Dressing for the weather - basic question

Am heading out this afternoon for a 16 mile ride with my personal trainer and his wife - it will be a beautiful afternoon for it - though not very warm. It will be in the high 50's when we get started, and it won't be warming much at all. There will be a fair amount of climbing on this route though, and am wondering how to dress.

I figure I will need my jacket, I wore it yesterday in the park and was comfy - though I wasn't working as hard as I will be this afternoon. It is my legs that I am wondering about - I have my nice new baggy shorts from TE that I would like to wear for the first time - but is 57-60 degrees too cold for shorts? I am thinking that it will be fine, but wondering how others deal with these in-between temps.

My very first rule is that my knees are covered anytime it's under 65 degrees. They really let me know if I break that rule. :)

It's too cold for shorts for me. But different people are different. If you have a pair of tights or knee warmers, you can start out in those and take them off if you feel too warm.

I never wear a jacket to climb in. Short sleeve wool jersey and arm warmers for the climb works for me. I save the jacket for the descent.

Veronica

Past week, I've started to wear long walking shorts for cycling now. It's been starting off at 50 degrees F and going up. My knee length cycling shorts are busted..

But interestingly I know every cycling season, by fall, my bare legs become accustomed to cycling under more cooler temperatures. So by then, I'm cycling in shorts at 42 degrees F or so. Whereas right now for spring, I find that abit too cold.

But outside, we see many joggers and cyclists in their shorts right now.

I tend to wear knickers in this kind of weather. I'd probably wear a light jacket, too. V's advice is good for long sustained climbs and long descents, but the climbing around here is a bit different.

I wear knickers or shorts/knee warmers up to about 65 degrees. Pretty much for the temperature spread you describe. I can stand having my legs a little sweaty more than being too hot on the top half of my body.
My tolerance for riding in cold is much, much better than it used to be. I heat up very quickly and have to be very thoughtful about how I dress in the spring and fall. So, I wear light weight long sleeved jerseys with a sleeveless base layer and a vest if it's not going to be above 60. Over 60, I will do arm warmers and a short sleeved jersey and vest, with the knowledge that I can take the vest and arm warmers off, if I overheat and still have room to store them, an issue on my road bike.
Last week I did a ride near, but not on the shoreline. It was 50 at the start, and about 40 when I left my house. I was in a real dilemma, as I was not sure how much of the ride would be right by the ocean, with the ever present wind. So, I took my vest and jacket, and wore a very light weight wool long sleeved jersey. When I got to the start, I was freezing. So, I put the jacket on. Wrong move, because after the first 7-8 miles, it got up to about 64. But, I unzipped my jersey and switched out my full fingered gloves for regular ones. That, combined with the fact we rode through some very shaded areas, kept me cool.

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Originally Posted by indysteel

I tend to wear knickers in this kind of weather. I'd probably wear a light jacket, too. V's advice is good for long sustained climbs and long descents, but the climbing around here is a bit different.

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I wore knickers yesterday and they were fine, I was just thinking that I am going to be working harder today :p However the temps aren't supposed to get much over 60. It is true we don't have the opportunity around here for long sustained climbs and long descents, and on my Trek I've no place to put anything that I might take off.

I only have one jacket, so will wear that with a sleeveless jersey underneath it. I am thinking the jersey material will wick sweat better than a tank-top that I wear for spinning.

I hope my friends don't get overly bored riding with me, they are much better than I. However they know where I am, and as one of them is my personal trainer I suspect/hope that they will push me to improve :D I suspect they just being there will be the push I need!

My boyfriend competed in a triathlon yesterday (temperature was under 40 degrees when they ran out from the pool to start the bike section) and he was the FIRST person off on the bike (about 40-50 people before him) smart enough to a) wear socks b) wear two layers of long-sleeves, including a softshell jacket (it was also windy!). The guy who won the event ran the whole thing shirtless, sockless, with essentially hotpants on. Looking at him made me shiver.

Lightweight merino wool. Keeps you toasty warm when you're chilly, but lets the air circulate so you stay dryer and can feel the breeze come through when you need it. Doesn't smell nasty like sweaty polyester either.
Wool. Not just for breakfast anymore.

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Originally Posted by BleeckerSt_Girl

Lightweight merino wool. Keeps you toasty warm when you're chilly, but lets the air circulate so you stay dryer and can feel the breeze come through when you need it. Doesn't smell nasty like sweaty polyester either.
Wool. Not just for breakfast anymore.

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I forgot that I have two short sleeve merino wool jerseys - Swabo. They fit a little better than I would like (more cycling will take care of that) but as it will be under my jacket that is ok. I had forgotten about them, thanks for the reminder - even if you didn't know you were reminding me :D

I got Shebeest capris for just this type of weather. It does help to keep the knees warm, but the capris are not too much if you start to warm up on the ride.

I got Sugoi Lucky capris/knickers for this type of weather and they have served me well in my recent rides - upper 40s to start and mid to upper 50s by the time I'm finished. No cold knees but they don't get hot either. I've been topping that with a long-sleeve midweight zip-up and thin fleece vest which has worked great because both can be unzipped when I get warm.