Touring - Gloves

While waiting for the lady friend to finish trying on bicycle shorts at the LBS last night I wandered around until coming across the glove rack. They had a variety of padded and non-padded gloves and I spent about 15 minutes trying them on to kill some time. The padded gloves seem like they could take out some of the shock absorbed through the handle bars. Is it common to wear gloves while touring, padded or non-padded for that reason? Or, what would be the reason(s)/benefit(s) to getting a pair of gloves? A short search didn't turn up much for discussion on this throughout the touring forum, and I've been kicking these questions around in my head for a while.

Glove choice is another item where personal preference is a big factor, but nearly all tourists I have met wear some kind of gloves.

On recommended gloves...

I am a cheapskate on most items and usually hate gel anything, but I love the Pearl Izumi Gel Vent Pro gloves. They are the best I have found for hot sweaty weather. They seem to stay drier and dry faster than others that I have used and the padding is effective and well placed for me. They are a bit pricey at around $40.

The cheap Performance house brand ones are just OK comfort wise, but hold up well.

For some padding in the right places makes a huge difference and some of the folks that I have ridden with had great results with Specialized brand of one model or another after not having good luck with several other brands. I have not worn them myself, but I know some folks including my daughter that are very happy with them.

Glove choice is another item where personal preference is a big factor, but nearly all tourists I have met wear some kind of gloves.

On recommended gloves...

I am a cheapskate on most items and usually hate gel anything, but I love the Pearl Izumi Gel Vent Pro gloves. They are the best I have found for hot sweaty weather. They seem to stay drier and dry faster than others that I have used and the padding is effective and well placed for me. They are a bit pricey at around $40.

The cheap Performance house brand ones are just OK comfort wise, but hold up well.

For some padding in the right places makes a huge difference and some of the folks that I have ridden with had great results with Specialized brand of one model or another after not having good luck with several other brands. I have not worn them myself, but I know some folks including my daughter that are very happy with them.

I actually tried a pair of Pearl Izumi gloves and liked them, but was a little put off by the $40 price tag. They were fingerless and had some gel padding in the palm area. In fact, those were the only gloves that really felt somewhat right. Maybe I'll have to take a second look.

I actually tried a pair of Pearl Izumi gloves and liked them, but was a little put off by the $40 price tag. They were fingerless and had some gel padding in the palm area. In fact, those were the only gloves that really felt somewhat right. Maybe I'll have to take a second look.

I bought a pair of these for my French tour last year. After 600 miles I was forced to ditch them as the gel pads seemed more like a form of plastic-type material and caused bruises on the palm of my hands. I had to buy a cheap pair of mitts to get by.

Gloves are a very, very good idea. Should you go down, I think they're the second most important piece of protective gear you can have on. (Not a helmet thread!) When I started riding, the choice was simple: light padding and crocheted back. There was virtually no difference between brands.

The choice is dizzying. I've tried gel gloves, but found that they actually aggravated numbness. The best I've ever used are cheaper Pearl Izumi's, the Whiteline series. They're machine washable, cool and comfortable and the padding is good for me. In addition to gloves, I like to use gel capsules on the bars, wrapped in leather or cork tape. Your mileage may vary, but after many miles and hours of trial and error, I'm happy and so are my hands.
Mark

Yes, I echo the sentiment that gloves are very individual and a case of what works for you.

I personally just can't get on with padded or gel gloves, and wear long fingered unpadded all year round (I do have gel insert underneath the handlebar tape though). I really dislike fingerless gloves as they seem to always scrudge up between my fingers -I also like the fact that my finger tips will be somewhat more protected than if I wore fingerless.

I have some Azonic Smoothies that I love, but after many years of cycling are coming round to the end of their life; they seemed to be cool in summer, warm in winter. I did have some Fox Single Digits which I really disliked as they seemed to keep my fingers hot in summer, and like ice blocks in winter -if that makes any sense!

I'm tempted to next time try some work gloves from Home Depot -they are long fingered, unpadded and fairly inexpensive -plus if they don't work out I can always use them for garden work, etc.

While waiting for the lady friend to finish trying on bicycle shorts at the LBS last night I wandered around until coming across the glove rack. They had a variety of padded and non-padded gloves and I spent about 15 minutes trying them on to kill some time. The padded gloves seem like they could take out some of the shock absorbed through the handle bars. Is it common to wear gloves while touring, padded or non-padded for that reason? Or, what would be the reason(s)/benefit(s) to getting a pair of gloves? A short search didn't turn up much for discussion on this throughout the touring forum, and I've been kicking these questions around in my head for a while.

