Winter Kit Choice

meanredspider

So various threads on me got me thinking about what kit I really appreciate during the dark, wet and cold months and thought it would be interesting to see what kit you'd choose if you were forced to select just one of each item from your wardrobe to get you through the winter (ignore the seriously cold days). I'll add lights too just for completeness.

Mine's going to look like a bit of a homage to Assos I'm afraid (though not totally)

Jacket: Assos Airjack 851 - love it so much I have 2 :oops:
Bibs: Assos shorts combined with their leg warmers - knees uncovered as much as poss
Gloves: Assos Early Winter (liners or lobsters for sub-zero)
Socks: Icebreaker - I'd have sworn Woolie Boolie if you'd asked me but realised I pick these in preference
Baselayer: ultra thin Nike Pro l/s thing
Overshoes: Pro H2O - must buy another pair before they disappear
Headwear: Pearl Izumi headband for freezing and below only

Lights: Front - AyUps. Rear - I'm going to cheat and say my Vis360 lid lights

antlaff

Jacket: Mavic Propane - Cold, Shutt Winter - Wet, Gore Xenon AS 2.0 - Windy
Bibs: DHB Roubaix but have Assos 607's bibs plus warmers on santa list
Gloves: Assos Early Winter (liners or lobsters for sub-zero)
Socks: Woolie Boolie
Baselayer: Craft Windstopper or Endura Baa Baa
Overshoes: Pro H2O - the best
Headwear: Gore Skull Cap And Shutt Thermal Buff

Lights: Exposure Strada , Diablo with Redeye & Exposure Flare

daviesee

A complete change from MRS (Rapha v Assos) but I defer to his experience in worse weather than I will venture out in....

Rapha Merino socks.
BBB Hardwear overshoes.
Assos bibs.
Rapha Windsucker longs.
Rapha merino base layer.
Rapha Winter jacket + Rapha Stowaway if it is wet weather.
Assos Fugu gloves.
Assos Stinger hat (bald )

That Airjack jacket and various other Rapha jackets are calling for the damp stuff though.
I have a Gore Phantom and as good as it is for the wet stuff there is still more of a boil in the bag effect than the Rapha gear.

bushu

Well as i live in the real world of bills and girlfriends, with a pish wage. I'm without the choice and settle for sticking my Dhb mtb waterproofs over roubaix type leggings and on-one merino top base layers, Pearl Izumi barrier booties & a Dhb balaclava when the buffs aren't enough.
Pedal a bit slower so i dont boil in the bag - I'm coping but, hoping when i get a new job i'll be able to afford a Wind/Ice/Rain alternative kit. Probably earn my singledom with it so will have plenty of time to cycle around in it.

Paul E

Whatever keeps me warm in whatever combination and at a decent price, I have better things to spend money on than over priced bike kit. But I don't look like a refugee from the peoples republic of cr4p tho.

daxplusplus

Jacket: Altura Windproof Jacket
Bibs: Cheap end of the market cycling shorts + Aldi leg warmers + non cycling specific tights
Gloves: Aldi winter cycling gloves + silk inners
Socks: two pairs (thin and thick)
Baselayer: Lidl LS jersey
Overshoes: BBB Neoprene
Headwear: Thin woollen hat

Lights: Front - 2 * Ultrafire 502b torches. Rear - 2 * MJ818 + Cateye Holy Handgrenade as back up

Hands still get cold though (really bad circulation) and feet can get cold if a long ride.

Fat-Boy-Roubaix

Jacket Gore Windstopper
Castelli Sorpasso Longs
Nike Base
Castelli Winter Jersey
Northwave Celcius Boots
Thermal Socks
Craft Skull cap
Free Buff

sketchley

Here's mine, I'm a big bloke so this has taking some time to find stuff that fits without being too long in arms or legs etc...

Jacket. BBB control shield (Windstopper)
Bib shorts. Nalini / DHB (just like summer)
Leggings - Polaris Vortex (windstopper with pad removed) need replacing
Base layer / mid layer. DHB core on its own and or Northwave Blade long sleeve jersey
Socks. Wollie , plus sealskins in the bag in. Case of wet shoes on way home
Shoes. Shimano mt71 (goretex)
Overshoes. Planet X. Need replacing
Headgear. Oxford Snood (from motorcycle shop)
Mudguards

Now i only get wet if it really rains, I mean really really rains and I'm out in it for more than 45mins. But I do stay warm. Seem of the kit is getting tired and is on it third winter, upgrades next year.

sketchley

Lights, two smart rear lights one flashing one static, front lights upgrading to Cree led torch, when it arrives from dx that is....

cyclingprop

Sketchley wrote:

Here's mine, I'm a big bloke so this has taking some time to find stuff that fits without being too long in arms or legs etc...

Jacket. BBB control shield (Windstopper)
Bib shorts. Nalini / DHB (just like summer)
Leggings - Polaris Vortex (windstopper with pad removed) need replacing
Base layer / mid layer. DHB core on its own and or Northwave Blade long sleeve jersey
Socks. Wollie , plus sealskins in the bag in. Case of wet shoes on way home
Shoes. Shimano mt71 (goretex)
Overshoes. Planet X. Need replacing
Headgear. Oxford Snood (from motorcycle shop)
Mudguards

Now i only get wet if it really rains, I mean really really rains and I'm out in it for more than 45mins. But I do stay warm. Seem of the kit is getting tired and is on it third winter, upgrades next year.

