Whatcha wearin’?

[TwoWheelsDC]

I start with a wool base layer (Endura BaaBaa) and then wear a Gore l/s thermal jersey or one of my other thick l/s jerseys over that. I find that it’s comfortable down to about 45 (but I’m a wuss). If it’s colder, I throw on my really light windbreaker and I’m pretty comfortable. My commute is kinda hilly though, so I do heat up a bit, but I think it’s not so much that I would be comfortable losing the windbreaker. But wool is freaking awesome as a base layer, so try it out. In addition to my Endura stuff, I picked up some wool/polyester blended thermal shirts at Target (Champion brand, I think) when I was out of town and needed something at the last minute, and I was pleasantly surprised by their comfort/warmth. They were like $20. I think the Endura base layers were $40. I also find that I don’t need to wash wool after every ride as it is incredibly smell-resistant.

[Dirt]

I threw a LOT of money at my winter clothing this winter. I really like the results. When I say “a lot” of money… I really mean it.

There are reasonably priced ways to do clothing and have it work well for commuting.

What I’ve found is that there are jackets that have wind protection up front, but are vented well in the back. That helps me get the balance of a warm core, but not overheating. There are inexpensive vests that give this too. Mesh on the back and wind-blocking material up front. The zipper becomes your thermostat. If you warm up, lower the zipper a few inches. (I don’t recommend doing this with your pants at work. People are SOOOOO uptight at the office.)

Old thread: Layers 101, Cold Weather Clothing on a Budget

I obviously threw that second referenced thread out the window this year. In doing so, I’m hoping to be doing some very long rides this winter. I’d like not to freeze.

Rock on!

[eminva]

Here are a couple of old threads on this topic:

http://bikearlingtonforum.com/showthread.php?1311-Rain-gear

http://bikearlingtonforum.com/showthread.php?312-Layers-101

I think Grant Peterson alludes to this issue in his book — modern space age materials can repel wind and rain, but result in other problems (e.g., cooking inside under certain conditions). I don’t know that there is any perfect solution.

Liz

[americancyclo]

I’ve been going with jersey, wool arm warmers, and wind shell over that.

Maybe you need something like the Endura Jetstream. It has windblocking panels on the front/forearms/biceps, but is breathable fabric on the back/triceps to allow wind blocking and ventilation.

I got one for my brother-in-law and he loves it.

[creadinger]

Does your jacket have a full zipper? You can use that to regulate how much air flow you get. I have problems with this too. My body gets really hot (and sweaty) while my lower legs, feet and hands freeze.

[CPTJohnC]

@vvill 34928 wrote:

Generally I’m going with either
– layers of non-windproof technical/cycling jerseys with arm warmers (TOO COLD!)
or
– one layer + one mostly-windproof jacket (TOO HOT!).

My one question is how heavy is the windproof layer? I own a very light Performance Bike jacket that I find to be ideal as an outer layer in most conditions that require a jacket. (actually, I just realized that’s probably a newer version of what I have – mine doesn’t have the reflective stripping on the sleeves or the slash pockets on the front) It is essentially an unlined nylon shell. I’d call it wind resistant rather than wind proof. I use it as an outer layer from about 35-49 degrees F (this is very rough – I have probably worn it in both colder and warmer conditions from time to time). For temps 50 and over, I generally just use a jersey or technical T-shirt. Under 35 I use a showers pass jacket that is heavier and less breathable than the Perf. Bike jacket, but is also essentially an unlined shell.

I rely on a series of layers under the shells for warmth, with my coldest riding (from the high teens) involving a technical t-shirt under a long sleeve base layer, a fleece mid-layer and one of the shells mentioned above. I prefer wind shells to insulated jackets for the reason you mention — to hard to avoid overheating.

Obviously, though, temperature control is very personal. What works for me would never work for my wife, for example. She’d need at least another layer or two to feel comfortable in comparable conditions. Also, the length of the ride matters a lot. Now that I’m usually riding for 20 minutes or so, I find that a) I don’t need to worry as much about keeping myself warm, but b) I don’t have time to sweat as much as when I am riding for an hour or more.

worth noting also: I find that hats and gloves can make a huge difference in temperature control. keeping your head and hands warm seems to be important for feeling warmer, generally.

Oh, and the toughest part is often the old adage: Dress for the ride, not the parking lot. I take it to mean suck up some cold at the beginning, because soon enough your hard work will warm you up plenty!

[jrenaut]

If I’m not cold for the first mile of my ride, I’m going to get too hot. Except my feet. My feet are always cold.

I own very little cycling-specific clothing. A couple jerseys I rarely wear, and a pair of mountain bike shorts that I love (without the removable padding – I can’t walk in the padding), and that’s about it. I mostly ride in Under Armor and stuff like that. For winter, I have a couple different long sleeve base layers of varying thickness. I wear short sleeves on top until it gets really cold, and then I wear long sleeves on top.

When it rains and the temperature is under 50 or so, I usually take Metro.

I have a higher sweat tolerance than most people because if I didn’t, I would have moved to Antarctica by now. I sweat a lot, and have just gotten used to it.

[thecyclingeconomist]

@Dirt 34934 wrote:

What I’ve found is that there are jackets that have wind protection up front, but are vented well in the back.

I agree with Dirt here. There are a bunch of products out there that are wind-stopper on the front, but either mesh or highly-vented in the back. Some also have removable arms. I also agree that you have to “throw a lot of money” at the winter-clothing problem.

