Long-sleeved, WARM weather jerseys

[Cari]

Ok, please don't hate me, but...

I live in Puerto Rico, where "winter" means it's 70 to 85 degrees during the day and "fall" is when you wake up one Sunday and all your tv shows mysteriously run one hour later than they have all summer.

Now that I'm doing longer rides (3-4 hours) I keep getting sunburned, no matter how much SPF 50 I put on.

It appears that my options are armwarmers or long-sleeved jerseys. Since I'm not exactly thrilled about the idea of covering my arms in fleece while I roast in the sun, I would looove to find a long-sleeved jersey that's made of the same breathable, lightweight material as short-sleeved jerseys.

Have any of you found jerseys that fit that description? Any jersey which has long sleeves but is too thin for your fall/winter riding would probably be ideal for me, so if you find one... please let me know.

Thanks,

~Cari

[CorsairMac]

I think it was Nuthatch that was asking about some arm covers for summer wear but I can't find the thread. There is a company that makes arm "coolers" I guess you could call them that you can cover your arms with in the summer but have little to no weight.

[emily_in_nc]

I have found that the very basic, inexpensive plain-colored long-sleeved jerseys from Performance (their house brand) are very thin and wicking. This would seem to be what you are looking for, and at a reasonable cost. I have a white one and it would be perfect for a warm-weather ride, but I can't bring myself to wear it for that (I wear 30 spf, water/sweat-proof sunscreen and short- or no-sleeve jerseys and end up lightly tanned but not burned) so I mostly layer it over a base layer for cooler-weather rides.

Good luck!
Emily

[administrator]

Terry used to make a jersey called the Sunblocker, but it is no longer available. For Spring of 2006 we will have longsleeve summer weight jerseys designed for sun protection, from several manufacturers, including Shebeest!

Other resources to check out include:
Sun Precautions

Performance Sun Protect Jersey (only S and XL sizes)

[nuthatch]

Hey, Corsair!

I tried several options to shield my arms from becoming strips of bacon this summer.

- Dark color Duofold waffle weave wicking shirts in dark colors
- White New Balance wicking long sleeve shirt
- Lotus (by Patagonia) long sleeve paddling/canoeing shirt (like swimsuit material and not so breathable

I think I'm with Emily on the inexpensive Performance jersey being a good choice. None of the shirts I tried were jerseys, which is okay, but not perfect. I did a lot of research on this and the main fact to keep in mind is that dark colors are much better at screening out the rays. That's hard to accept when it's close to 100 degrees outside but it actually isn't that bad. Shading your skin from the sun seems to make you feel cooler and having a bit of a "puddling" effect under your sleeves feels good too as the wind rushes through the fabric.

Some folks here recommend UnderArmour and several cyclists on the MS150 here in Illinois were wearing them and highly recommended them. Once again, they aren't actual jerseys and they are pricey.

[Pedal Wench]

Oh - it was me with the arm coolers - still swear by them! They're made by Desoto sports - here:
http://www.desotosports.com/products/accessories.asp
3rd item on the list. I'm serious - these rule. We have so many people asking about them!

Also, Boure (Ned Overton's company in Durango) makes an SPF50 jersey that my BF swears by - it's green and yellow, but he's worn it all summer long (on days he's not using the arm coolers) riding in Miami, and he loves it.

Note to admin: y'all should consider adding some of these products to your lineup!

[Cari]

Hi everyone,

Thank you all for your replies. I'm especially psyched about those arm coolers because they're *exactly* what I need to shield my arms and keep wearing all those short-sleeved jerseys I like so much. So thanks for the tip and for the link, Pedal Wench.

The long-sleeved exercise jerseys and Under Armour shirts are a good idea, but I only really wear those when I'm doing short rides near home. I need my 2-3 pockets for longer rides!

I look forward to seeing the longsleeve summer weight jerseys here on the TE website, especially the Shebeest models. I already have the Bellissima jersey in two colors and I'm about to order a third one, in yellow, from here. Their curvy shape and their complete lack of elastic at the hem and sleeves makes them extremely forgiving and flattering to my figure.

Saludos,

~Cari