Toe warmth
 

Hello all. what are you all doing to keep the toes warm on cold rides?

I tried wool socks with ziplocks over them and then the shoes. No go. still cold.

on really cold mornings, i drop a little chemical heat warmer into each of my shoes up by the toes. it's the only thing that i've found to work for really cold days.

Make sure your shoes and socks aren't too tight. Restricted circulation will make your feet cold in short order.

I just have a pair of New Balance Cross Trainers and something similar to KMarts Athletec socks. Of course Phoenix isn't as cold and my commute is only 5 miles but it has been in the low 30s F this week. My feet are OK. But I'm overbundled up top and slightly sweaty when I get to work.

thats the funny thing... I bought these shoes bigger then I needed. I thought the wool socks would help but no go.

A pair of thermal socks and thermal overshoes for me.
This is the fisrt year I have worn them and my feet are nice and toasty.

You might try layers on the feet. See if you can find some thin (silk?) socks, and wear the wool socks over them

What are your shoes like? If they're the typical summer bike shoe with lots of mesh, you can go with a plastic bag overlap (is that what you meant by ziplock?) or go to a winter cycling shoe. If you're using platform pedals, big heavy work boots will help.

Also, make sure you don't have gaps on your legs. Half an inch of skin around warmers doesn't sound like much, but it ends up restricting blood flow to the feet.

I'm fine with my MTB shoes and REI hiking socks down to about 20F. Below that I wear my KEEN "Austin" cleat-friendly casual shoes. They are like lowtop hiking boots and offer plenty of warmth in any temperature I'm likely to encounter (we rarely get below -10 in the high desert valleys of the Western Rockies). Below that, our Canadian and northern Plains compadres would have the skinny.

Well done on your first chilly weather commute. As spring comes 'round you'll know why 30F is "chilly" and not "cold" ;) :thumb:

Also - when the temps drop below 20F I wear large coverage clear safety glasses ($6 at hardware stores) in lieu of my Scott cycling glasses - better coverage to keep the eyes and cheeks shielded from direct wind.

Finally, since you're in New Jersey, it is worth considering some studded tires for the deep winter months. I ride the Nokian W108 and love them. I feel better on my bike than in my car on black ice days.

Keeping my toes warm has always been the only thing I struggle with in the winter. I have a couple set ups but neither of them fully do the trick all winter for my commute which takes about 40 minutes each way.

1. Clipless set up - Sidi storm boots, thermal insoles. wool sox, PI Barrier (thick) booties. This is pretty good down to 10F - and i prefer clipless pedals but the off the bike traction of the shoes is not ideal.
2. Platform set up - Garmont Momentum snow hiking boots, wool sox. These are Ok down to about 0F and they are roomy enough for another layer of sox or a chemical warmer when it's below zero.

When it get's below zero I can get still get by with the understanding that my toes will be cold by the end of the ride, It's not a deal breaker, but if I want to be really warm I can throw in a chemical warmer.

I heard a tip the other day, After the ride in, take the chemical warmers and put them in a ziplock bag, the lack of air sort of stops them from working, then pull them out at end of the day, they'll warm up again for the ride home. I haven't tried it yet.

embrocation

it totally works. i did it all last winter, typically getting 3 days use (6 rides) out of a single pack of chemical warmers.

the chemical reaction that makes chemical warmers "warm" needs air to take place, so deprive them of fresh air, and the chemical reaction ceases. give 'em new fresh air and the reaction starts back up again.

Boots. for the snowy regions , get some insulation filled types, LL Bean, Sorel etc.

I have some loose fitting pull up boots, so with thick socks, I still have lots of
circulation to the toes.

Two pairs thermal socks and leather tennis shoes. ;)

Nice! That's why I come here. Thanks

One cannot go by location to determine how much gear you need for certain parts... I have a friend who has circulation issues in his feet and he wears a winter boot with a -90C rating for riding in -30C temps while other folks seem to be able to ride here in normal street shoes with a wool sock.

Key here is to make sure that your winter shoes are a half to full size bigger to allow for a thicker wool sock, don't even bother with cotton as it has no insulating qualities and will make for smelly shoes. If you can't wiggle your toes your shoes are too tight and this applies to any shoe.

I typically wear a medium weight wool hiking sock and will wear that with my clipless touring shoes with covers down to -15C and have sealed the soles with silicone to prevent water from coming in from the bottom. When it gets colder or when I am riding flat or clipped pedals I wear my waterproof insulated hikers and the sock depends on the temperature.

When it gets colder than this I can add a polypro base layer sock under the wool sock and with this I can wear my bikers down below -30C and when it gets butt ugly I double sock and wear the felt pack boots which have a base rating of -40C but have extra felt insoles and these have carried me through -46C / -52F temperatures.

Your socks should come up above your ankle as this is a major point of heat loss like your wrist and head.

