Winter Wear for a So Cal Weenie

[aminadab]

So I'm moving back to DC for a couple of months this winter. I'm planning on bringing my fixed gear for some much needed riding -- I'm currently in Morocco and all I have is a broken excercise "bike" from 1982. Needless to say, I'm dying to get on an actual road. That said, when I'm visiting my folks for the holidays I remember it being cold as hell there. Question: do people really ride in this weather? Or do you hole yourselves up in the garage and get on rollers? If you do ride, any specific recommendations for a jacket, etc. I was looking at the assos Fugu jacket and uh... Please tell me it's overkill, that I can stay warm without having to spend 600 bucks. Thanks for warm responses.

[67-59]

Yeah, we really ride in this stuff. The only weather that consistently keeps me in is snow/ice on the roads, or sub-zero temps. Sometimes I'm a weenie when it's nicer than that, but I could go out if I wanted.

And yes, the Assos Fugujak is overkill. I live in Minnesota, and my two winter staples are the Assos Intermediate Jersey (about $225) and the midweight jacket (mine is an older version; it's curently called the Airblock 851 and goes for about $300 now). On REALLY cold days, I wear both, and am fine. You'd probably be fine with either one in DC, provided you wear something underneath. If you're only going to get one and aren't used to the cold, my preference would be the Airblock 851. And if you decide to get both, you'll have a lot more flexibility than the Fugu for about the same price (or perhaps less).