Whoops! (cold weather road riding/clothing content)

[sandyrs]

This morning I got dressed for a quick road ride in the low 30s (which was what the forecast called for): wool base layer, wool jersey, wind vest, arm warmers, wool gloves, bibs, leg warmers, thin wool socks, road shoes with thin stretchy shoe covers. Typically, this setup leaves me freezing for five minutes then perfectly warm for the rest of the ride without overheating and drenching myself in sweat, which ultimately would leave me more cold.

Still, five minutes in I wasn't warming up at all. That's when I checked the temperature- 16 degrees! What followed was one of the most grueling hours I've spent on the bike this year. :help:

[MattTuck]

It might be time to take riding indoors, I'm sad to say.

[jr59]

70+ here....I feel bad for you guys!:banana:

[sandyrs]

70+ here....I feel bad for you guys!:banana:

Hey, high of 55 tomorrow...

But it's going to rain all day...

And I have a CX race at 8am...

[stephenmarklay]

This morning I got dressed for a quick road ride in the low 30s (which was what the forecast called for): wool base layer, wool jersey, wind vest, arm warmers, wool gloves, bibs, leg warmers, thin wool socks, road shoes with thin stretchy shoe covers. Typically, this setup leaves me freezing for five minutes then perfectly warm for the rest of the ride without overheating and drenching myself in sweat, which ultimately would leave me more cold.

Still, five minutes in I wasn't warming up at all. That's when I checked the temperature- 16 degrees! What followed was one of the most grueling hours I've spent on the bike this year. :help:

I had the cheap winter clothing thread and did that same ride for 3 hours last weekend. I enjoyed everything but my really cold feet.

[Bob Ross]

it might be time to take riding indoors, i'm sad to say.

never!!!!

[FlashUNC]

65 and sunny here tomorrow. Nice break from a week of 65 and raining.

[OtayBW]

This morning I got dressed for a quick road ride in the low 30s (which was what the forecast called for): wool base layer, wool jersey, wind vest, arm warmers, wool gloves, bibs, leg warmers, thin wool socks, road shoes with thin stretchy shoe covers. Typically, this setup leaves me freezing for five minutes then perfectly warm for the rest of the ride without overheating and drenching myself in sweat, which ultimately would leave me more cold.

Still, five minutes in I wasn't warming up at all. That's when I checked the temperature- 16 degrees! What followed was one of the most grueling hours I've spent on the bike this year. :help:
At that temp, I would have gone with the same base layer(s) but ditched the wind vest in favor of a full-fledged winter jacket. That and appropriate head/neck gear with the rest of your stuff and you'd've been good to go, I'd say.

[druptight]

I checked the forecast last night and was planning on suiting up this AM, then saw the actual temps this morning and decided to scrap it. I just can't keep my feet warm in weather below 30, much less below 20.

[Lionel]

Said it in the other thread but worth mentioning again, wool base layer is just a plain bad idea for cycling.

[crownjewelwl]

70+ here....I feel bad for you guys!:banana:

yeah but you need to live in jacksonville!

[zerocool5468]

wear more layers

[sandyrs]

wear more layers

I'm not asking for advice, I'm just being a whiner :). I know how to dress for this weather, but I was already outside and on the road before I realized how cold it was.

[sandyrs]

Said it in the other thread but worth mentioning again, wool base layer is just a plain bad idea for cycling.

I like it for temps down to around freezing. Below that, I usually wear something synthetic. Again, the point of this thread was just to indulge in some good old fashioned whining about it being way colder than anticipated in New England this morning.

[berserk87]

I would not call anyone that rides at such temps a whiner.

I have ridden in the teens a few times already this year. Usually I don't encounter these temps until at least late December, but this year's weather stinks here - cold and wet more than normal.

I'm a pretty experienced cold-weather rider, but it's hard to nail it on how to dress each and every ride.

I had an "oops" ride last week - dressed for mid-30's and a fairly brisk small group ride - turned out that it got colder (into the mid-20's) without me paying attention, and the ride turned into a smokes-n-jokes pace because some of the guys could not hold said brisk pace this time of year.

So I froze my butt off for a few hours riding 14mph. Sucked.

[makoti]

Expecting 30 & getting 16...yeah, I'd have been under dressed, too. But I would think I'd notice it as soon as I stepped out. Guess it depends on where you start from.

[redir]

It wasn't supposed to rain till after 9PM last night but started around 1PM :(

The commute home was a cold wet one.

[juanj]

It hasn't been very cold in Austin yet (nor will it get very cold), but a couple of Saturdays ago I decided to go riding in the rain. It was maybe 60 degrees, not bad, but I don't have a rain jacket.

Things were going fine, then the rain started falling in sheets. "I can handle this," I thought. Next came the lighting and thunder. Very hard rain, plus feeling like you are being chased by giants, that was no fun. Luckily my wife called me in the middle of my ride.

"Should I come get you?"

"Um, yes."

I don't mind a little rain (did it yesterday again), but I've decided what I really don't like is cleaning my bike afterwards.

[cetuximab]

i love winter riding. Looking at the weather forecast and guessing how much to wear. It is the challenge and part of the pleasure of winter riding. It will be a memory that will last. I still remember a kayak trip 20 years ago. We all dressed appropriately. While we played at the wave right next to the put in. the sun was bright and the black basalt canyon walls radiated us with warmth. We started to sweat so we shed layers. As soon as we left the layers in the shuttle car and got into the canyon, clouds covered the sun. The wind started up and we froze for the next 14 miles. That was the coldest five hours of my life. My brothers and I still talk about that trip down the snake River.

[Kirk007]

My winter rides now feature a nice Swift Industries Zweigeist saddle bag that allows me to correct temperature management and precipitation forecasting errors. I don't enjoy being cold, wet and miserable on the bike.

[oldpotatoe]

I'm not asking for advice, I'm just being a whiner :). I know how to dress for this weather, but I was already outside and on the road before I realized how cold it was.

"If you are cold when riding, it's not the weather but lack of preparation."

-anon..

BTW-My cutoff is about 35 degrees. Can't handle water freezing in my bottles.

Cold, wet, windy-If I got 2, I don't ride.