h_curtis

I currently ride to work about 90% of the time. If it is raining, I drive a car. I think I would like to take the weather out of the equation. I cannot shower at work, but work labor and not in a suit. I work in jeans and a t-shirt. All this being said, I think I want to have a rain suit. My commute is only 30 minutes up a hill, so i won't sweat all that much, but a little. That is okay. Can someone please recommend an outfit for me? I want my, shoes to be dry. That is important, but I could pack shoes and socks. I don't want to drive a car locally anymore. Most important is my jacket. What can keep me dry? Paints?

Thanks and sorry if this has been asked a lot. I really want to move to be car free.

FBinNY 

As I've edged, I've made rules about weather. Min temp 25 degrees (32 if coming home in the dark and there's any chance of ice). Norain below 40 degrees. I've given up on dedicated rain gear, because it doesn't hold up, so I tolerate getting wet. I keep changes of clothes and dry shoes at work, so if I arrive wet, I can still go home dry. Often I'll carry clothes one way or the other in a messenger bag, which I carry half the time anyway to do errands on the way home.

As far as staying dry, as I said, no dedicated gear. But I wear a garbage bag (4mil --- nothing but the best). Since I losr a few pounds I'm now a perfect fit for a 40gal. size. The beauty of my fancy gear, is I don't have to worry about it getting dirty, losing it's waterproofing, or being at the wrong end of the trip, since I can stock a bunch of bags at each end.

no1mad 

Usually with rain gear, you'll get wet from sweat, since they don't ventilate too well. You might be better off layering with wool and just get wet.

2_i 

I carry a rain cape + helmet rain cover and put over whatever I'd have otherwise. Except for some extreme downpours the cape takes care of the shoes as well. I should presumably mention also fenders and mudflaps given how bad the practice can be in the US.

h_curtis

Thanks so far. The reason why I am asking is because, I don't like weather to dictate my life. I wan to be ready for any weather and take it out of the equation. Then I never complain about it. Just ride! Thanks again.

h_curtis

Hmm, a cape. Interestingly I own a cape. Not some rain cape made of grocery bags, I actually own a cape made of Gortex. That is an idea I didn't think of. I need a bright color vest or something because the cape is black, but that might be the ticket. Now for my feet and legs?

no1mad 

Fenders.

h_curtis

All real commuters have fenders. I am just wanting to get to work not too wet. A little sweat is okay. Believe me, some that work where I work stink! B.O.!

2_i 

Bike rain capes tend to have an expanded front that can be placed over the handlebars, protecting legs and feet from above, at least until it gets very windy.

MichaelW

Jeans are not good for riding, they soak up water, get very heavy and take ages to dry. Hiking style polyester or poly-cotton mix is much better in every way.
You should only wear waterproofs when it is raining, they are too clammy otherwise. A windproof, non-waterproof jacket or smock is much more comfortable.
Look for bright colour, reflective piping, pit-zips, fully vented back and a front zip with poppers so you can ride unzipped but closed. (modern waterproof zips have no poppers).
I am less fussy about rainpants, any breathable waterproof with zippered lower leg and velcro cinching.

Fenders are a must for clean commuting. SKS chromoplastic bolt-on are the ones to fit.

1nterceptor

I wear an Illuminite jacket, Marmot Precip pants,
Lake winter boots and generic winter gloves(or
latex dishwashing gloves, depending on temps)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hheUc-zlfiM

jyl

I commute on the bike rain or shine, and in Portland OR it is raining and/or chilly most all winter. I wear:
- A waterproof biking jacket. I have a Burley, no longer made, but Showers Pass looks nice too. $100-150. Something not "bike-specific" could be less, but you do want the arm pit zips and vented back.
- A fleece layer under the jacket.
- Rain pants. $80-ish. Bicycling ones are nice but not necessary. Carry in bag if not needed.
- Waterproof booties for your shoes, they wrap and velcro around the heel. $25.
- Waterproof, warm gloves. $45.
- A baseball cap under my helmet keeps my head dry enough. A thin balaclava for cold days.

We don't usually have snow or ice or many sub-freezing days here, so those clothes work fine. I excuse myself from riding if it is snowy/icy, because I don't have studded tires.

You can control how much you sweat by how hard you ride. If you're in shape and the ride isn't steep, you can usually find a pace at which you don't sweat much.

At work, it's nice to have a place for your stuff to dry out during the day. Ditto locking the bike out of the rain.

