Yeah totally, commuting, thats why I thought these gloves were good

james
http://www.buckyrides.com

Sunday night I took my first serious sub-freezing winter ride (we don't get many of those in this part of Texas), 10 miles at a leisurely 10 mph pace in 23F ambient temperature (wind varied from nil to 20 mph gusts, mostly steady around 9 mph per weather app).

Gave me a chance to test these inexpensive gloves from Walgreen's, advertised as West Loop neoprene driving gloves with Thinsulate insulation. Can't find the receipt at the moment, but the price was around $10. They're a bargain for cold down to 32F but not sub-zero weather. I doubt they're waterproof -- the supposedly neoprene shell doesn't feel like neoprene, but more like the "Profila" softshell fabric in my Bontrager gloves.

West Loop is the store brand name for all of Walgreen's winter wear, including their women's fleece insulated tights (a bargain at $5 -- the medium/large fit me well and were all I needed under a pair of jeans -- far warmer than the more expensive "men's" thermal underwear.).

The 23F degree temp was pushing the limits for these gloves. My fingers were tingling within 30 minutes and stinging with some discomfort by the time I got home after an hour's ride. I decided to ride for a known standard until it was uncomfortable -- I used my 44 year old Herman Survivor boots as the baseline. I know these boots well from many winters in New York, Texas and elsewhere, dry, snowy and wet. Usually my fingers and toes chill at the same rate, so I decided to ride until my toes felt uncomfortable. But in this case my toes were just barely tingling but not stinging after an hour. I changed one of my baselines by trying some new microfiber padded socks, and a new pair of shoe inserts, which probably made the old boots comfortable for longer in sub-zero cold.

I decided not to use glove liners with the inexpensive Walgreen's gloves. The gloves were listed as one size fits all, and fit me perfectly -- a rarity considering my unusually long thumb relative to my shortish little finger. Thin ski liners made the fit too tight. I know from previous experience that a snug glove and shoe fit can feel colder rather than warmer -- I've read similar anecdotes from other folks who pursue outdoor activities. Some of us need a looser fit and some air space and unrestricted capillary blood circulation, otherwise liners and extra socks can feel colder rather than warmer.

So I'll try to find some windproof mitten shells to beef up these cheap gloves, which should be fine as-is down to 32F for me.

++1

I bought some cheap, light weight but fleece lined ones last year and I swear by them.. They're water proof but still allows air to move around. Below 0C only thin gloves required. Below -5C a good thin pair of mitts work fine.

I'm trying to remember where it was that I saw lots of scooters with pogies... I think it was Paris, where there was weather.