Dressing for that In-between Weather (Cold to Warm)
 

This time of the year, at least in the Midwestern USA, the temperature throughout the day can fluctuate pretty dramatically. For example, I went for a ride this Sunday morning around 7:00 AM and the temperature was just shy of 50 degrees F. Within an hour or so, the temperature was in the low 70s. For me, riding at 50F is very brisk and requires some extra clothing, only to have to peal it all off (if one can) shortly after starting the ride.

I has opted to wear the following, which started-out being barely warm enough but ended-up being way too hot:

• Long sleave jersey under my short sleave jersey
• Insulated long finger gloves (necessary at 50F
• Insulated headband that covers my ears (necessary at 50F)

I suppose I could've stopped to take off the long sleave jersey and stuffed it in my Camelbak (which I use on longer rides) which would've helped considerably.

As such, how do you dress to handle days where the temperatures will go from cold to hot (or the opposite) fairly quickly without dragging your entire wardrobe along?

Big fan of arm warmers and leg warmers. Easy to take off the arm warmers mid ride without stopping, or just roll it down to my wrists. Haven't figured out how to remove leg warmers while still on the bike though.

Add a vest to protect my chest from wind, plus a wool short sleeve jersey, maybe some toe booties too plus full finger gloves.

I 2nd the recommendation on arm and leg warmers. If I need additional, my next step is a vest with a double-ended zipper...that way I can unzip it partially from the bottom without creating a parachute. Also a buff/neck gaiter is handy too.

This time of the year, the local temp ranges from comfortable to just plain hot, so clothing is pretty easy to figure out. Once into late fall, is when it gets tricky. My average late season loop, not only will I deal with freezing temps in the morning, but I also have to couple that with about 1 to 1.5 hours of mostly descending at the beginning of the ride. Then I'll spend the last leg of the ride, climbing with temps about 20 degrees warmer. I've finally just settled with the arm/leg warmers and vest...I know I'm going to be really cold for the first hour of the ride, but I'll be comfortable the next 3 hours and not have to lug around my winter gear.

For rides that start in the low 60s and end up in the upper 70s, I have arm warmers and a windbreaker vest that can fit in my jersey pocket. If it's a colder start, I trade the windbreaker vest for an insulated vest (Q36.5 Adventure, I think), maybe throw an extra windbreaker jacket over the top. At this point, if I'm confident I'll be shedding layers, I'll throw a top-tube bag onto my bike, as well. The jacket and arm warmers can fit in the jersey, but the insulated vest takes up enough space to warrant the extra pack. Leg warmers are a bit dicier (can take up a lot of space), might be worth trading those for knee warmers and longer socks.

Also, dunno about where you are, but you may want to throw in a small bottle of sunblock for once the layers start coming off.

Gilet FTW. It’s all about the core imo.

Another northern midwest rider here. I don't find the present conditions (starting at 50, climbing to 70 or above) so challenging. I'm OK at 50 with short sleeved kit plus arm warmers or maybe a light wind breaker, both of which I can take off later and stuff in my jersey pocket.

Sometime soon, though, the swing will be from 40 to 60. That's tougher. Then I want a hat, some reasonably insulating gloves (mid-weight) and a long sleeved jersey plus a windbreaker.

And then, when it starts at 30 and gets up to 50, that's even harder. By the time it starts at 20, all is good b/c I'm going to want cold weather gear throughout the ride.

i struggled with this due to our microclimates - routinely an effective temp in the 40s at the start or in shady, wet, windy areas, and then 70+ 20 minutes later in the exposed inland sun. I hated carrying stuff, so I ended up going with thin long sleeved tops that have a zipper, full finger gloves, long socks with shorts, and just suffering through the cold part. not applicable below 40 of course but tolerable 40-55 for a few hours.

If things are really warming 20 F degrees in a hour, you're not riding in the cold for very long. I'm not saying tough it out, but am saying you only need something to stay warm for a short time. I recommend a good wind jacket. It's really surprising how much difference that makes. The downside is sweat. I don't care how much fancy pants Gortex this and that it has, it will get wet inside from sweat. But Gortex or similar won't get as wet as something that doesn't breathe at all.

You can't have it both ways. Airflow is what keeps you dry and it's also what cools you down.

I don't have temp increases that fast, but my rides from home either start with a few miles of climbing or about 6 miles of descent. So, I sometimes wear the wind jacket on descents when it's a bit cool. I really like my Castelli Squadra Stretch jacket. It's seems to be mostly rip-stop nylon (doesn't breathe), but has breathable panels on back of the sleeves and down the sides. It packs very small.
https://www.castelli-cycling.com/US/...1511_383_52_XL

It really is surprising how much warmer a wind jacket can be in cool weather. It's my number 1 go-to item for dealing with varying temps.

Another favorite is my Castelli Perfetto RoS 2 Vest. Though I think these have been discontinued. But a vest like this works wonders and packs small. Wind block on the front and vert breathable on the back.

I always wear arm sleeves. Mostly for sun protection in the summer, but heavier ones in cooler weather. I rarely use actual arm warmers, but as many have mentioned, it's an option. Still another is a jacket with removable sleeves.

Something I think is very helpful is a wool mesh base layer. You can get these in a sleeveless style. They add some insulation, but work well at wicking moisture away and hold damp material off your skin. So, if your jerseys gets wet from sweat it won't touch your skin as much and feel as chilling.