Fenders are a must. Unless you want to be covered in a fine spray of dirty water.

As are lights - I have headlight/taillight on the bike as well as on my helmet, plus a really bright headlight on the bike - and as much bright color and reflective stuff as you can stick, sew, or wear on your clothes and bike. On a dark morning, in the rain and maybe fog, drivers just can't see a dark-clothed bicyclist. I see idiot, helmet-less, black-clothed ninjas pedaling at 5:15 AM, when I go in, and I think not only do they deserve to get hit, but then they should apologize to the driver.

El Duderino X

I live in the Pacific Northwest, Canada's "Wet coast" (Vancouver), and we get a lot of rain here. Misting rain, drizzle, showers, downpours, monsoons, you name it. Rain central. Anyway, I commute daily, about 5 miles each way, regardless of weather and I have found the following articles of clothing very helpful for dealing with rain:
Rainlegs! Great for keeping the most weather exposed part of my legs, thigh-tops & knees, dry.
I like to combine them with a pair of waterproof shoe covers like these at REI: Shoe-covers!
Those two articles combined with a light, water-resistant and well vented jacket (with a tail) will keep me dry and comfortable for up to thirty minutes in an absolute downpour. The water resistant jacket doesn't have taped seams, uses DWR and will generally begin to give up the ghost around the seams after twenty minutes of heavy rain. For heavy rain I wear a waterproof cycling jacket. Not as breathable as the water-resistant and definitely not as well vented either. In order to avoid creating my own personal & portable sauna wardrobe choices have to be well thought out.

The Rainlegs and shoe covers are great for keeping the rain out. If it's really nasty out with water flying at me from every direction the unprotected spaces, shins, backside, can get wet. I have full on rain pants but don't find them particularly comfortable to ride in and generally only use them for longer rides in (cooler) monsoon-like conditions.

I don't bother with a helmet cover. Gloves, usually some water-resistant cool weather gloves. Water-proof "lobster-claw" glove covers should things get really wet.

And fenders. Full fenders.

dude72

here in vienna we have quite a lot of rain in spring and autumm. i use a 3-layer gore tex jacket which can be used for all kinds of sports, climbing, ski touring, etc... another advantage is that with the jacket i have good control over the temperature. I also have a bike trouser which is waterproof, works quite well. with this setup i can commute most of the days, when it is really pouring i found out that nothing actually helps.

maryrose

In Dublin, I take a look at the weather before deciding on a trip on the bike or not. Does that make me a lightweight? I'd love to go on a bike holiday around Ireland but the weather and all the kit required is what would put me off. Has anyone done any long distance cycling?

azesty

I rode in Hobart, Australia, every day, no matter what the weather. It got below 0C sometimes, but not much. No snow.

I have been riding every day, no matter what the weather in Chengdu, China, for three years now. Doesnt really get below zero C here, and not much wind.

Both work places had showers.

h

AdamDZ

After lots of experimentation I have settled for thin, breathable shell (no insulation). I have a Patagonia jacket with underarm vents. Then I layer wool underneath depending on the temperature. I can put its hood under the helmet.

On the bottom I use Pearl Izumi bibs. Goretex hiking shoes, wool socks. Sometimes I'd use rain pants, but they don't breath too well. I tried SealSkinz socks, but they're way too warm for anything above freezing and below freezing there is no reason to wear them. Goretex shoes will usually keep my feet dry enough for at least 40-60 minutes.

Gloves are a problem still. All waterproof gloves I tried are too warm and too stiff. So I just use whatever gloves I have and let my hands get wet, which is usually not a huge deal for a short commute. Wearing latex gloves makes my palms sweat too much. If it's close to 32F (0C) and raining hard I won't ride anyway, due to the risk of wet ice, and that's the most miserable type of weather.

scroca

I do the same as the quoted excerpt above.

For feet, I wear layers of wool socks and sandals. I have sealskinz to put over socks -- the key is to get them larger, so you can layer comfortably.

I have a pair of waterproof mitts that go over gloves or not. They are big enough to accommodate anything I need to keep my hands warm so I will also wear them when it's really cold since they break the wind.

If you are like me, you are going to sweat somewhat. I always prefer warm sweat to cold rain, but even warm sweat will get you cold eventually. As AdamDZ points out, get a jacket with pit zips. These are key to keeping the upper body dry from rain while providing ventilation to keep sweat down.

