Keeping feet warm during FS

[Tania]

My commute is also 14 miles/1 hour. I have the Lake boots (HATE THEM) and then the Giro Alpineduros which I find to be just as warm and half the weight. My toes do start to feel the cold by the time I’m almost to work or home. Somewhat uncomfortable, but not unbearable. My butt is colder.

I purposely rode my mtb on a multiple hour ride this past sunday in flats and heavy backpacking boots with thicker wool socks (as a warmth test) and my feet were toasty. My feet did slip around a bit but then I’m used to riding in Five Tens which glue you to the pedal (I have a winter pair of Five Tens too but they’re not going to cut it when it’s in the teens). Riding in flats with hiking boots wasn’t awful and my feet were warm.

I’m looking into getting the 45Nrth insoles for my alpineduros for when I do want to clip in, otherwise I may get another set of cheapy plastic race face chesters for my commuter bike. But then I’d have to get a lighter pair of hiking boots because my backpacking pair are even heavier than the Lakes.

[huskerdont]

Shimano MW-81s kept the feet warm enough this morning, as usual. Fingers had the usual freeze about half-way in such that when at the light in Rosslyn I curled them back into the palms to warm them up, then was fine. Suppose I really should try some bar mitts but Ima scared, and I know what I need to do and when to keep my fingers alive. It’s only a 35-minute ride for me though.

[QuikAF77]

I have Lake MX 145 boots and I love them until it gets into the low 20’s. For the last few days I have worn a thin liner sock, put toe warmers across my toes, then a heavy wool sock. Paired with compression shorts, tights, wind/rain pants, thermal base layer, Showers Pass Jacket, silk glove liners, Gore Windstopper gloves, 2 Buffs, and ski goggles and I was ok for 16 miles each way yesterday.

[Emm]

My commute is around the same distance, although I’ve been cutting 2 miles off it recently since I hate the cold.

Yesterday I was fine with thin smartwool liner gloves inside of northface hyvent ski gloves (which they dont make anymore, but I’m sure are similar to all of their other ski gloves, many of which go on sale this time of year). My hands started out warm, got cold for 2ish miles, then warmed back up. This for whatever reason is my normal hand routine regardless of what gloves I’m wearing. After about an hour one of my fingers began getting cold again, but that was because I was holding the brakes/shifters with it, so it warmed back up once I moved my hands away from the metal. I ordered bar mitts though, so I’ll be trying those out once they arrive (hopefully in time for Friday’s commute).

Shoes–I wore the shimano MW7 shoes. Unfortunately women’s winter boots in my size are hard to come by, so I got stuck with these. But they’re worth it, esp if you can find them on sale. I used toe warmers and REI heavy duty hiking socks, and was fine. After I took my shoes off I realized my toes were a little cold, but I never noticed the issue while I was on the bike during my hour long ride. Last year I used my normal cycling shoes with shoe covers +toe warmers all year, and I can honestly say they weren’t nearly as warm as the boots. I’m glad I sucked it up and spent the $100ish-$150 on the boots since I think otherwise I might not be biking on days as cold as yesterday.

I do need to find a thicker neck/face warmer though. My balaclava restricts my breathing a bit too much, and my buff is too thin to offer much help. I’m hoping when I dig into my ski-supply bins during my search for ski goggles tonight I’ll find something I can use.

[SurlyTed1187]

@Sunyata 170657 wrote:

Just… No.

Anything that thins your blood (alcohol, aspirin, prescription blood thinners, etc) will actually LOWER your body temperature. If you are not medically required to thin your blood, it is definitely not something that you want to do in the cold. Hypothermia is not fun.

As for the OP’s original question: A pair of good quality mountain bike style platform pedals (with replaceable metal pins) and a nice pair of insulated winter boots (I use a pair of Keens with 400g of Keen. Warm insulation) have kept my feet relatively warm throughout the past three winters that I have commuted full time. I have even done several rather long rides (50+ miles) with them and had no problem with my feet not being connected to the pedals.

One thing that a lot of people forget about with regards to clipless shoes in the winter is that both the cleat and the pedal act as a heat sink drawing heat away from your foot. If you insist on clipping in (and there is nothing wrong with that), then you will either need to get a pair of winter cycling shoes (I do have a pair of Giro Alpineduro’s that are nice when it is above 20F) or find a way to insulate your foot better from the heat sink. I have heard about people using a layer of foil underneath a thick wool insole. Not sure how effective that is, but it might be worth a try.

I do use a thermal insole which has a layer of foil/reflectix on the bottom, topped with wool. The bottom of the feet don’t seem to be an issue.

I payed closer attention this morning, and found it seems to be the tops of my feet and my toes. So I think if I find a way to better insulate the tops of my feet, I’ll notice an improvement.

