Winter clothing

Yet Another Graham said:

As it looks like I'm going to be using the bike permanantly now, I wondering
what would be the most suitable clothing to obtain for seasonally inclement
weather. And winter too!

I'm on fairly tight budget and not looking to be a fashion icon -

Well. Top down I would go with any cheap woolen hat. For really cold
days (-5C and under) a balaclave style hat or a scarf over the face as
well as a hat works OK.
Upper body for the base layer try and avoid cotton. Any thermal type
long sleeve base layer to start with. Down to around freezing a
waterproof or windproof shell jacket on top of the base will be enough.
Below that add a jumper or fleece.
Hands- a pair of cheap fleece gloves from the supermarket will do.
Legs - Ron Hill Tracksters or something similiar will do the job. For
really cold weather add a second pair or a pair of tracksuit bottoms.
Feet - normal cycling shoes with overshoes for really cold days.
As long as you avoid cotton and overly loose clothes especially on the
lower legs there is no need for much cycling specific gear.
I don't use waterproof trousers. I find they restrict movement and
I get wet anyway through condensation. As long as you are warm getting
wet doesn't matter.
You will find a benefit with some cycling specific clothing.
Waterproof jackets are cut longer at the back for example.
Iain

"Yet Another Graham" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

As it looks like I'm going to be using the bike permanantly now, I
wondering what would be the most suitable clothing to obtain for
seasonally inclement weather. And winter too!

I'm on fairly tight budget and not looking to be a fashion icon - just
reasonably priced, practible clothing. Most of my rides are 18 miles each
way done over about 75 minutes inward and 120 minutes returning (more
hills and usually loaded with shopping etc)

Any suggestions?

Graham

a good idea is to register with LIDL, ALDI and NETTO to receive their bi
weekly offers on line - you will then see when they have their twice yearly
( usually) biking "offer" on! Netto and Lidl have only just had their
"autumn" one so you have missed out on some inexpensive but nevertheless
very adequate winter waterproofs etc.
As a "grumpy old man" I use LIDL every spring ( round about the end of
March) to fit myself up with replacement gear. You sometimes have to be
careful with sizing -- especially in shorts -- since each year L, XL and XXL
seem to be totally unrelated to any other cycling gear you buy. I have
bought XL shorts that were a perfect fit and which were sizes too small in
different years. I have bought XXL shorts that would have fitted a 20 stone
man as well! I always now check a sample for sizing but you generally have
to be quick 'cos they don't stay there very long -- and beware of the
"Ebayer" who just loads up his trolley with everything he can get his/her
hands on.
I'm off to LIDL this morning for the opening rush for rechargeable
batteries. I missed the last time and got in 1/2 an hour after opening and
the cupboard was distinctly bare!

--
Trevor A Panther
In South Yorkshire,
England, United Kingdom.
www.tapan.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk

Quoted message said:

Yet Another Graham said:

As it looks like I'm going to be using the bike permanantly now, I wondering
what would be the most suitable clothing to obtain for seasonally inclement
weather. And winter too!

I'm on fairly tight budget and not looking to be a fashion icon -

Well. Top down I would go with any cheap woolen hat. For really cold
days (-5C and under) a balaclave style hat or a scarf over the face as
well as a hat works OK.
Upper body for the base layer try and avoid cotton. Any thermal type
long sleeve base layer to start with. Down to around freezing a
waterproof or windproof shell jacket on top of the base will be enough.
Below that add a jumper or fleece.
Hands- a pair of cheap fleece gloves from the supermarket will do.

Sorry to hijack this part of the thread...

I've never found a pair of gloves that keep my hands warm on the very
cold days and allow sufficient dexterity to use my ergo leavers
reliably. Any suggestions anyone?

Quoted message said:

Legs - Ron Hill Tracksters or something similiar will do the job. For
really cold weather add a second pair or a pair of tracksuit bottoms.
Feet - normal cycling shoes with overshoes for really cold days.
As long as you avoid cotton and overly loose clothes especially on the
lower legs there is no need for much cycling specific gear.
I don't use waterproof trousers. I find they restrict movement and
I get wet anyway through condensation. As long as you are warm getting
wet doesn't matter.
You will find a benefit with some cycling specific clothing.
Waterproof jackets are cut longer at the back for example.
Iain

Fleece gloves a bit larger than you would usually wear will do down to
frosty days then if it's really cold (only a couple of days a year) I
carry a pair of light nylon mitts (from a climbing shop bargain bin)
with a wooly lining, big enough to go over my fleece gloves. Brakes and
gears are fine.

