MWPdx

So I have a daily, ~hour long commute (each way) and it looks like it's about to become a very rainy daily hour long commute. I've got the arms/torso and feet pretty well figured out, but on friday (first real rainy commute of the season), my legs were completely soaked. I'm fine getting wet on the way home, but sitting in class for 3-4 hours with drippy pants is not exactly my favorite thing to do.

So I'm looking for a way to keep my legs at least a little bit drier. I've heard good things about "rainlegs" and mediocre things about nikwax "cotton proof". Does anybody have any experiences with these? Or other methods?? My experience with full on rain pants has never been good due to the sweat issues. I'd prefer something that's either easily removable or that I could leave on during classes as changing my clothes in nasty bathroom stalls is kind of awful.

chefisaac

try a thin wind breaker pants. Works for me on my 22 mile commute.

I am more picky about my shoes and socks. I use showerpass shoe covers. https://www.showerspass.com/catalog/a...ub-shoe-covers

chaadster

I use waterproof over-pants from REI, the lightweight, laminated nylon type.

EDIT: Oooh, those Rainlegs look pretty nice, and perfect for anything less than a torrential downpour. The pants I use are great, but also quite warm and a bit of work to step out of. The Rainlegs look like they'd be quick on/off and cooler. I'm going to try to buy some of those!

lungimsam

I have a ruined rainjacket that I am going to cut the sleeves off of and use as leg gaiters/shoe covers.
Just put on and drape the cut end over the shoes.
I use a poncho to keep me dry. Air circulates under it to keep me from sweating too much.

colleen c

I use Rainlegs on my winter commute. They are great but not perfect. You will get a little moisture right at the edge of the fabric around the lower thigh during a heavy downpour. The good news is that it does not take long to dried out that small area since it gets a little damp but not soak. The strap at the back sometimes get caught on the nose of the saddle. It takes several outing to remember to scoot slightly forward to dismount or to stand and to do some pedal smashing. The net mesh connecting between the waist strap and lower fabric is a little on the delicate side but luckily mine has yet to tear. Cosmetic wise, wearing it around public is really not that bad. There will be a bulge around your waist from the rolled up Rainlegs but if you are wearing a jacket that covers it, it can be hidden rather easily. The bottom half of your leg will still get wet mostly from your tires. I wear some gaiter for my lower legs and that works out pretty good.

On a positive note, it works for what it is design for. You can wear it around the waist and it can be easily deploy rather fast. The Rainlegs will not make your leg sweat like most rain pant, nor does it get uncomfortable like the feeling of having a rain pant over your regular pants. It also help keep your thigh a little warmer on windy raining days.

The water repellant stuff like Nikwax does not work for clothing that was originally not design for water repellant. Water will soak in. I used the Tech Wash and the Cotton Proof stuff with no luck on my pants. These stuff works great for my older Gortex jacket and helped revive the waterproof performance but not so well with regular fabric.

bluegoatwoods

I use cheap rainpants cut off at the knee. I can slip them on and off easily without sitting down and taking my boots off. The downside, of course, is that my calves will still get wet. But they dry quick and it's a small price to pay for the comfort and convenience. And if it's warm enough to wear shorts, then this is no problem at all.

If it's a bit cooler, then I'll wear full rainpants with shorts underneath. Not uncomfortable.

You mentioned that your feet are taken care of. But I'll post a photo of my cheap and easy solution for the sake of anyone following this thread looking for suggestions.

It's just a cheap tarp cut into shape. You can see the toe in the photo. The string cinches under the toe of your shoe. Then fold up over your ankle, wrap the rest around your upper ankle and tie off. Warm dry feet and the two will fold up into a package not much larger than a wallet.