Winter Cycling - Mitten recommendations?

My fingers are always, always cold - sitting in the office, while the rest of me is quite comfortable, my fingers are freezing. I've decided to look around for something else to wear while biking this winter - I've heard mitts keep fingers warmer, and with my friction shifters it doesn't matter if I have fingers to hit the rapidfires :D

Anyone have favorite mittens that keep the wind out a bit?

My fingers are always, always cold - sitting in the office, while the rest of me is quite comfortable, my fingers are freezing. I've decided to look around for something else to wear while biking this winter - I've heard mitts keep fingers warmer, and with my friction shifters it doesn't matter if I have fingers to hit the rapidfires :D

Anyone have favorite mittens that keep the wind out a bit?

Look for some convertible thinsulate mittens. You can fold back the mitt part to reveal fingerless gloves. I wear a thin pair of fleece gloves under mine. I picked mine up at Walmart for $15 a couple years ago. Now i can't find them anywhere. I hope they hold together for the rest of this winter.

The convertible gloves are nice because sometimes you need your fingers. Like to pull down/up a zipper or to fix a flat. I can't even imagine that the pricey lobster gloves would be well suited to this.

You can spend a whole lotta money on "cycling" gloves. I did last year, but I won't anymore. I just picked up a pair of winter gloves at Lowes for $12. They are even reflective! They seem like ski gloves, which really work well.

I believe you get what you pay for. Inexpensive gloves are fine if it's dry and you don't need to worry about manual dexterity. I prefer to spend a little extra money now and get truly waterproof gloves that are extremely warm and very thin. These are expensive, but a good pair will last many seasons. When it's below zero I use a pair of Outdoor Research (www.orgear.com) mittens which have a removable lining, very tough outer shell, and an inner lining of goretex. The particular model I have has seperate compartments for thumb, index finger, and the the other three fingers. If it's less than freezing but not bitter cold, I use a pair of Craft lobster mittens. Your thumb goes in one compartment, and two fingers each go in two separate compartments. They also have a removable liner. Good luck!

When it gets really cold I use an inexpensive pair of lobster claw gloves I bought from Nashbar or Performance (I don't remember now). They are wind proof and water resistant and come with a thin liner. They don't havev much insulation but have plenty of room to wear liners like a fleece glove inside. When riding I find that if I can keep my hands out of the wind and water they warm up quickly.
Craig

I've never heard them called 'lobster claws' before - I like it. I might look into the convertibles, although I've always been content to pull off my glove and zip up or whatever before.

Time to head on down to my local sporting goods store to try on some pairs - thanks for the recommendations.

Look on Campmor.com for convertible gloves, I thought I saw some in their catalog. Check Sierra Trading Post too.

Just noticed icebike.org has a very good review of the Vulpine Lobster Claw gloves http://icebike.org/Clothing/VulpineAdaptive.htm .
I find when cycling if I can block the wind it doesn't take much insulation to keep warm. The same is not as true when I am not active.
Craig

lobster claw or trigger finger mitts are the way to go for winter biking if you've got to have mitts-

a set of OR shell mitts are a great 2nd best choice because of layering options.

buckskin chopper mitts with removable wool liners is what i wore growing up delivering papers in the snow on a bike, but you hardly see buckskin choppers anymore.

buckskin chopper mitts with removable wool liners is what i wore growing up delivering papers in the snow on a bike, but you hardly see buckskin choppers anymore.

I have to agree buckskins mitts with wool liners are great. I found a pair at the local hunting store 2 years ago. They work on those sub zero rides.

My $12 Lowes winter gloves (black with reflective markings, marketed for shoveling snow) were too toasty in this morning's commute (upper 30s, wind chill of lower 30s). That's a good sign for when it gets colder.

I purchased a set of Craft Tempest gloves. (~$29) from a local bike shop. I must admit that it doesnt get that cold here in California so I've never tested them in sub-zero conditions. But they are warmer than gloves I've used when MTB riding in the snow up in Mammoth.

What I liked about them is that my hands don't get sweaty or clammy inside. I was also surprised to find that they were still comfortable when the weather conditions were warmer - 40-60F. And they still maintain enough feel with the bars and STI shifters that I don't feel clumsy with them on.

http://www.backcountry.com/store/CRA0035/c11/s100000008/Craft-Tempest-Glove.html?id=vKYjR8Io

Nashbar lobster claws seem pretty well made but they run a little small and if you are in truly cold temperatures you need room for a liner. Excellent for the price.

My $12 Lowes winter gloves (black with reflective markings, marketed for shoveling snow) were too toasty in this morning's commute (upper 30s, wind chill of lower 30s). That's a good sign for when it gets colder.


Not neccessarily. Depends on what you mean by colder. When you get down around 0, mittens are a much better idea.

I just ordered these. Hve not tried them yet.


http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/vertical-item.jsp;jsessionid=Z4CUCG2NZ2JYHTQSNOECCN4OCJVYWIWE?id=0005145920630a&navCount=0&cmCat=srchdx&cm_ven=srchdx&cm_ite=srchdx&CM_REF=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cabelas.com%2Fproducts%2FCpod0005145.jsp&_requestid=10040&_requestid=7410

I don't understan why one needs gloves, lobster - claws, trigger fingers or any other "compartments" when biking. Mittens are just fine for me, and warmer than gloves too. I can do all my zipping, STI shifting, turning lights on/off, etc. with mittens, no problems. I haven't tried repairing a flat with mittens on, but I'm sure I could do it.

Mittens are just the same as your other clothes: layers are good, use wool next to the skin (I knit my own).

Note that size is important for mittens. If too big, your fingers can't heat up the space effectively, if too small they are also cold (but I'm not sure why, they just are!)

just my .02

people from Iceland can probably eat with chopsticks wearing mittens...

I'm not a big fan of the lobster claws. I had some, and felt like someone who'd been exposed to too much radiation... I've always been a fan of choppers and Outdoor Research mitts, but a trigger finger mitt is incredibly dextrous. You also can use it as a regular mitt when its 40 below until you need the extra dexterity of your index finger.

Pearl Izumi mittens work great for me. I'm on my fifth season with a pair, and my fingers stay toasty until around 5 degrees or so. Here's a site that has them at a great price - http://www.livetoplay.com/pages/Product/product.asp?level1_id=4951&level2_id=5033&item=201514&level2_title=Gloves+%26+Mittens

Sorry, I can't get the link to work, but they're on sale for $19.99 (normally $60 or so)