Hello all, I live in good ol central IL, and if anybody has lived here you know that it rains more than it snows in the winter. SO, I will be needing some good waterproof pants for riding from my place to campus (about 2 miles one way probably 2.5 max). I have been doing a lot of searching for a good waterproof yet breathable pant. I have found a few, but would like a few suggestions on which may be good, or if you all have suggestions on good waterproof pants that are breathable, let me know!
The pants i have found are :
Bellwether Aqua-No™ Pant
Bellwether Windfront Tight
Gill® Freedom Pant
Thanks for any help you guys and girls may have on the pants!

I was also curious about good gloves to get. I will need something that is warm, and grips well and is somewhat windproof. I am not so crazy about waterproof gloves because as long as my hands stay warm I'm cool. BUT i will take all suggestions on good gloves!

My last question has to deal with petals. I was wondering if it would be safer to get a pair of shoes and clip petals for my bike or if it would be safer to use standard petals and good ol sneakers for wetter wintery riding?! Performance bike has some good specials on shoes and i found a pair of shimano 520 clipless on ebay for cheep. Let me know what you all think on that one too!

I am poor and need to bike as much as i can and stay warm and healty! THanks for any helP!!!!


bikerboy869

I too was looking for a pair of good cycling gloves this year and was going to pay the price, but I found some
at Old Navy that have 40g. of thinsulate with good grips on palm and fingers.They also have wind proof nylon
on back of hand and finger tips.Only $9.95. They've worked great so far to -5c.windchill -10c.Can't wait for colder weather and see how low I can go without my poly liners [$6.95] at Markswork Warehouse.

Yuck slush belt. I lived in C-U for six years. You don't need anything special for biking 2.5 miles. A good parka and fenders will work, and on really cold days, the bus works fine.

If you can find some downhill ski gloves at Goodwill or one
of the doscount places, that can work. If you take the pads out of your helmet (put them in an envelope and put that in your sock drawer so you can find them come spring) you can put a fleece balalclava on, or maybe a skull cap that covers your ears. I find that helps a lot.

Once the snow falls ditch the clipless, and use old fashioned pedals and winter boots.

awesome thanks for the help guys! I dont have clipless yet, but i was looking for a good reason to get them haha! Looks like that did not work so well though haha! Any recomendation on pants though?!

If you are smart about your choice of everyday pants (wool or polycotton but not denim) you can use a cheap, light and quick-drying pair of pertex overpants.
The nearest equivelent to my Freestyle pair in the US are
http://www.basegear.com/featherpants.html
I have used the material for daily commuting in cold rain and sleet over similar distances and it works fine. They worked well on all-day rides over rainy mountains as well.
They often dry whilst I am wearing them, unlike well-used gortex which can wet-out.

so these pants the feather pants, they stay pretty much as dry as any waterproof pant only they also dry quicker!? hmmm interesting....
OK, this is my list so far:
Performance Neoprene gloves
Headland Backside Fender
Cateye HL-EL510 Headlight OR Cateye EL400 Compact Opticube LED headlight (depends on what you guys think is better)
Nashbar Brilliant Taillight
Soma Folsom Messenger bag (because it is waterproof)
Blackburn Frame pump (for those cold days where my tire pressure may have dropped)
AND some type of pant.
I have a Columbia waterproof jacket i love, it is light, and breaths so it is perfect. I will also probably get some body armor for that moisture wicking ability and to keep me warm. ANY other suggestiolns or needs that you people think i may need i will accept! thanks for all the help so far!

A word of caution regarding any "less than premium" or cheap gloves. I was trying to save some pennies on gloves for 15F - 25F degree rides to work and still stay warm. Staying warm for cheap is possible, BUT the lining of those cheaper gloves may not dry out in time for your ride home. Just a word of caution for you. Spend your dough on your hands and feet where the circulation is affected most.

I'm still looking (and I'm a frugal ass!) for something that's inexpensive, warm, wind-resistant, and that dries quickly.

Now someone else will post here that it's not possible. :-)

If your not going to go clipless then Power grips are a nice addition to a pedal which allow any shoe to be used. However I would wear something a little more weather proof than sneakers.
If you want to go with clipless, which is my perference. An SPD style pedal is the least expensive option and they will work with any MTB shoe. However for winter you will probably want a bootie to cover the shoe in poor weather.
Craig

2.5 miles is a very short distance by bike. You should be able to get by very cheaply if you so desire. At this distance, you can even OVER dress and probably get by with it.