC will likely have slower snow service, but still likely decent as road work goes. You won't know the roads and how the patches of shade always leave an icy spot at certain curves. I guess your chances of going down at least once are high; so add collision insurance coverage to your flawless bike. You should look up average weather, temps and snowfall for Jan - Feb - Mar.
Most days I think someone could ride,
but not if he needs to be somewhere promptly day after day. You're moving for the job, so get yourself that beater car and put on good tires; then you can then reliably show up for work and explore the surroundings during good days. Utah has a lot of gravel roads to explore its vast public lands - a car does give you exploring options, so a car is not all bad!
Opinion B -
... or rent a place an apartment within walk/trudge distance of work for the bad days. Buy a bike come May 1.
Luck, SLC/Utah should treat you right.