The reason is very good if you have gloves, you can use your hands to protect you when you fall..and not your head. Especially if you are a non helmet user.
Gloves is also good for outdoor cocking.
Use gloves with padding if you can get used to them.

I forgot to mention that in some areas the Specialized gloves are hard to find, but they can be ordered online directly from Specialized if you know what model and size you want. According to several riders whose opinions I trust, they seem to be better than most at padding placement to avoid numbness caused by nerve pressure.

On the protection if falling... You can really tear your hands up in a fall. Padded palms are great for avoiding this. Just remember to land on your palms and to keep your fingers up on impact and when sliding across the road or trail.

double wrap your handlebars. adds twice as much comfort

I've been really happy with Pearl Izumi Pittards leather gloves, they're just about all I wear. And yes, I always wear gloves if I'm cycling more than a mile or two.

on tour I bring

one pair very thin wool or synthetic liner gloves
one pair fingerless cycling gloves
one pair well waxed leather work gloves large enough to fit both the other two as well.

this provides best versatility, warmth and weather protection on or off bike.

+1 for the Peal Izumi Pittards leather glove. I am on my second pair. I got them because the first got too much funk not because they wore out. Make sure to wash them regularly or you will start to get rashes. Or so I've been told ;)

I don't wear gloves anymore. I didn't wear them one year only because of the stupid tan line. I began wearing them again the next year. On my current trip, I was looking at my stupid looking tan again and wondered why I started wearing gloves again. They've been sitting in the panniers since and I don't miss them. I might wear them on gravel roads. My preference is for thick real leather palm, no padding (hard to find) and crocheted back.

Properly padded gloves are also a good way to prevent nerve damage (along with frequently changing hand positions).

Edit, adding: Poorly or improperly padded gloves can (IMO) cause nerve damage.

I have trouble getting gloves to fit---I guess I have thick, linebacker-type hands. (Which I was...) I tried all types of cycling gloves, but many of them felt way too constricting---I ended up buying Harbinger workout gloves. Yes, I know that they do not dry as easily, but THEY FIT! They are comfortable on my hands and pad them nicely.

I do agree, though, that gloves can really help you in a fall. without them, well, you think about protecting your hands, rather than other parts of your body.

Tim C.

> I do agree, though, that gloves can really help you in a fall. without them, well, you think about protecting your hands, rather than other parts of your body.

I dunno. I had a fall a few months ago, with no gloves, and I certainly had no time to think about what I wanted to protect. I ended up landing directly on my hands on the asphalt, but they were fine.

I have a pair of fingerless gloves, which I tend to wear, but I'm not really convinced they do anything other than psychological ("omg I'm going so fast I have GLOVES!") They keep your hands marginally warmer.

Steve

> I dunno. I had a fall a few months ago, with no gloves, and I certainly had no time to think about what I wanted to protect. I ended up landing directly on my hands on the asphalt, but they were fine.
My experience with this is different... Over the years I have shredded the palms of a few sets of gloves sliding across asphalt or rocky trails. It is a reflex for me to put palms down while keeping fingers up if it will be a sliding fall, a habit acquired from years of offroad motorcycle, MTB, and road bike racing.

My daughter took a spill on campus without her gloves or helmet. I asked her if she had second thoughts about going helmet less on campus and she said no, but she did have second thoughts about not having her gloves on. Her hands were quite a while healing. I think she still rides helmet less on campus, but wears gloves.

Personally I like wearing gloves but you need them to provide padding where you require it. Start with a pair of cheap gloves and see where they become worn. Everyone will have a slighty different riding position on the handle bars. Take those gloves with you to the store and get a good pair of gloves that are well padded in the area where your cheap gloves are worn. There are many different gloves out there so you want the ones that will work best for you and your riding position.
Happy touring!

+1 on gloves for protection. I'm not a fan of a lot of padding, I get that cushion from the handlebar. And I prefer my cycling gloves to be machine washable, so no real leather for me there.

--J

Gloves are a personnel preference kind of thing but I like these:

http://garage.mechanix.com/detail.aspx?ID=1

They can usually be found at auto parts stores for less than $20. Sometimes other riders think you are a bike mechanic when you are wearing them and ask you to help with a bike repair, which I am glad to do anyway.