| Author | Message | ||
     Xodot |
The riding season is begining to wind down up here and I want to extract every last curve out of the season I can by buying clothing suitable for riding in near freezing temperatures. What have you found that works best? (A buddy suggested INSULTEX is ideal winter wear - thin, wind and water proof - but no one is using it for riding gear.) | ||
| Metalstorm |
Have you thought about a heated liner and heated grips/gloves? I spent 21 winters freezing my butt off then two years ago I finally got heated grips and a heated vest and it was an amazing difference. I now have a heated liner (sleeves heated as well) from Firstgear (made by Warm&Safe) that is freaking awesome. It comes in 90 watt and 60 watt (for weaker charging systems) versions. I have the 90 watt and a heat troller to adjust the heat output is a must. It's not insulated so I can wear it in warm (low, low 70's) with it turned off and not become uncomfortably warm (like with the Aeostich's heated fleece vest) and when it gets cold, a quick turn of the controller knob gets me toasty fasssst. So.. When donning fleece pants, heated liner with a leather or fleece vest over that under my Aerostich Roadcrafter, add in a pair of Tourmaster Winter Elite gloves and Polly Heaters in my grips, I can ride very comfortably in the high teens, low 20's F. | ||
| Bluzm2 |
I have a pair of FirstGear HT2 overpants. They are da bomb! I also just scored a FirstGear Kilemanjaro jacket for 40% off. With this setup and a decent pair of cold weather gloves, I should be good down to 20 degrees or so. Maybe lower. I've use the HT2's for over 2 years, with the liner installed, I've never gotten cold, even when it was about 15 degrees. I rode for about 30 miles, my hands were cold, so was my trunk. The legs and knees were fine. They are also waterproof. They have a Gortex type liner. Highly recommended. Brad | ||
| Adamd |
Snowboarding jacket and pants Snowboarding gloves, bulky but warm. Neck warmer balaklava | ||
| Reepicheep |
The liner in my First Gear Kilamanjaro Air jacket and pants (older version) is an almost supernaturally good insulator. Add the 9sx / Uly "bark busters" and polly grip heaters and a bacalava, and you can ride comfortably for about 20 miles at 30 deg F (which gets me to work). | ||
| Cscutt |
I commute everyday on my bike, it has been between 34-15 here in the mornings; I wear the following and am very comfortable: Teknic Tornado with liner Fieldsheer Murcury overpants without liner US Navy issue flight boots 2007 Scorpion gunner gloves bargain bin $17 GMax M68 with 3 vents open Foggy breath guard ( must have ) Under my jacket I usually only have on a t-shirt, I have to wear a button down and tie at work and it restricts movement on a bike so I put it on when I get there; but I am still warm. | ||
| Gsilvernale |
Without a doubt, the best investment for cold weather riding is electric clothing. If you are on a limited budget, then go with the electric vest. The key is to get one that is snug fitting. You do not need a heat controller, other than the on/off switch. When it gets to warm, turn it off. Its not a big deal to do that. Less cost and less to go wrong. | ||
| Id073897 |
What have you found that works best? Summer. | ||
| Gsilvernale |
About 2 years ago, I started planning for my ride to Alaska in May/June 2006. I seriously considered not doing the electric vest because of the cost - and since I live in the south, it was going to be a one time expense. So I looked around for a inexpensive vest and found one at Cruzan Engineering. It seems to be well made and I wore it for almost the entire trip. I ordered a new one since I am a bigger guy and I had trouble finding a used one that would fit. My 22 year old son ordered the Widder vest and he turned his on a lot more than I did - mostly because he is thinner and does not have as much natural insulation. We both only had the on/off switch. My layers were - long sleeve t-shirt or long underwear, vest, jacket liner, jacket. With the vest on all the time, it was easy to plug in and turn on the electrics if needed. Long underwear was polypro - 2 sets for different days - medium weight and expedition weight. I ordered them off the internet for about $30 for both sets. The vest by itself, was a valuable piece of insulation. And because it was armless, I did not fell constrained in the arms with too many layers. I stayed warm without turning the electrics on except for when the temps were below 45 degrees, the electric vest came on. I would usually turn it on for 20 minutes, then off for about 20, then back on for 20 minutes. Having that instant heat to the body, was worth the $100 I spent for the vest. When it was really cold, the vest let me continue to ride. Without, I would have had to stop - and when you are in the middle of nowhere, at the top of a mountain pass, its best to keep going. If I had not had the vest, I could have added some more layers, but then I would have been like the michelin man. The other area of concern was my hands. I did have wind/brush deflectors on - very important, and I had 3 levels of gloves - light, medium, heavy. I wore the heavy (ski gloves) more than I needed the electrics - maybe 10% of the time. The rest of the time, the medium gloves. For my boots, I had insulated hiking boots that seemed to the best for warmth. I used to use Combat boots to ride with, but when it was cold, these did not do the job. I also wore a neck gaiter the entire time. This actually reduced helmet noise and protected my neck from chafing from my Jacket - but its main purpose was to keep the neck warm. And finally for my legs, I typically had 3 layers on in the colder latitudes. Long underwear, jeans, and leather pants. The leather pants are amazing - and while you kind of look like a serial killer wearing them, they were great for keeping legs warm. I did have one more layer - rainsuit and handlebar muffs, which I would have used if we had ever encountered serious rain - but other than putting the pants on for a half day (Jacket was water proof already), we did not have serious rain issues. |