I always keep in mind that if I had a mechanical and had to leave my bike I need to be able to walk although walking keeps your feet warmer than riding and getting off the bike and walking a block can increase circulation when the feet get chilled.

The importance of wool and it's properties cannot be understated as it stays warm when it is wet... when I am commuting or travelling farther in the winter I always carry a spare set of socks so I always have a dry pair and a wool sock won't clear out a room when you take them off.

Finally... make sure your head and hands are also warm and toasty to make sure you are not losing heat from one area and feeling it somewhere else.

I've discovered this year that not only can you add layers inside your shoe, you can add them on the outside. Wearing shoe rain covers over my winter shoes helps my feet stay warm longer. They block the wind and create an additional pocket of air for insulation.

I bought a larger pair of rain covers and plan to either line them with wool from an old sweater, or use the arms from the sweater to make a huge pair of socks that go over the shoes.

My craft talents aren't great so I'll do whatever is easier (or can coerce mom into doing). Can you use a hot glue gun to attach wool to nylon? ;)


Another thing I rarely see mentioned is foot position on the pedals. I used to have my cleats fair far forward so there was more pressure towards the front of my foot when pedaling. Moving the cleats back reduced the pressure and improved circulation to the front of my foot. The same should also apply when using platform pedals.

During the winter I wear hiking boots with two layers of socks (one wool and one thermal). This works pretty good down to about 0F. Below zero and I just assume I'm going to have cold toes after about 4 miles. They don't get any colder than if I'm out shoveling in the same temps for the same time.

I'm sure the chemical warmers would work, but frankly I'm too cheap to spring for those.

I wear Herman Survivor boots if I'm expecting really cold weather(40 and below for my feet).....good to -20 degrees.Otherwise it's leather skate shoes and wool socks.

Just for the record,wearing womens ankle high nylons are good for another 15-20 degrees or so and don't take up any room.

my feet were cold til i started wearing catipillar salvo steel toed work boots with 2 pair of wool socks .... been down to 26 F so far no numbness

I've got a set of Lake winter boots...the road version. A size bigger than I need. Cycling socks and knee-high Smartwool thickies w/extra padding on the shin area. Keeping one's lower legs warm means blood flow is getting to the toe area at higher temps. My commute time is 1.25-1.5 hours and my feet stay warm. Was 18F Thursday AM and I was fine. Try knee-high socks.

All due respect, but we're feeling very lucky if the high is 26F here in our frozen hellscape. Below zero is where it gets a little more challenging.

I have a pair of these:
http://s.wiggle.co.uk/images/shimano...shs-10-med.jpg
When its really cold out I wear a nice wool sock. Works great :)

I ride with these:

http://www.pegasus-webstore.com/wp-c...o-wool-tan.jpg

in these:

https://www.midwestboots.com/mens-wo...s-wo3936-L.jpg

on these:

http://shopuptowncycles.com/images/d...23/PED1911.jpg

Right now waterproof light weight hiking shoes and a pair of wool socks are very comfy at 1°C and should be okay until -5°C. Then I'll wear winter boots with wool socks. I'm already looking forward to spring.

I use Sugoi Resistors over winter cycling shoes below 30 F and winter boots in the teens.

http://m.rei.com/mt/www.rei.com/prod...r-bike-booties

BMX style platform pedals, wool socks, plastic bag over the socks, and my warmest shoes - usually trail runners or light hiking boots.

Much warmer than anything I tried with any cycling shoes with cleats, including neoprene booties.

Get some good boots and ditch the plastic bags, it'll be worth the money. If you only ride your bike in boots like I posted above they'll last for a good 10 years easy. The more time you walk in 'em the shorter their lifespan.

Sandals with 0 to 3 pairs of wool socks depending on the temperature. I wear large socks, so the outer layer is XL to keep from getting too tight. The sandals adjust with Velcro in three places to allow them to fit just right no matter how many layers. If 3 layers is not enough, then a windproof shoe cover over it all.

And waterproof socks for when it is too cold to get wet.

Very versatile, allowing for a cold ride in and a warmer ride home.

The solution you use depends on how long you're riding and how cold it gets. For example, I can wear my regular road shoes and two pairs of socks at 35F for 30 minutes. But at the 25 minute mark I can feel the bitter cold on my toes. Riding for an hour in the same conditions would be unpleasant.

I'd tried everything years ago (not cycling back then, walking still had my feet freezing in <30 F). Then I got a hand-me-down of a small pair of men's tall rubber boots. Being too big for me, I wore them with a thick pair of wool socks with thin socks underneath, and voila' -- no more cold feet. At one point I was out taking pictures and went and stood in the water of the Chesapeake Bay after a snowstorm in January and didn't feel the cold water at all. A few years later I started wearing Crocs at work, and noticed that my feet stayed warm with no socks at all until it was absolutely freezing out; even then it was because of exposed skin at the back. Thick rubber or rubber-type material blocks the wind and really insulates my feet from cold air better than anything else I've tried.