Winter Cycling - knowledge shared on keeping warm

-=winter cycling
You just need to keep your extremities warm. If people can ski in zero
and subzero weather there is no reason not to ride in the balmy 20-30
degree temp.
keep your ears warm. Headband or a balaclava work..
glasses or goggles to keep the eyeballs warmer.
For Legs get a set of cold weather tights.
powder feet!
Shirts---
Now I usually wear a wool short sleeve jersey over a long sleeve silk tee
shirt with a long sleeve Stanfields wool undershirt over them. I'll throw a
long sleeve nylon jersey over the whole works and get outside fast before I
over heat. If it's below freezing I'll substitute a fine tight knit, loose
fitting, Italian turtleneck for the wool jersey and top everything with
light nylon windbreaker. That's good to about -5 C

Thermodynamics- dead air between shell and skin (ie wool socks) causes good insulation.

"Frequent winter riders have an unusual secret weapon: single-serving bags
of Doritos corn chips. Their nutritional value may be debatable, but the
chips are packed in bags of metallicized plastic film similar to the
heat-reflective Mylar used by astronauts."

Newspaper or brown paper bag under outer layer for chest..
Wear thick socks (wool, fleece) over baggies (vegetable bags are great) over Polypropeline liners, but make sure you can wiggle your toes somewhat..
there are arguments whether to wear the baggiesas a core layer against the skin, or over the liner socks...try both to see what is best for you..
Good way to warm up feet? off the bike and jog a bit. If your hands and feet go numb, you can't go on. and you must be able to move your toes around to promote bloodflow/warmth.

Decent WINDBREAKER is #1...but your main body layering has to let some wind and sensation of cold come through or you'll over heat/ over sweat.. so adjust windbreaker accordingly.
Packing Tape over your helmet vents works well. Or, you can purchase a helmet cover (reflective) for $10-15.. or a windproof fleece balaklava under the helmet.
Go with mittens not gloves.. light nylon mitten covers are sold (wind blockers!).
Lake CX Zero gloves..?
Put on a pair of latex lab gloves as a core layer. Yes, it gets sweaty like a steam room, but my hands are very comfy. Put on a thin poly layer over the latex and my thicker gloves over that.
OR you can try (pearl izumi,avenir,specialized) "lobster claw" mittens.. soft charmin back for the nose.
DOWNHILL SKI MASK! or goggles are essential. motorcycle goggles/ army surplus..
Carbide-tipped studded snow tires for riding on ice. No matter how knobby a rubber tire, it will fail you on ice!

and how long does it take to do all that before a ride?

Hey no kidding. I started predawn rides in late July, but now because of the cold it's taking me twice as long to get ready to roll out before work. And it's not even November yet!!

1) Ride a singlespeed or a fixed
2) Keep your gearing low so you spin more
3) Wear full lenght tights, underneath shorts. Two wool turtlenecks with windstopper shirt underneat. Sealskin socks, with second pair of woolen socks on top of those. Wear a buff under a woolly beanie ( I don't wear a helmet ). Skiboarding gloves are good (if you don't have to mess with gears )

This has kept me warm at -29 Celcius ( - 16 Fahrenheit )

and how long does it take to do all that before a ride?

well, its really all meant for my idea of extreme cold.. i was covering as many aspects as i could there.
know that if you want to ride/commute in the winter, you need to prepare and dress right . and to do that, you need to understand simple thermodynamics (skin - dry space - shell with vents).

that Red Ledge thunder jacket at www.campmor.com for 50$ looks great for protection from icy winds.
see, this whole Winter Cycling topic is very intriguing becaise its science as well as opinion.
keeping warm inthe winter is a challenge for cyclists, and yes, it takes some time to prep for a ride.
but so what? get good at that too! :roflmao:


3) Wear full lenght tights, underneath shorts. Two wool turtlenecks with windstopper shirt underneat. Sealskin socks, with second pair of woolen socks on top of those. Wear a buff under a woolly beanie ( I don't wear a helmet ).

So your telling me bikkhu that you didnt even wear a shell over your legs? just shorts and tights? maybe down to 40 F, but it gets balmy here in NY, not as much at lovely Canada, but i feel the wrath of winter.
see, i always found that cycling shorts (if thats what you were referring to) are not comfortable as normal fleece/capilene.. but to each his own.

i like your comment of high cadence being a factor in keeping warm. its true.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ok so answer me this, oxacarider:
Why wouldnt you wear seal skins over the woolies? would seem to keep you warmer, no?
sealskin socks are good but very pricey and not so breathable being neoprene.

when it comes to the feet:
I go this route
powder,
fox polypro liners,
thick woolies, (smartwool, or kmart brand works too)
shoes (get a 1/2 size ^ for winter so you can thermo the feets)
totes rubbers with hole cut on bottom for clipping (shell)

-=steve