The really necessary part though is a decent jacket. I rode with a
pertex one (and still do as emergency cos it's light) but in the depths
of a cold, wet winter I got caught in a sleet storm and I was in tears
by the time I got home. My arms were numb up to the elbows because I
had become wet through.

The day after I coughed up for a goretex cycling jacket that has saved
my life a few times since (four hours in a snowstorm once).

This is serious when you're out that far from home.

A buff if really nice to have as well, and cheap too.

Robert

in message <[email hidden]>, Yet Another Graham

(') said:

As it looks like I'm going to be using the bike permanantly now, I
wondering what would be the most suitable clothing to obtain for
seasonally inclement weather. And winter too!

I'm on fairly tight budget and not looking to be a fashion icon - just
reasonably priced, practible clothing. Most of my rides are 18 miles
each way done over about 75 minutes inward and 120 minutes returning
(more hills and usually loaded with shopping etc)

Winter tights, especially the ones with waterproof fronts, are a very
good idea. Waterproof trousers are not. I bought a pair of quite
expensive specially-for-cycling ones, but they aren't at all comfortable
to cycle in. On the whole, keeping warm is more important than keeping
dry. You aren't going to keep dry anyway, because if you wear things
which are really waterproof you'll bathe in your own sweat.

Having said that, my Altura Nevis jacket, now three of four years old, is
really good for moderate paced rides in really inclement weather. It's
waterproof but well ventilated.

A vast proportion of one's heat loss is through ones head. A woolen or
fleece hat is a good thing; in very cold weather, a balaclava is
excellent. Keeping ones hands and feet comfortable is also important -
having cold, wet feet, in particular is utterly miserable. Winter
cycling boots are a real luxury, but quite expensive. Failing that,
overboots and warmer socks help. But in really horrible weather water
trickles down ones legs and into one's socks, and, short of waterproof
trousers, there isn't much you can do about that.

For the rest, wear several layers, in such a way that you can
conveniently take one off without having to get completely undressed!

And finally, a buff is a very wonderful thing. It's basically a tube of
lycra, but can quickly be adapted into a hat or a scarf or a headband or
an elbow or knee warmer, just to provide you with some extra insulation
where you need it most.

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/
There's nae Gods, an there's precious few heroes
but there's plenty on the dole in th Land o th Leal;
And it's time now, tae sweep the future clear o
th lies o a past that we know wis never real.

rowman said:

I've never found a pair of gloves that keep my hands warm on the very
cold days and allow sufficient dexterity to use my ergo leavers
reliably. Any suggestions anyone?

I've used windproof fleece gloves (as sold for walkers) for commuting
in cold weather. The windproof bit is really important - normal fleece
gloves are pretty much useless when cycling above 10mph IME. The only
down side is that they wear out reasonably quickly when cycling (say
two years commuting and are ~20 quid a pair).

For *really* cold weather I use some Pearl Izumi gloves

http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=19296&subcategory_ID=1141

I find these too hot to use except for short commutes (where I don't
get warmed up) even when it's <0C. I've used them in -10C and not had
cold hands.

Arthur

--
Arthur Clune

Quoted message said:

Sorry to hijack this part of the thread...

I've never found a pair of gloves that keep my hands warm on the very
cold days and allow sufficient dexterity to use my ergo leavers
reliably. Any suggestions anyone?

First off, make sure you're wearing windproof gloves. Some warm inners
make 'em good for 90% of winter rides and still quite slim.

Also, wear a hat and something to stop the wind going down the front of
your neck. I often get cold hands because the body is sending warm blood
to somewhere that needs it more.

Quoted message said:

As it looks like I'm going to be using the bike permanantly now, I
wondering what would be the most suitable clothing to obtain for
seasonally inclement weather. And winter too!

Cycling specific cut in the jacket will protect your builders bum. Wind
proof for the cold, water resistant (instead of water proof) so you soak
yourself less.

Any old cotton beanie hat for cold-dry, baseball cap for the rain (keeps
it out of the eyes). If no one is watching a wide brimmed hat keeps it
out of the neck too, at the expense of making me look a bit of a [censored].

A buff or scarf to stop a draught coming down my neck and stealing the
warmth from my chest was a great investment. The buff is particularly
good for pulling up over my face when it's really cold.

