by the end of the season, we know what our gear is
 

was just thinking, this morning, as I was taking some stuff off the drying rack
we pretty much have our go-to stuff now, sorted out
making it much easier to get ready for a ride

yup, next season I'll have to frantically search for it all and figure out what my threshholds are for certain temps.

And with yesterday's 45F, I keep dreaming of putting the heavy stuff away, but tomorrow has a high of 19F and wind 25-35mph. That's not spring...

I have a section for winter gear, spring and fall gear, and summer gear. The good thing is my wife never ventures into my cycling closet. :lol:

Oh god. Everytime she cleans up, I have to ask where this and that is. The problem is I don't notice until I'm looking for it and that could be weeks away.

my safe space is the entire basement. Wifey says it's scary down there ...

need to find my wind breaker vest ... I just keep finding those darn zip-off sleeves, but not the body section, ugh

Yeah, this is the opposite part of the season - where the hell is everything and what combination of gear works for which conditions?

I have some written notes to help my memory for this time of year. But in my case, I wasn't even in Minnesota last winter, so it's been a year and a half since I've seen some of this gear. Some of the other gear came with me for my winter in Germany - it's all taking some organizing.

But I've made (for me) a switch. No more pants tights. Bib tights only. How come it took me so many years to figure this one out?

I've been wearing some of my winter gear for the past week, with temperatures below 10C. Without the extra exertion from snow I need to dress warmer than I would normally in the winter. Warmer this week but cold mornings so dressing is a challenge.

Yup, after all these years, I'd think I'd have clothing memorized, but... I do have a spreadsheet in increments of 10 degrees, but I usually don't need that until below freezing. I do seem to need more clothing for the same temp in Oct as in April. I guess that's just the fall acclimatization process...

The forecast has some below freezing daytime highs next week. One forecast even shows snow. Time to dig out my warmer gloves.

Whew, 4 inches of snow we got yesterday, the wet stuff. Then it dropped to -10C overnight so it is icy everywhere. I'm still getting my winter stuff ready so I might not go for a ride until tomorrow. My electric toe heaters and one of my heated gloves need a little maintenance, as does the bottom bracket on my fat bike.

I need to make new heating pads for my boots but for now I'll just fix the broken power leads. The batteries are losing capacity so I want to switch from 7.4v packs to 9V USB power like I'm using for my gloves, but I'd like to find a smaller battery.

One thing that gets worse every year is keeping my hands warm. I guess circulation is more of a challenge as we get older. Also, I've had several traumatic injuries to my left hand (several broken bones, dislocated finger) and the extremities beyond those points get particularly cold - I guess the artery network doesn't fully reconstruct when you break bones and tear cartilage at an older age.

So even if I remember what worked at a particular temperature last year, for gloves and other hand warming technology (pogies, chemical hand warmers), it may not be right for this year.

My hands are really bad in the cold. The DIY heated gloves that I've been using the past 2 seasons have made riding so much more enjoyable. They keep my hands warm enough I skipped pogies last year. I had them conk out several times last year but I think I've finally ironed out most of the issues. Wire breaks due to the stress of removing the gloves can still happen so I'll probably make a backup pair.

What I like most about my gloves is that the heating material is on the palm side of the hand. I'm not sure how many pre-made gloves are like that, the one pair I bought had the heat on the back of the hand which didn't work well when gripping handlebars.

Wind is coming too. An estimated 100 kmh (65 mph) plus rain :-(

Commuting will have to be with extra caution.
And will undoubtely take longer.

Someone posted here on BF how he kept a spreadsheet for himself. It listed the clothes he wore, the weather conditions, etc. So I started the same thing. I notice it's not necessary to log most days. Just a few give me an idea of what I need for each condition since I remember from one year to the next. Now I have a new winter jacket which is much warmer than last years, so I'll need to adjust.

time change this weekend, so now all of a sudden, it’s an hour darker than it was before the change. certainly prefer gradual changes. regardless, lighting will be back on the bike for after work rides. recently dug it out. weirdly, I have a new gym routine every day after work :foo:

I was pleased with myself yesterday for remembering I'd need lights for the after work ride, found them in the first place I looked, and got the batteries charged several hours before I took off (a benefit of working from home). We didn't have the 65mph winds but they were gusting to 35mph which still needed an attitude adjustment to continue the ride. I feel like a squirrel gathering nuts before the first big snow storm, trying to maximize the miles on the summer bike before I have to switch to the winter bike. :)

A lot of my winter kit is what would be called work clothes, rather than sporting gear.
Temp was in the 30F range, yesterday, so I broke my heaviest sweater out of the cabinet. A plume of pollen and dust emanated from it and I went into almost a sneezing fit and had to take an anti-histamine. Note-to-self: Put wool sweaters in plastic bags next spring.

found it last night, woohoo!

So you think that all of your single gloves broke up with the other in the pair and walked out from the closet on their own! 😉

I would have been very reluctant to go on a bike with 65 mph wind and rain - seems way too dangerous!
I take it that you survived fury of nature.

We are all survivors ;-)

A code orange had been declared. Which is manageable in theory; but, of course, orange can turn into red at any time during the day. Then it's more walking then cycling, or much better: staying home!

The gusts were not constant, rather sporadic (at least when I had to cycle through it), the wind itself was strong but manageable, and the wind was blowing in the right direction too. Let's just say I got off cheap this time.

That’s good!
In my younger days, it retrospect, I have been somewhat cavalier and found myself more exposed to elements than I should have allowed.
When my commuting was about 35 miles per day, mostly using roads where some cars always drove far beyond the 40MPH speed limit. On gusty windy days, riding used to be quite challenging though it didn’t seem so at that point… age of very strong legs and good lung capacity and all that.
The worst episode: Not only the wind gusts but sudden heavy downpour of rain combined with lightening!
I should have either waited an hour or longer or called my wife to pick me up but didn’t. On my way home, there was enough rain water that I was riding in about 1-1.5 inch of standing water in this road when the lightening hit an electric pole only about 10 yard from me. The sound was quite startling and I instinctively looked up at the pole, the ceramic insulator had become so hot that it was glowing bright white. It shattered and fell on the ground where there was plenty of standing water and couldn’t see anything under water. But when that ceramic insulator fragment hit the ground, for a moment all water instantaneously evaporated and I could see green blades of grass!
All of it seemed to last only an instant but then after seeing green grass, I could see absolutely nothing for what seemed like several minutes… I’m sure my sense of time was thoroughly distorted. I had to get off the bike as a blind man but in few minutes I could begin to see.
Not an experience I’ll care to replicate but suffice it to say, commuting on bicycle resumed the next day.

@Alan K: Wow, what a story.

Intense thunder & lightning scares me (while commuting).
I haven't experienced it yet, fortunately. But ...
You are right, one does not forget! I remember the strike on a nearby tall, industrial electricity mast; white sparks like fireworks in all directions.
The danger lies not only in the point of impact but also the surrounding environment (including the ground).

Another danger, less severe but still, is the chilling during a sudden and particular hailstorm. I have seen unprepared people truly defeated and become hail zombies, so to speak.

Remember, learn, and keep riding.