General Cycling Discussion - to riders in morning cold

do you use tights with camois sewn in or do you use bike shorts with non-padded tights pulled over or shorts with leg warmers?!

I wear my regular biking shorts, and then tights over them. Forty to 60 degrees, single wieght tights with extra insulation on knees, below 40, the thicker style, and I stay amazingly comfortable.

it depends...

from about -5C to 5C, i wear polypropylene tights with not chamois over shorts; from 5C to about 10C, i wear lycra tights over shorts, from 10C to about 16C i wear knee warners with my shorts or bib knickers with chamois.

Tights over the cycling shorts - works great

I guess tights with padding would be OK on short rides. If there is any chance you will want to remove them, mid-ride, you're going to be SOL.

Like nebill, I prefer plain tights over biking shorts, for the versatility. This has worked so well for me I've never felt the need for leg warmers.

louis... in all the years that i have been cycling, i have never been on a ride when i've felt that i really needed to remove my tights. it seems to me that the day is very rare that there would be such a difference between the temperature at the start of a ride and the temperature at the end of a ride that i would be comfortable in tights at the beginning and comfortable in shorts at the end.

the other thing, of course, is that i would have to stop and remove my shoes to take off my tights. too much of a bother, really.

i do find that i will sometimes peel off my knee warmers when the temp rises from, say 10C to 16C, but i've never experienced a range of, say, 5C to 16C.

the reason why i don't buy tights with chamois is that they are expensive and i already have a full collection of padded shorts. also, i wear my tights running and cross country skiing.

Normal lycra shorts plus leg warmers. This is OK down to 0ºC/32F. It never gets any colder than that. Also a tight fitting T-shirt under a thick windstopper jacket and full gloves. The T-shirt can get damp but at those temperatures I don't sweat much. Booties if the roads are wet. Also a bandanna wrapped over my head to keep out the cold air.

CHEERS.

Mark

Tights over regular bike shorts. I usually try tough it out in shorts only until it hits about 5deg C. I've seen some crazy people still riding in shorts and t-shirt in -5deg C! I have a pair of ultra warm tights I bought from Ground Effect last year but it hasn't been cold enough to wear them yet. I put them on in the house just to try them out and nearly died of heat exhaustion!

Originally posted by Falchoon
Tights over regular bike shorts. I usually try tough it out in shorts only until it hits about 5deg C. I've seen some crazy people still riding in shorts and t-shirt in -5deg C! I have a pair of ultra warm tights I bought from Ground Effect last year but it hasn't been cold enough to wear them yet. I put them on in the house just to try them out and nearly died of heat exhaustion!

I tough it out in the cold. I find that once I'm warmed up, I'm fine I stay nice and warm, although it can take up to an hour to warm up properly on the cold days. I don't get much power until I've warmed up HEAPS, alot more than most people.

Padded tights, but I have big legs, layering causes some restriction of movement

With padded tights, you have to wash them after every ride. Unpadded leggings can be used repeatedly over shorts. It saves on washing and gives you the flexibility to control your temperature.
Toughing it out with shorts in cold weather on a bike is not a good idea. Your knees will suffer over the long term. Its better to keep your legs warm, and cool off with your arms if you are at an intermediate temp.

Tights over padded shorts for me as well, Though I've been thinking about padded 3/4 length tights when it starts getting cold again

Tights over shorts. I agree that regulating temp on the upper body is both better and easier if the need arises in cold weather.

I got a pair of bib tights with chamois, wore them
exactly one time last year.
Not that anything is wrong with em, I just don't
like the way they feel.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by mateo velo
[B]louis... in all the years that i have been cycling, i have never been on a ride when i've felt that i really needed to remove my tights. it seems to me that the day is very rare that there would be such a difference between the temperature at the start of a ride and the temperature at the end of a ride that i would be comfortable in tights at the beginning and comfortable in shorts at the end.


Hmmm... Here in Ohio it is quite common to start a ride in the morning when temperatures are 45f (8c), and by noon it has warmed up to 75f (24c), necessitating removal of clothing. This is normal on nearly all rides during spring and fall.

Unpadded tights over shorts. I'd never buy padded tights. You'd have to wash (or at least rinse) them every time and you couldn't use them for running or under skipants. (Well, I guess you could ski with them, but it'd be weird.)