Overshoes to keep toes dry/warm are the next planned buy. At the moment
I use small freezer bags as 'oversocks'. Works surprisingly well.

Arm warmers are excellent if I'm going out in cycling fancy dress but
want a short sleeved shirt, In winter I swap the shorts for ronhill
bikesters (almost - I've got tracksters, which don't have the high back.
This can lead to a weird horizontal tan lines which reveal themselves
when you bend down, and look kind of like a flash of thong. This is not
good).

On long rides I'll stuff a waterproof jacket in too - it'll never get
used 99% of the time, but like a previous poster hinted at, it will
occasionally save you in torrential all-day freezing cold downpours.

I've also seen bin bags make good jackets and hats, so you don't /need/
to have cycling spedific stuff.

in message <[email hidden]>, Mark
Thompson

('pleasegivegenerously@warmmail*_turn_up_the_heat_to_reply*.com') said:

Quoted message said:

Sorry to hijack this part of the thread...

I've never found a pair of gloves that keep my hands warm on the very
cold days and allow sufficient dexterity to use my ergo leavers
reliably. Any suggestions anyone?

First off, make sure you're wearing windproof gloves. Some warm inners
make 'em good for 90% of winter rides and still quite slim.

This is /very/ much a matter of taste. My hands always overheat after
riding half an hour in long-fingered gloves, whatever the weather.

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/
Ring of great evil
Small one casts it into flame
Bringing rise of Men ;; gonzoron

Arthur Clune said:

For *really* cold weather I use some Pearl Izumi gloves

http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=19296&subcategory_ID=1141

I was about to recommend the same. If the temperature's much above
freezing I prefer to wear SealSkinz (the standard ones are better than
the cycle specific ones, IME).

With any winter gloves it's worth wearing inner gloves, not only for
extra warmth, but also so that you can sweat into the inner gloves and
wash them once a week. It means I can get away with washing my winter
gloves only once a year, in the summer when I can dry them easily.

I favour these:
<url:http://www.patra.com/ProductDetail.asp?ProductID=180&C1=&C2=&C3=>

These are also good, but don't last as long:
<url:http://www.patra.com/ProductDetail.asp?ProductID=166&C1=&C2=&C3=>

--
Danny Colyer <URL:http://www.colyer.plus.com/danny/>
"He who dares not offend cannot be honest." - Thomas Paine

Arthur Clune wrote on 21/08/2006 10:17 +0100:

Quoted message said:

For *really* cold weather I use some Pearl Izumi gloves

http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=19296&subcategory_ID=1141

Me too but I've rarely found a day cold enough to wear them. The rest
of the time they are too warm.

--
Tony

"Anyone who conducts an argument by appealing to authority is not using
his intelligence; he is just using his memory."
- Leonardo da Vinci

Many thanks for all your helpful and thoughtful replies. Best to find out
from knowledgeable people than to find out the hard way through experience.

I noticed a few warnings about not using cotton - is that because cotton
retains moisture (sweat)?

Graham

"Pinky" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

As a "grumpy old man" I use LIDL every spring ( round about the end of
March) to fit myself up with replacement gear.

I guess that makes me a grumpy old woman, then, as I am kitted out in Lidl,
Aldi & Tchibo kit :-)

When the offspring's kit for competitive cycling is the expensive stuff, the
parent makes do with the cheap but adequate stuff from said establishments.

Cheers, helen s

Yet Another Graham said:

Many thanks for all your helpful and thoughtful replies. Best to find out
from knowledgeable people than to find out the hard way through
experience.

I noticed a few warnings about not using cotton - is that because cotton
retains moisture (sweat)?

I think that's the general complaint. I used to do a 14 mile commute into
the centre of London wearing a cotton T-shirt. It did get rather damp but I
never thought of it as a problem. A proper wicking cycling top does stay
drier though. It is, as always, a matter of taste.
--
Chris

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Yet Another Graham said:

Many thanks for all your helpful and thoughtful replies. Best to find out
from knowledgeable people than to find out the hard way through
experience.

I noticed a few warnings about not using cotton - is that because cotton
retains moisture (sweat)?

I think that's the general complaint. I used to do a 14 mile commute into
the centre of London wearing a cotton T-shirt. It did get rather damp but I
never thought of it as a problem. A proper wicking cycling top does stay
drier though. It is, as always, a matter of taste.

I don't think I'd want to taste any sort of cycling top after
I'd been using it.
--
Cheers
the.Mark