Dressing for the weather - basic question

[Catrin]

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.

[Pedal Wench]

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.

[OakLeaf]

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.

[Veronica]

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

[shootingstar]

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.

[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.

[Crankin]

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.