Cold Weather Riding

[liner]

In the past, I have put my bike away for the winter when the weather turned chilly and windy. (I live in Indiana.) I want to ride this year through most of the winter. I would like to hear your suggestions for staying warm and how you dress for winter riding. If anyone has a good wind-blocking jersey or jacket, please tell me about that also. Thanks!

Liner

[cycling@42]

I just started to ride in August of last year. Fell in love and continued all winter long. I'll start at my head...I have a lightweight ear band that was essential. I never needed a hat but the earband fit well under my helmet. In extremely cold weather, I wore a neoprene half face mask. It covers my nose and chin and has holes for breathing. Always wear sunnies...it helped keep the glare down and protects my eyes from wind, snow, etc. I wear a polypro long sleeve shirt, a cotton turtle neck, a wool sweater and then either my Goretex jacket or my North Face wind breaker. Legs...polypro long undies, my cross country ski leggings. I wear polypro sock liners and then heavy socks. My toes ALWAYS get cold. Haven't found a way to protect them yet. On my hands I wear a thin glove liner and then depending on how cold it is I wear the appropriate thickness of glove. They too always get cold. Now, if you are picturing this, you can imagine I am anything but an ad for cycling wear but I was able to ride ALL winter long! Hope you hear from others on how to keep your toes and fingers warm! It was invigorating to ride in the really cold weather. Watch out for your water bottle...it will start to freeze pretty quick!

[Nancy]

Yes, my wintertime riding is not a fashion statement, but I have found a few tricks to help keep my extremities warm. For my hands, I wear a pair of lightweight fleece gloves and then a pair of heavy weight fleece mittens over them. I find that multiple layers of fleece do a really good job of keeping warm and blocking wind but remaining breathable. My toes really gave me the hardest time. One solution is to use the little packets called Toe Warmers that you attach to your socks- they really help when it's really cold. I also have used fleece lined neoprene socks, which work well in moderate temps (high 30's) but if your feet are sweating and you stop, you will quickly have frozen feet. Another solution is to use several layers of warm socks inside of neoprene paddling booties- pretty good wind block but not a very stiff surface for a cycling shoe. I also have pedaled in mukluks- looks real funky but my feet stay toasty.
And once the snow gets too deep I just switch to ski boots!

[DoubleLori]

I have ridden in weather down to about 10° F (about -12° C for you Canadians). I wear similar clothing to Cycling@42. For my feet, I wear thick SmartWool socks in my regular mountain bike shoes and cover with 2 sets of neoprene booties. My feet stay relatively warm, though the farthest I've ridden at that temperature is about 20 miles. For my hands, the Pearl Izumi AmFib lobster claw gloves (see www.pearlizumi.com and navigate to "store" then "accessories" then "gloves") are the first ones that I have found that really keep my hands warm. In fact I can't wear these gloves if it is ABOVE freezing because my hands get too hot. If it is also snowing, I have a set of lobster claw GoreTex rain mitts (uninsulated), made by Outdoor Research (see www.outdoorresearch.com and navigate to "handwear" and then "waterproof" handwear), that will fit over the insulated Pearl Izumi lobster claw gloves. (The lobster claw style gloves have only 3 segments--thumb, forefinger+middle finger, and ring+little finger. They keep your hands warmer like mittens because each individual finger isn't exposed to the elements, but they let you control the bike by having the split in between the middle and ring fingers)

[paintgirl]

Hi, I was able to ride my bike until mid December last year. I live close to North bay Ontario, so we get a lot of snow and cold. I was never really cold biking, but gave up when there was too much snow. I was biking to commute to work, and we have about 10 miles of bike path that made up most of my ride, only about 2 miles on highway. The paths aren't plowed, and I am not ready for highway winter driving. I wore mid weight long underwear tops and bottoms from Patagonia I think, a fleece liner from Solstice, and my Invicta jacket over(it keeps out rain, wind etc). I also had a headband under my helmet, and if it was really windy, just pulled the hood of my jacket right over helmet and all. I used the lobster claw gloves, and most of the time they were just a bit too warm, soggy to pull off! I wore my winter boots from Prospector with smartwool socks, and some kind of overbootie, something like the sealskinz socks. I put very warm water in my water bottle, so was able to drink it , not pleasant while still warm !I am debating on whether I am brave enough or have enough stamina to ride thru the snow, it's not unusual for us to get 4-5 inches per snow, and it snows a lot. Am enjoying the crisp cool riding now, we are at -4 C today, sunny and the fall colors are magnificent. I live in the country surrounded by a hardwood bush, so it is probably the prettiest it looks right now. Happy thanksgiving to fellow Canadians, Happy monday to the USA, enjoy, give thanks, Paintgirl

[DoubleLori]

Forgot to mention that for my head, I wear just the earband (Pearl Izumi) if the temperature is right around freezing. For colder weather, I add a polypropylene balaclava and cover my helmet with a Lycra cover to cut down on the airflow. If it is well below freezing, I will wear the balaclava, a "skullcap" over that, and the earband, as well as the helmet cover. I also have a neoprene face mask to keep my nose from freezing, but so far I haven't figured out how to keep my sunglasses from fogging over when I use it, so I've only tried it a couple of times.

