Sometimes I wear just my Dickies jeans or cargo pants when I ride because my legs heat up quicker than anything else, and I just deal with the chill early on. Because it rains in the Puget Sound so much, I picked up an inexpensive pair of nylon outer pants for soccer, I think (with zip bottom legs to take off while still wearing shoes) at a thrift store to keep wind and light rain away. It works really well. I do not get cold at all in that department. Because rain is such an issue, I am really eying a hundred dollar pair of rain cycling commuter pants that would be good enough to wear on their own (to the pub or school) as well as as an over layer for more work-orientated things.