Originally Posted by
gerv
I've posted many times about the benefits of rain capes over jackets and pants. To some degree your location climate may affect this. Oregon residents may have different needs than Mid West cyclists. However...
pros
- you get less sweaty since there's more air flow
- the cape can extend over you bars, keeping your gloves and pants very dry.
- your shoes don't tend to fill up like they often do when rain drips down your pants and into the shoes.
- my Campmor rain cape weighs 8 oz and fits snugly in my pannier. Try that with other raingear.
cons
- you look pretty dorky
- a big wind turns you into somewhat of a sail.
Here in Seattle, I've never met, or even seen, anyone who uses a poncho or rain cape while riding in the rain; everyone, including me, holds out until the bitter end, and then breaks down and wears a rain coat and rain pants. And it's not because we're afraid of looking dorky; bicycle dorkiness is alive and well in Seattle, thank you very much. I think it's because we're practical; the rain here, though it seems gentle enough, manages, over the course of many days and weeks, to find every nook and cranny that's not protected... and it's surprisingly cold on a bike when you're wet. The temperature may be 45 F, but if you're not in rain gear when it's raining, your hands and ears feel like blocks of ice, you're damp, and you're shivering.