Anyone have suggestions for keeping the nose warm without fogging glasses?

[talouse]

Liner,

As for windblocking, GoreTex does a great job of that. I live in Seattle so GoreTex is pretty much a necessity. I discovered that even when it was not raining the GoreTex jacket was still the thing to wear because it blocked the chilling wind and was pretty breathable so I didn't get soaked with sweat.

If you don't really have a need for GoreTex I can also recommend Craft S3 undershirts. I don't think they make a women's version of this so I buy the men's small - however they do run snug. This tee is amazing - blocks wind entirely but is thin enough that you can layer over it easily. It is pricey, however - about $50.

My feet and hands suffer in the cold. Lobster gloves are the only things that keep me warm. As for feet, I've finally given up on all the combinations of socks, baggies, bigger shoes, etc. I bought a pair of Sidi's - all Lorica (no mesh) and wear Woolie Boolies, or Craft socks and Mycoal Toe Warmers.

Here's some links:

Craft socks and S3

Woolie Boolies
Toe Warmers

[goddess1222]

i would like to add a question to this topic. i am also getting ready for winter riding. my most important purchase will be either a skullcap or headband to protect my ears. i get horrible earaches from cold wind in the winter. any one know of a really good quality skullcap or headband that is windproof, and sweat wicking?

thanks, goddess1222

[DoubleLori]

I have the Pearl Izumi brand earbands and skullcap and I am very happy with them. They are very warm and breathable.

[ayermail2]

I have Goretex Windstopper ear-pops...

No band, just sorta "clip" on ...
only drawback - I've got the "ocean" in my ears.....

[presfoxm]

I have even less glamorous suggestions than previously stated.

My problem places: Face. I don't like wearing anything on my face unless absolutely necessary. It drives me a little batty. So unless it is really cold, if the wind is blowing I put a layer of vaseline on my face. I have also heard Olive Oil works well. It becomes a wind blocker. Every little spec of dirt attaches itself to your face, but that is what soap is for....

My hands: I have a pair of winter biking gloves. Which are large enough that I can wear my regular gloves underneath them. I don't like the fact that a lot of winter gloves do not have the same padding as a normal glove so this is my solution. My fingers though do not get cold very much. So I keep them on at the beginning of a ride and take them off pretty quickly.

My feet: Like all of you I have problems keeping my feet warm. I have tried multiple layers of socks. The botties, plastic bags, etc. The only thing I have found that works is.... making windbreaker socks. I went to the Salvation Army, bought a kids windbreaker and made socks out of the sleeves. So I wear a pair of socks, wicking, the windbreaker socks, the shoes and the booties. That seems to take care of my feet pretty well. Not perfect but it works for me.

Good luck and enjoy. Your first ride in the snow will be very special.

[Dogmama]

You ladies really inspire me. I can't get out in anything below 50 degrees. I've lived in the desert for 41 years. I will definitely get more miles in this winter (such as it is in Tucson)

[liner]

Dogmama,

You poor thing, no chance to ride in the snow and cold weather.
It must be fabulous to live in Tucson and not have to deal with it.
I absolutely love Tucson and one of these days I am going to do some riding in that area.

I am getting off the subject, green as I am with envy for Dogmama. You biker babes are certainly an inspiration to me. I used to hibernate when the temperature got below 60. I thank you all for your suggestions, I will be trying out many of them this winter, maybe I can make it down to 30 degrees!

Liner

[Dogmama]

Yes, no snow is nice but we pay in the summer. You have to be done with your ride no later than 8AM, otherwise it is approaching 100 degrees. And, I have devised all kinds of ways to carry water (two bottles behind the saddle, one on the downtube and a camelback.) Oh well - maybe the extra weight is a good training aid.

Tucson is a nice place to ride, but we have had several cyclists hit & killed recently by drunk or careless drivers. They recently enacted a penalty for hitting a cyclist: If you hurt them, it's $500, if you kill them it's $1,000.

Welcome to the wild west.

[Hill-Slug]

Originally posted by presfoxm
I went to the Salvation Army, bought a kids windbreaker and made socks out of the sleeves.

That's really clever! Beats the heck out of paying the $$$ for store-bought socks. (I found a pair of GoreTex socks at a thrift shop for $3 - that was pure luck!)