In the end, it's several light layers. But I'd try mesh base, short sleeve jersey, arm sleeves, quality vest, and finally a wind jacket. You can stow the vest and wind jacket easily in one jersey pocket. Probably stuff arm warmers in the same one as well. Unzip the short sleeve jersey and ventilate the mesh base as needed when it warms a bit.

Below 60 F my threshold for wearing full tights. And I find I tolerate these even when it's warmer. But not 70 F warm. I mostly base the leg-wear choice on what the temp is for the bulk of the ride. So, perhaps leg warmers is what you would need. But again, for such a short time when it is below 60 F, I think I would just tough it out on my legs. Leg warmers are bulky.

Something to consider is some form of bike storage if you need to shed and stow clothing. I've gotten to where I can manage just using jersey pockets, but in the past I've used various frame bags.

There is no perfect solution. To some degree you'll have to accept being a little cool at the start of a ride and perhaps a bit warm at the end.

Oh, one other thing.

Sometimes here the temperature swings can be enormous, particularly because I favor getting an early start and, on a Saturday, ride 4-6 hours. In the late fall, it might start out in the mid 20s at 8 AM and be 60 by the time I finish at 1 or 2 PM. In those cases, I have a very small backpack, so I can take off thicker layers and have a place to put them. There's only so much you can fit in your jersey pockets, and, in my experience, tying a jacket around your waste is asking for trouble, or at a minimum annoyance.

Thanks for all the tips. Several of you mentioned wearing a vest which is the one thing I don't own. I like the idea of a vest that has a wind block in front but not the back as it's the wind chill at 50 F that seems to be the biggest issue before temps warm up. Also a good tip to make sure one has sunscreen available for when the layers start to come off.

Arm and leg warmers for sure. I always was bothered by the "chilly chest" syndrome while riding. I tried a windbreaker jacket, but it was bulky and difficult to store and carry once it got warm and was removed.
Then a woman I rode with tipped me off to Tyvek. Yup, the stuff they wrap houses with. There's always sheets of it being discarded near any home construction site (and there are too many of them around here lately.) Just grab a piece, cut it to size to fit between a light t-shirt and your jersey. It works better than any dedicated garment I've tried before. When it starts getting warmer, just remove it. It will fold into a small package you can fit in your jersey pocket, or just find a dumpster or trash receptacle for it and cut a new one next ride.

You used to see pros stuff the front of their jerseys with newspaper at the top of a climb to bomb down the other side of the mountain, sounds like a similar concept.

My insulated vest (or gilet, if you fancy) only has the insulating poofs on the front - the back breathes better than most of my windbreaker jackets and vests. The insulation, as well as the snugger neck, waist, and arm holes, are good for a) keeping the chest fabric off of your jersey, and b) trapping the warmer air and not letting it escape. For my core, it's surprisingly significantly warmer than my Castelli Mortirolo 6s jacket - that said, I don't have arm warmers that can quite keep up at 50F, so the jacket still has its uses on days where I don't expect to shed it.

My wind jacket is a Castelli Squadra Stretch, which can easily be rolled up and tucked into a jersey pocket. This, plus a vest and arm warmers, has covered me on rides starting at 45F to ending in the mid 60s, with different combinations coming off/going back on depending on temperature and terrain. My go-to arm warmers come from Q36.5 (along with my insulated gilet).

Just never use the circulars to stuff clothing if it’s raining out.

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...88d202051.jpeg

At least you're able to offer a recommendation for tax prep services! :lol:

Packable. Here in NY it's been mid 50's to low 60's in the morning but then will heat up to 70+ degrees during mid day. Still warm enough to wear mostly summer gear but I will wear a gilet in the morning or my Gore Wear ShakeDry and then pack it up into my jersey pocket as the day heats up.

As it get's colder I probably wear a long sleeve base layer which is ultrathin and breathable under a jersey and as it get's even colder transition into long sleeve jerseys. Ultimately by winter I use a Gore Wear Winstopper base layer which is thick but has mesh areas to help wetting out and I will wear a long sleeve jersey on top of that with my Gore Wear Winter Shake Dry. Even in the winter the ride can heat up and it's not uncommon for some winter rides to hit 60 degrees here, so that's when it's important to remember to vent your jackets and jerseys.

Are you coldest on the ears, feet, hands, chest? Wherever it is just part wearing things that can easily be packed as you go.

The answer is always some kind of layering, and storage area for what is not in use. Clothing with wind block at the front does help. My upper outer is almost always a thin wind breaker type jacket. Most of the time, it is an inside layer that is removed when needed. I live in south coastal Delaware, 5 miles from the beach, temperature and wind fluctuates greatly from beach area to inland area, and a huge difference in riding with and against the wind. If one gets sweaty enough to be damp, one can get quite chilled.

That's when I start riding my touring bike, so I have a rack on which I can strap the layers that I peel off.

Per recommendations in this post, I just ordered a Specialized "gilet" which is on sale right now in limited sizes. It is high-vis yellow with a vented back, which are two things I wanted. Unfortunately, I didn't order from the Specialized web site as it's sold out in the medium size, so I had to scour the Interwebs to find one in that size.

Specialized Men's HyprViz SL Pro Wind Gilet
https://www.specialized.com/us/en/me...ro-wind-gilet/

Merino
 

Fine Merino wool is the bomb

I have a similar garment from Specialized. I've had it for at least 15 years, and I don't remember what name it was marketed under. But it's high-visibility, had a vented back, AND removable sleeves to turn it into a vest. The only problem I've had with it is the front zipper failed, so I had a local seamstress replace it with a heavy-duty zipper.
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...2cd4278b90.jpg