Winter Cycling - First Winter Ride Questions

Hello Everyone.

Last Saturday I went riding 33miles (2hours). It was about 30-33 degrees, with some cold wind. Everything was fine until about 30-40 minutes in. I stopped in my parents garage and let my feet warm up. My toes were very cold (numb). I undid my jacket and noticed I was sweating like crazy. Is that a good thing or bad thing? I ended up stopping about every 45 minutes to warm up. When i got home my feet were like ice :twitchy:, until i warmed up in the shower.

I know I did something wrong, because I caught a really bad cold on Monday and am still getting over it. Thank God for Zicam. I will attach some pictures of what I wore. I just need help. I spent a lot of money on clothes and I want to be able to ride outside without getting a cold.

Main problems: Feet way too cold, Would wool socks help? Hands too cold, I'm going to layer another thermal glove, that should help I think. Would a better balaclava help that covers my nose?

I dressed this way.

Head: Polypro balaclava, Headsweats Skull cap.

Core: Underarmour heatgear baselayer, Arm warmers, Hammer Nutrition L/s Jersey, Hammer Thermal Vest, and a Cannondale Morphis Shell Jacket.

Hands: Hammer Thermal gloves with Louis G wind gloves overtop.

Legs: Louis G Thermal Tights over Hammer 8 Panel Shorts

Feet: Nike Dri-Fit thin sock. Sugoi Resistor Sock, Normal mountain shoe, Sugoi Firewall fleece bootie.

Pictures: My dad said I looked like a Power Ranger... lol

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Noses get cold...learn to live with it. You can try the nose/mouth guard covers that are available at a Ganders Mtn type store but I do not like the amount of moisture that is trapped at the ventilated mouth area.

For hands I was wearing the Pearli AmFibs but they were 8ish years old and not working very well anymore. I bought a pair of Sugoi Firewall XT gloves and find them perfect so far. They are thicker in the fingers than palm for extra warmth. If very cold...20ish...I wear a pair of synthetic glove liners as well. The layering does the trick. The most important thing is stopping cold air penetration especially if the hands get sweaty then cold...they will never warm up.

For feet what works best for me is: I start by making sure my feet are sweat free and spray some aerosol type anit-perspirant on them to prevent sweating...sweat is very bad once it gets cold it stays cold...Next I wear a woolen sock of varied density depending on how cold it is. Over that I wear a pair of wind proof socks then my shoes which are 2 sizes larger than my normal shoes to allow for the socks/wind socks. Over all that I wear Pearli AmFib booties for the real cold...20ish...
My feet will be chilly at the end of a 30 mile ride but that is fine.

The torso is the easiest to warm, the extremities the hardest. Perhaps you have a bit too many layers on your torso.
My usual torso gear consists of a thin base layer followed by a wind front layer, Craft wind layer, and my wind proof soft shell jacket. I was using a Sugoi wind front jacket but after 15 years the zipper failed and is waiting replacment. I just bought a Castelli soft shell wind proof jacket and am joyfully amazed by the improvements of it over my 15 year old Sugoi. That is all I wear for a 20ish degree ride and control my torso heat by unzipping as needed.

I wear Pearli AmFib wind front tights for temps in the 20's and Pearli Therafleece bib tights for above 30 riding.
An accepted rule of thumb is to start the ride feeling a bit chilly. You will warm as you ride.

The feet and hands are the keys. Many people will offer different suggestions based on what they have spent years trying and discarding as are my suggestions. Proper layering is as important as wind proof.

Just keep at it and let us know how you make out. We have all been there and have the frozen toe stories to tell as well. Nothing ruins a ride like frozen toes and fingers.

I don't know how well you tolerate the cold. I typically wear less clothes than my riding buddies. Because of this I was overdressed every time that I went out the first year because I was mostly guaging what I should wear by others instead of my own experience. After getting experience and accumulating a large wardrobe of cycling clothes I am now almost always dressed perfectly.

There are many variables that you have to take into consideration when dressing. The temperature, humidity, wind chill, sunny or cloudy, day or night, whether you will be riding solo or in a group, and how hard you are riding.

If you are riding solo, you can easily adjust your effort to overcome not being dressed properly. If you are cold, you can ride harder to stay warm and conversely if you are starting to sweat you can ride slower and not generate as much heat. It is also easier to stop and put on or take off clothes since you do not have to inconvenience a group.

If I had as many clothes on as you did at the temperature you were riding, then I would have been boiling over. A good rule of thumb that if you are standing around before the ride and you are not cold, you are probably overdressed. It should take several minutes of riding to warmup. The easiest way to over come this is to buy more expensive, highly technical clothing that is warm and has outstanding wicking characteristics to remove sweat. Assos is the gold standard but most people do not ride enough to justify the expense or just plain cannot afford it.

For the temperatures that you are referencing I probably could get by with a DeFeet UnDShirt and my Louis Garneau Gloucester jacket or a middleweight duofold long sleeve shirt and middleweight PI LS jersey, some chamoisless tights over my regular summer riding bibs, a balaclava, and Smartwool sock over a silk undersock, shoe oversock underneath neoprene booties and my Cannondale windproof gloves. I would not be able to stand outside and carry on a conversation without being cold and dancing around to keep warm, but I would be fine on the bike. The only difficulty is that if you have a flat or mechanical you might suffer some. By the same token if you are overdressed and drenched in sweat you will freeze also.

For temperatures in the 20's with wind I would modify the above using a Duofold baselayer with wool sweater and LG jacket, knee warmers under tights, and chemical warmer op top of my shoe underneath the oversock and bootie.

You can easily stuff the following items in your pockests for versatility: an extra pair of gloves, different weight balaclava, and a wind vest. For the most part you are pretty much stuck with what you have on your legs and feet. Luckily your legs build up a lot of heat. Feet on the other hand you have to get right.

Remember, head, hands and feet are the items you have to be most concerned about. A balaclava is all I need for my head and a lightweight PI and heavier weight Foxwear meet all my needs. Windproof Cannondale gloves meet my needs for the temperatures that I have been riding. Head and hands have never been a problem for me.

Feet are the toughest. All my riding buddies that have been riding in winter much longer than I bit the bullet last winter and purchased Lake winter specific cycling shoes and have not regretted it. For the rest of us, if you have enough room in your cycling shoes, I highly recommend Toasty Feet insoles from Polarwrap. They add about 10 degrees Fahrenheit of warmth. A windprool oversock and a neoprene cover will then meet most of your needs and then add chemical warmers if you need more warmth. You do not want to put so much sock and insole thickness in your shoes that it constricts your feet and reduces bloodflow. Bloodflow to the feet is the top priority. Use heavier coverings and chemcial warmers outside the shoe if more warmth is needed.

Hope this helps.