If you haven't got a place to dry things out before your ride home, take extra to wear after work. This is the beauty of sandals, by the way -- it doesn't matter if they are not dry (though they likely will be).

tarwheel 

In my experience, cold rain is actually easier to dress for than warm rain. I've got a Craft rain jacket that is fantastic in temperatures below 50 F, but it gets too hot once the temps approach 60. So I have a much lighter weight Castelli jacket that I use for warmer rainy days. It is also very small, light-weight and packable so it fits in my seatbag without taking up much space.

I don't mind riding in light rain, or riding on days when the forecast is iffy -- that is, it might rain. However, if it's raining hard or steady, I'm gonna drive most of the time. The exception is during periods when I've missed a lot of rides due to weather or other factors and I just want to get some miles in. Otherwise, I dislike riding in the rain. I hate not being able to see due to my glasses getting all spotted up and foggy. More that anything, I hate having to clean my bike later. It's not worth having to spend 30 minutes cleaning my wheels just to ride in the rain. Most of my rain rides come on days when afternoon thunderstorms pop up, or the forecast called for a 30% chance of rain and it became 100%, or unexpected showers develop. If it's raining in the morning, I will usually drive that day unless it's a light rain and expected to clear during the day.

chefisaac

For botties, Shower Pass is awesome. https://www.showerspass.com/catalog/a...ub-shoe-covers

I also use Gator socks which are waterproof.

AdamDZ

The pit zips made a huge difference for me in cold weather. And if it's over 50F I just get wet, don't care that much because yeah, it's harder to dress for warm rain than cold rain.

Ah, I considered wearing SealSkinz with sandals, because they're too warm otherwise, I will need to try that.

And generally I dislike riding in the rain for the same reason too: fogging glasses. Also, people don't know how to drive in bad weather and I feel unsafe riding in rain because of that too.

ks1g

Bike: fenders are a must
Legs: tights or leg warmers are usually sufficient. I have rain pants, but even though they are breathable, they get hot too easily so I tend to use them more when I need a wind layer for sub freezing temps than for rain.
torso + arms: I go back and forth on this. Currently have an older ultra-lightweight endura jacket (that could stand to be more breathable) and one of their bulkier models that vents better but stands up pretty well to moderate-heavy rain.
head: sealskinz skull cap (reasonably breathable and rain resistant) or just a headsweat (warmer temps) and head is getting wet. I have a helmet-mounted light so can't easily put on a rain cover.
key are hands & feet. If they are dry, I'm happy. Hands: best is a pair of sealskinz wind & rain resitant gloves, I have glove liners if I need more warmth and keep an extra pair of gloves (cheap neoprene) at work just in case. Pear Izumi amphibs are great but generally too warm for rain conditions.
Feet: this is the tricky part. Lake cycling boots are reasonably water-resistant but I really need to make sure tights or leg warmers are dressed over the boot tops to keep water from running down into the shoe. I've also tried sealskinz waterproof socks (their ad shoes someone's foot in an aquarium tank) and regular MTB shoeswith some success - again you need to do something to keep water from running down legs into socks as whatever gets in will stay in. rainproof shoe covers are another option - the lightweight ones (endura) are water resisatant but not waterproof; the more effective ones (I have some PI model) run warm for me. I haven't tried Sealskinz with sandals - that might be the best solution.
Other: cycling glasses with clear or light amber lenses to keep rain out of eyes. Lots & lots of lights - helmet light, Dinotte 200 on handlebars, either 3 PBSF (bike 1) or a big cateye + Dinotte taillight (bike 2) with some steady, some flash.

doomtroll

I am fortunate to live in the SF Bay area where all I get is rain.. so I commute every day regardless

fietsbob

Rain capes for Cycling are like a Cone, you put your head thru at the apex,
But, a cape for hiking
(a 'shelter half' for Korean war surplus gear shoppers )
is a big rectangle with a hood in the middle..


#15 .. Mary Rose: I rode from County Kerry all the way up the West coast Of Eire
in 97, last week of Feb, starting in Dublin, crossed over from Donegal to NI
and LondonDerry in 1May, of that year.

most of it in rain gear.. stayed in Hostels during Storms.

bendembroski

I like my cape, but I hate not being able to signal in traffic with it. Great for countryside riding, but not so much for in the city, IMHO.

That, and if it's windy that thing is a sail!