Getting clothing right in the temps between 30 and 50 is really a tough task. Once it gets really cold (20s and below), it’s not an issue: you just bundle up and go around looking like a bank-robber:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]1965[/ATTACH]

But, when it’s 40 degrees you fight that initial blast of cold, but you don’t want to have sweat accumulate, or the second you stop you will then freeze. Get a Merino wool (or other high-tech synthetic fiber) baselayer (about $75-100), and then a high quality jacket is the key (A high-end GORE, Castelli, or even Pearl Izumi). You won’t do this cheaply! (And if you try, you’ll end up buying 3 or 4 “cheap ones” only to find that you aren’t getting what you want as they simply won’t let the sweat out (most are just nylon shells)… thus realizing you should have just invested in the first place in the legit gear…take it from someone who truly tried to do this under a more frugal budget, and then ended up with a $200 jacket. So, instead of just spending $200, I spent $175 on cheapos, plus the $200 on the right product) If you wear arm-warmers that have a wind-stop coating on them, then you might consider a jacket with removable (zippers) arms too.

I find that most of my ride comfort when it is in the 30s and 40s comes from keeping my toes and fingers warm. Wool socks with a good pair of shoe covers, and a legit pair of gloves (with vents). Upper torso: when I walk outside, it should feel cold. After 5 minutes of pedaling and getting the heart rate up, I find that I almost always feel that I need to remove layers, not add. Having a jacket with two-way zippers and pit-zips is key here.

Also, get a good skull-cap, and if it drops below freezing, I HIGHLY HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend the Talus Cold-Avenger face mask. It completely changed my winter cycling. Rather than stupid balaclavas that make you claustrophobic because you can’t get a good deep breath, this thing is stellar.

[JimK]

I wear a thermal base later (wool does not work for me, but others like it) and a light wind breaker that vents. In between, I wear multiple thin layers made of artificial fibers. At 20 degrees F I might have three layers in between the base and the windbreaker. If I get too warm, no problem: the thin shirts in the middle can be removed and stuffed in a pocket. This also is good when it is not quite as cold on the way home. In January, it often is 20 degrees on the way in and 40 on the way home. In that case, I might only have one layer between the base and the windbreaker on the ride home. Below 20 degrees F I wear a light fleece vest.

[dbb]

I have had pretty good luck with a Showers Pass rain jacket. It stops all the wind and I wear a long sleeve tee and maybe a fleece jacket under. I am a pretty big fan of Moose Mitts, particularly when it gets really cold.

[vvill]

@thecyclingeconomist 34941 wrote:

Getting clothing right in the temps between 30 and 50 is really a tough task.

Yeah this is exactly what I should’ve mentioned in my original post. I’m looking for clothing that works in the weather we’ve been having (not midwinter). That and a lot of the return commutes these days are still > 50F and I don’t usually carry a bag on my commutes so I’m loathe to shed layers.

(I’ve figured out <30F fine. I have various balaclava type things, ski googles, full thermal jackets, etc. that work great.)

@CPTJohnC 34939 wrote:

My one question is how heavy is the windproof layer?

I have a wind-“resistant” MTB one that is very thin but lined with mesh. It was my go-to last year (but I had this problem then too) and I can wear this into the 20s with just a couple layers underneath. It has a venting “cut-out” on the upper back but I still overheat easily in it >35F or so. I’ve been tempted to make my own vents in it (I got this jacket for <$20). I also have a very thin wind vest, and a fleece lined thick wind vest. I’m still experimenting with them. The very thin one doesn’t seem to do enough and the other one seems to do too much in this temp range. I have at least 2 or 3 other shells/jackets which are not cycling specific that I’ve used as well. All have the same problems – nice wind blocking up front, too much heat building up in the back. @creadinger 34938 wrote:

Does your jacket have a full zipper? You can use that to regulate how much air flow you get. I have problems with this too. My body gets really hot (and sweaty) while my lower legs, feet and hands freeze.

Almost all my nicer stuff does have full double zips. But I can still end up riding with my zipper on both the jacket/shell and base layer/jersey half way down, with cold wind going straight onto my skin, and still feeling too warm – mostly my back/armpits get drenched in sweat.

I think I’m concluding that I either need to get a nice shell/jacket that actually vents correctly in the back/under arms while stopping the wind up front (Dirt, americancyclo, thecyclingeconomist), or I just need to forget about sweating a lot and get used to it (jrenaut). I’ll check out some of the links/products mentioned too. Thanks all!

[jrenaut]

@vvill 34949 wrote:

I think I’m concluding that I either need to get a nice shell/jacket that actually vents correctly in the back/under arms while stopping the wind up front (Dirt, americancyclo, thecyclingeconomist), or I just need to forget about sweating a lot and get used to it (jrenaut). I’ll check out some of the links/products mentioned too. Thanks all!

After reading all this, I might be moving into the other camp. A good venting shell sounds like a wonderful Christmas present from my mother-in-law.

[dasgeh]

I have a great waterproof jacket made for serious hiking. It has zippers everywhere that you’d want to vent in a rainstorm — armpits, sides, even the pockets are vented, so if you open the pocket zippers, they vent as well. That may be something that would work for you. Pretty sure I got it at http://www.campmor.com

[Terpfan]

My biking attire doesn’t drastically change much from what I would wear for other workouts aside from some padding and I guess the one Pearl Izumi (sp?) neon green jacket. I rarely find myself bothered except for my hands and feet. The feet solution is just wearing something other than sneakers. I’m like stone age with bike commuting, no clip pedals, and very little of the fancy stuff. I guess I forgot I will wear some cool weather underarmour shirts during the winter when it’s real real cold out. Stuff like today really is just pants, tshirt, and jacket overtop.

[thecyclingeconomist]

@vvill 34949 wrote:

I don’t usually carry a bag on my commutes so I’m loathe to shed layers.

Ah, well, that makes it even worse. The reality for me on these fall days: two completely separate kits. One for the ride in, and one for the ride out.

[Author]

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