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[SNKRAMER]

Hi all. I clip in with regular road shoes. I have a pair of overshoes on order given the weather but in the meantime I have been using the aluminum foil around the front of the foot trick mentioned earlier. I first saw it on a GCN video. Family members that witnessed my reynolds wrap foot prep this morning basically pointed and laughed. Anyway, I only wear a regular thickness merino sock and it has worked pretty darn well the last couple of days (8-10 mile rides). I’ve found in other winter activities that layering socks, especially those of the thick variety, usually has the opposite of the intended effect.

[ImaCynic]

@SurlyTed1187 170603 wrote:

I know this is a repeated topic, but I want to hear from fellow FS riders facing these harsh early winter temps.

Last year was my first year with FS, and I was kind of let down by the few days we had with truly below freezing days.

This year, we’re plunging right in with the sub freezing temps. I’ve been struggling in keeping my feet warm. I’ve tried various thickness wool socks. I’ve tried wearing a thin pair of socks under a looser pair of wool socks. I keep the Velcro straps on my shoes loose so as not to constrict my blood flow. I wear neoprene shoe covers to try to keep the wind out. I wear wool leg warmers to keep my legs warm. But I still finish my rides with ice toes.

I just don’t know where else to go aside from dropping a few hundred bucks on a pair of winter cycling shoes.

Any other suggestions are greatly appreciated.

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There are heated socks/insoles out there that you may want to consider, some of these are actually quite reasonably priced.

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[gswim18]

I go with a plastic bag to help with the cold. Normally directly on my foot and then add the sock. Foot is a little damp by the time I get to work, 11 miles, but not cold. Kind of a vapor barrier.

[vern]

@gswim18 170860 wrote:

I go with a plastic bag to help with the cold. Normally directly on my foot and then add the sock. Foot is a little damp by the time I get to work, 11 miles, but not cold. Kind of a vapor barrier.

i’ve read other forum members posting the same advice in the past. It sounds sooooo uncomfortable. I don’t know how you put your foot in a plastic bag without the bag wrinkling, and those wrinkles would drive me crazy, especially if they were on the bottom of my foot.

[n18]

Put your socks on first, then the bag, then cut the excess with scissors. Doing it the other way around would make your feet sweat and you could get frostbite.

[codrisc1]

Been trying the advice on here to little avail. I’m starting to wonder if I have Raynaud’s. This morning’s combo was the most successful attempt: foot-dog poop bag-fresh from the dryer wool sock with toe warmer-shoe-tin foil-bootie.

Let’s just say I was late to work.

[gswim18]

@n18 170868 wrote:

Put your socks on first, then the bag, then cut the excess with scissors. Doing it the other way around would make your feet sweat and you could get frostbite.

I don’t think this is accurate n18. Yes, your foot will sweat but you will reach a point where that process stops. You will then have dry insulating layers on top. Going the other way, you will sweat out your sock pretty rapidly and have wet insulation. That to me is more of a recipe for frostbite.

Cold weather climber’s take on vapor barriers:

https://andy-kirkpatrick.com/blog/view/vbl_socks

[Crickey7]

My feet get cold. I may try the plastic baggie thing. I was fine today with super thin liner sock, heavier liner sock, fluffy sock, handwarmer, shoe and heavy shoe cover. So a grand total of 5 layers. Note I do not use toe warmers, rather hand warmers. The toe warmers don’t seem to generate enough heat.

[Mtansill]

Of note this exact combination worked fine for me this morning at -7 F windchill. What I didn’t mention is that these boots, of course, have room for all of these layers.

Also, on my legs, I wore regular bike shorts, followed by a merino wool baselayer, followed by the thermal Co-op bicycling pants/tights from REI. Yay for keeping the circulatory system warm.

@Mtansill 170606 wrote:

I don’t clip in. So what I have been wearing that have been comfortable enough for at least 15 miles… First layer, thin socks with some wool content. Second layer, thicker socks – doesn’t have to include wool. Third layer, Ziploc bags over the front of the foot. Fourth layer, some old Thinsulate brand boots. Toes have been a little chilled, but not the blocks of ice that I have felt them at before. I have also tried cycling shoes meant for inclement weather instead of the boots (not as much room for air and water to seep in), but it’s been too cold for that the past few days.

I am also a firm believer in making sure to keep my legs warm enough – I’ve been wearing multiple layers on those – to encourage better blood circulation to my extremities.

[n18]

@gswim18 170902 wrote:

I don’t think this is accurate n18. Yes, your foot will sweat but you will reach a point where that process stops. You will then have dry insulating layers on top. Going the other way, you will sweat out your sock pretty rapidly and have wet insulation. That to me is more of a recipe for frostbite.

Cold weather climber’s take on vapor barriers:

https://andy-kirkpatrick.com/blog/view/vbl_socks

I know that your feet get sweaty either way, but putting bags outside all socks causes less sweat. It also depends on how long the commute is and speed. I use my bike for transportation and usually could afford to go slow, 7 to 10 MPH tops, so it’s not for everyone.

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