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[kpc]

Who is susan?
getting into mtn bkg.
It's cool around here in the AM, 25-35 degrees, then of course it warms by late AM. I am hesitant to wear shorts as my legs are red and cold and will get scraped by branches. My long pants are too hot when i get going. Last week i wore shorts with pants over, but I feel like fluffy butt and was having too much fun to stop and take the pants off when i was hot.
What do you all wear in the woods on cold days. How about on the road on cold days? It's a little hard to force myself out the door.

[Dogmama]

Long Pearlizumi field sensor tights over biking shorts, DaFeet top liner, jersey and windbreaker. Long gloves & bootie covers if it's really cold. OK, really cold for Tucson is 35 - but hey- that's COLD!

[Veronica]

Susan Otcenas is the owner of TE.

When it's a cold morning I start off with a wool jersey and maybe a jacket, long fingered gloves. I have both short sleeve and long sleeve wool jerseys. If I think it's going to warm up enough I'll wear the short sleeve with wool arm warmers made from hiking socks with the toes cut out. It doesn't get terribly cold here during the day so I usually wear wool leg warmers with my shorts. That way as I warm up it's really easy to unlayer, even as I ride.

If I'm going out in the afternoon after work, I wear long sleeves, bring a jacket and wear Castelli bib tights because I know it's just going to get colder as the sun sets. When I've finished the big climb on my after work rides, the jacket goes on, usually just as the sun is setting. My jacket is a screaming yellow (that may actually be what they called the color) and makes me a lot more visible for the ride home after dark. I wear it when I ride to work in the mornings. My 5th graders have commented on just how bright it is. They pretend to need sunglasses. :cool:


I wear light wool hiking socks and so far those have kept my toes warm enough that I haven't considered booties.

Veronica

[missliz]

Any time it's 65 degrees or less, you want to wear long legs- the cold is bad on the knees and over the years it'll take it out of them. You always want to leave the house a tad underdressed and chilly- you'll warm up quick. You can get tights with windstop fronts, either padded or for over shorts. It's relatively warm here, in the fifties I like shorts with running/ workout tights over. A pair of full padded tights isn't worth my investment, but you may need them. You can also get legwarmers for the arms and legs to go with shorts and short sleeves for cold starts and warm laters.
I also like a long sleeve jersey and a fleecy vest. The most important things on a really chilly day are warm toes, hands, and head. You lose a lot of body heat here. Those little pink ears hanging out of the helmet? Brrr! I have a thin neoprene headband with a few small holes over each ear (to hear) that fits under the helmet- love it! Get some ear warmth, lots of designs, but important! Your shoes and helmet are designed to cool, so in winter you need those booties and cap to reverse this.
Go cruise TE shopping, and some of the other sites like Performance and see what's offered. Balaclavas may look silly- until you're freezing your nose off in Febuary! Just remember- all wicking fabrics! If you wear too much or work really hard and sweat up, if you have to stop you'll chill and be sick or just miserable. All those slimy cycling fabrics get rid of sweat, you want to stay dry. Unless it's mud splashing on you :D :D. I've never used wool, but hear great things about it. The four days a year it's in the 30's here, I'm inside under a blanket.
Sounds complicated? :p You'll catch on quick after a few chilly rides. Be warm and happy!

Lizzy the cold weather wussy

[annie]

KPC,

You are going to dress differently for the cold rides in the woods and cold rides on the road. In the woods, protected from the wind, you stay a lot warmer. Still, I agree with MizLiz that it's important to cover those knees if the temp is much under 60. Personally, I've found leg warmers and arm warmers to be some of the best purchases I've made. You don't even have to stop to take them off if you don't want to. You just roll them down. Might be a fashion faux pas, but who cares? If you do take them off, they roll up into a small package to stuff in a jersey pocket or in your camelbak. Off-road, I usually start out with a wind jacket over a couple layers underneath. The jacket comes off when I am warmed up. A headband over the ears is good. Gloves that keep your hands warm but are flexible enough for braking and shifting. If its above freezing, wool socks are usually enough for foot warmth. Below that, I need neoprene shoe covers.

On the road, the wind is a real factor. You have to wear warmer clothing. Instead of a wind jacket, I'll wear a lined winter cycling jacket over my underneath layers. Sometimes liner gloves under my winter cycling gloves. Usually lined tights over biking shorts. Wool socks and shoe covers, for sure.
Maybe a balaclava. It keeps your whole head warm and can cover most of the face, too, if it's really cold. It gets very cold here during the winter. I often choose to ride indoors. But it's not the same as outside! Not even close, so occasionally, I load on the clothing and head out. It's always worth it once you are out there.

Ride happy,

[newfsmith]

I commute year-round here in the Boston area. Fortunately, except for last year, that isn't much of a challenge. I've learned that we all vary a great deal in how we chill on a winter ride. For instance, I never wear a balaclava until it is in the teens. By that time I will have wool gloves over my cycling gloves and leather mitts over them. Let it get below 10F and I have my "Bullwinkles" (pogies) on the bikes for added wind protection. I do not experience the "heat sink" effect many describe for SPD shoes until about 5F, when I switch to regular winter pac's. They are so heavy and clumsy I prefer the chill at anything warmer. I rarely wear more than a long sleeve Cool-max Tee and thin wool sweater under my Rainshield jacket. I do have a wool jersey I wear on really cold days. Most of the time, even at 10F, I wear my cycling shorts and a pair of tights over them. I do carry an extra pair of pants and a fleece in my panniers in case I run into a mechanical problem and have to stop moving for a while. I also carry a cell phone and an emergency blanket in case of serious problems. Planning for the commute gets to be a challenge. I have become a serious weather report watcher. It becomes fun. Riding in snow and icy conditions forces you to use your best technique and has made me a better rider. I've only fallen twice, both times while dismounting, my feet slide out from under me where my studded tires had been stable. Get out and enjoy the winter, it will make it shorter.