So I'm just getting into mountian biking and the weather here in Michigan got cold in the last couple of days. It SNOWED today! What the heck. Anyways, I'm not a big fan on cold weather hence my lack of cold weather clothing. What should I buy and wear while MTBing? What do people normally wear? Thanks guys.

Haha It snowed in chicago too. I'm soo pissed I have been digging for days to get a new dh/fr trail together. I havent even been able to ride it yet and now it looks like I will have to ride it with a light dusting of snow!! Snow will be gone by tmr but you get the point.

I just use my winter jacket and jeans on a day like today. The hardest part to keep warm are your hands, and I'm thinking about buying some winter biking gloves (but probally wount).

Does anyone here use any cold weather tights? If so, how do they work?

I'm not to keen on using my regular winter jacket for MTBing. Any other ideas?

i have a north face jacket, i dunno the model as all it says is "north face" but its made out of this wierd rubbery material, it has a tag that says its windproof, waterproof, and sweat wicking. which is true, last year i rode in below freezing weather with just a tshirt and this coat on my torso, i couldn't feel the wind, not even up the sleeves as it has little pads that stop the wind (nothing elastic on it, i hate elastic stuff) and when it rains the water just beads up and rolls off, and when you get sweaty- i wouldn't say it wicks sweat away but it definitely breathes, it doesn't let you get all sweaty and muggy in the coat, great coat, i'll look more for a name on it, we got it a year ago and it's still like new, its very scratch resistant too, i've hit many blackberry bushes with it, no snags or anything, love that coat. i'm still looking for good gloves. winter gloves DON'T work, they keep you warm till your hands get sweaty and the wind cools the sweat then its warmer without them!. i have some full finger night riding gloves that work ok, they are thin enough that the sweat goes away and dries, so they don't get wet really, they are reflective for riding at night, and they offer good wind protection, but not much protection against just plain cold temps. head, i have a thin beanie i wear under my helmet that seems to work fine, and for warm but rainy days i was thinking of getting a helmet cover. pants.. they make some nice waterproof breatheable biking pants, but they are expensive and i haven't shelled out for them yet, i'm trying all my cheap alternatives first. loose fitting jeans were my first try, since denim protects against wind a little bit if its not up against your skin, but riding in jeans is inefficient and uncomfortable, if the crotch is loose it will catch on the seat and if they get wet it sucks way worse. i've tried jeans with longjohns underwear, much warmer and drier, still sucked for efficiency, i tried waterproof breathable semi-tight ski pants ($10 used) with longjohns, that was probably the best but looked really goofy. tried some nylon motorcycle raingear and tore them up in less than 5 rides, they aren't meant for a lot of movement. worked great though before they tore up. on a recent warm rainy ride i just wore my waterproof coat and shorts, cold in the beginning but pretty warm after 30 minutes of hard pedaling. oh and for really cold weather i have a full face balaclava, my wife calls it my bank robber mask. it doesn't warm up your face much, just keeps the biting wind/rain off your cheeks/nose/ears when its really really cold.

good post! Thanks for sharing your experience. I'm going to look for that coat. Sounds pretty sweet. I'll post if I think I found it.

Wow. North face makes a LOT of jackets, I guess I'll wait until you figure out which one you've got.

MS.T.H. Jacket?
https://www.thenorthface.com/opencms/...=NA&model=AA7N

the ms th jacket looks close, though it says good in light rain, whereas mine is just waterproof, you can pour glasses of water on it and not get wet, and a neat thing is its not a special coating on the fabric that does it, as coatings can wear off, its the fabric itself that's repelling the water, im at work right now but i'll look closer at it when i get home and see if i can get a name or model number off it

I'm new to the biking scene, but when I play baseball in cold weather I use a layer of underarmour underneath the long sleve t-shirt, it does a great job of holding heat in and keeping the cold out.

Hey craig, search for stuff by velocipedio, he is a canuck (read:he rides in the cold alot) and I remember him making some sweet posts concerning cold weather gear.

My favorite cold weather gloves are actually golf gloves...Footjoy Wintersof. They're effective to about 25-30F, but everyone has different tolerance for hot and cold. Not only do these gloves work well and feel great, they're also fairly inexpensive.

This winter, I'm trying long johns under some BMX racing pants.

Thats a good idea. I didnt even think about under armour. Thanks.

I searched for posts by Velocipedio and I didnt really find anything about cold weather gear.

Jenson or Jensen, whoever they are, they blow out pants cheap. Kevlar panels, and very abrasion resistant. They're really warm too.

That under armor is good stuff.

I found "Apex" on the arm... here's the "technology" or whatever
https://www.thenorthface.com/na/techn...gies-apex.html

and here's the jacket
https://www.backcountryoutlet.com/out...ic+jacket+mens

and +1 to under armor

thanks for the link

Yeah, thanks for checking on it for me!

It looks like it might be discontinued, at least from that website. They didnt have my size.

i do under jeans. works great!

I ride with Under Armor cold gear throughout the winter. Bike shorts, then Under Armor tights, and finally a baggy pair of cargo shorts over that. If it's really cold/wet I'll wear an Under Armor long sleeve shirt with a Nike Dri Fit tee underneath and a jersey over the top of it all. With riding gloves and a skull cap under my helmet I stay warm and relatively dry.

hey that under armor cold gear stuff looks pretty good, and way cheaper than the pants i was looking at, and water resistant/windproof/breathable. thanks for suggesting. i'ma get some of those myself

What the material mlh122 is referring to is commonly referred to as a "soft-shell" jacket. Lots of companies make them. Arc' Teryx was probably the first company to perfect it. Granted, their stuff is expensive. Marmot, Patagonia, Mountain Hardwear, etc. all make variants. It doesn't technially meet waterproofness standards, as it will wet out under pressure, but it sheds most water and snow really well.

One of my favorite all-around winter pieces is a Marmot Dri-Clime jacket. https://marmot.com/products/product.p...style_id=I5607 It's got a light insulating layer of proprietary fleece that wicks super well and a wind proof shell. It's also got mesh pits that are helpful for venting. It probably weighs less than a pound. Best of all, it's warm enough for winter riding, and reasonably priced. Probably in my top 2-3 favorite pieces of outdoor gear.

BTW, all of these breathable fabrics are great, but make sure you're using a wicking layer for your base, and not cotton, or they'll be useless.

Cotton kills. I just picked up a mountain hardwear soft shell on sale at rei. Its so thin it seems like it wouldn't do anything, but its quite warm and stops wind. I didn't buy it for riding in, but they way its cut, it would be fine on the bike.

For michigan winters you will need some insulated pants ("tights" but they aren't all tight), and a good riding jacket. Obviously gloves and head protection and some good socks. Have fun in the snow!

I stopped by Marshalls today. Its a store that sells things that other stores cant sell at full price. I got an under armour long sleeve cold gear shirt. The only bad thing is its tan. Its from their tactical line. I cant really complain, I only paid 20 for it. They're 60 usually! Score for me! Now I have to get some under armour tights. I tried some on today and they were WARM! I just didnt really want to pay 50 for them. ick. I'm a cheapskate. I know.