DHB seems to have "streamlined" it's winter kit if you were looking this year. Which is a sod as I could do with some *reasonably priced* gear in a large person size, but they all seem to stop 2-3 inches smaller than me.

roger_merriman

For the normal commute the only cycling stuff I wear use is
Gloves - Endura Windstoppers
Lights - Fenix LD2 up front and a Smart 1W at the rear, I ride in the dark year around.

for longer commutes and or rides I'll add

jacket - Hi-Vis roll into a wee ball Montane, since unless it's very wet I'll overheat unless I take the jacket off in all but the coldest days, so normally need to take it off after 2 miles or so.
Trousers - Craghoppers hiking ones.
Top - non branded Baselayer from Millets.
Socks - Hiking ones.
Boots - HiTek light weight walking boot.

I run hot so most of the time even in winter I only have one layer on, windproof gloves and shoes go a long way though - for MTBing I have some very old Head Walking Boots that are ace, does need to be well below zero for those though!

Applespider

Baselayer - Icebreaker halfzip 260 top
Jacket - Gore Phantom (with Montane H20 rolled up as backup if it gets v wet)
Bottoms - Endura thermal leggings
Socks - Icebreaker merino hiking or ski socks
Shoes - Lake LX140 boots
Gloves - Icebreaker liners with Gore Mistral windbreakers on top
Lights - Cateye 600 (I think) front and bog-standard Cateye on back. Knogs on helmet - front/back. Reflective spokes
Headgear - fleece headband; merino beanie on wet days
Neck - fleecy buff if it's really chilly.

Mine doesn't vary that much when it gets chillier; I double up on the base layer (a 200 and a 260 layer), add a merino baselayer to the legs, add another pair of socks and switch to my Nightvision gloves. If it gets into seriously negative numbers, I wimp out and 'work from home'.

bushu

I can't fault the build quality of Dhb kit, though you do have to wear "wide" xl/xxl sizes if your a tad taller like me.
Planning on trying some vaeon bibs in the new year, only heard good stuff & for the price its definitely worth a punt.

Just ordered some new planet x winter gloves, should see me through till spring.
My first year of commuting I was using old snowboarding kit in winter, not ideal but neither was the tiny dj/mtb mongoose fireball i was using either. Which i might try when things get too hairy on ice, no such thing as bad weather just bad equipment

walkingbootweather

In light of my inability to stay on 2 feet before I even get on the bike, I have decided that my winter kit of choice is currently a family saloon with heater, radio, abs and traction control. Sorry if I'm letting the side down.

spasypaddy

Jacket: Gore or Louis Garneau
Bibs: Gore, Louis Garneau or Hincapie
Gloves: Gore (2 variants, cold and colder)
Socks: Woolie Boolies
Baselayer: Icebreaker Merino wool
Winter boots: Northwave Fahrenheit (road) or Northwave Celsius (fixie)
Headwear: Winter buff and helly hansen skull cap
In my bag: gore packable waterproof, and hincapie overtrousers (which have a roadie cut)

notsoblue

Road bike kit I wore when out this weekend (seems a lot!):

Shoes - Mavic Galibier Road Shoes
Socks - Castelli Winter Socks
Overshoes - Pro Neoprene Road Overshoes
Leggings - ShuttVR Roubaix Leggings
Shorts - Castelli Presto Bibs
Baselayer - DHB Merino Baselayer
LS Jersey - PX LS Jersey
Jacket - Gore Xenon
Cap - Various
Helmet - Kask Mojito
Gloves - Assos Early Winter + Gloveliners

Pretty warm with the above at about 3-4C. Feet get pretty chilly after an hour though. I've not found a good solution for that, I don't think anything other than an active heating measure would do the trick.

I miss summer...

cyclingprop

notsoblue wrote:

Pretty warm with the above at about 3-4C. Feet get pretty chilly after an hour though. I've not found a good solution for that, I don't think anything other than an active heating measure would do the trick.

I miss summer...

Ref feet, have you tried having part of the shoe slightly looser? I went out with toe caps only yesterday for 60 miles and my feet were fine, though the shoes are arguably a tiny bit big (49 but I should be in a 48)... Perhaps reducing restriction on circulation might help?

notsoblue

cyclingprop wrote:

Ref feet, have you tried having part of the shoe slightly looser? I went out with toe caps only yesterday for 60 miles and my feet were fine, though the shoes are arguably a tiny bit big (49 but I should be in a 48)... Perhaps reducing restriction on circulation might help?

Yeah, I've tried that, and it certainly does help a lot. But it just tends to put the numbness off rather than sort it for the whole ride. I think I just have poor circulation! I might see if I can pick up some winter specific footware at some point and see if that solves the problem. My road shoes are pretty thin and ventilated.

cyclingprop

Bought some decathlon gear. Shall report back in due course.

daxplusplus

notsoblue wrote:

cyclingprop wrote:

Ref feet, have you tried having part of the shoe slightly looser? I went out with toe caps only yesterday for 60 miles and my feet were fine, though the shoes are arguably a tiny bit big (49 but I should be in a 48)... Perhaps reducing restriction on circulation might help?

Yeah, I've tried that, and it certainly does help a lot. But it just tends to put the numbness off rather than sort it for the whole ride. I think I just have poor circulation! I might see if I can pick up some winter specific footware at some point and see if that solves the problem. My road shoes are pretty thin and ventilated.

In the same boat - after an hour or so at around 0C my feet start feeling the pain. So I'm all ears if you do go down that route (of buying winter specific shoes)

jimmypippa

What I take:
Baselayer -Rab MeCo165
legwear - Tracksters, Montane featherlite pants
windproof- Montane featherlite jacket
Overshoes - lusso
Gloves - sealskinz ultragrip
Waterproof - Montane stormrider jacket, Marmot precip legwear
midlayer for stops Karrimor KIMM fleece (from when Karrimor made proper kit)
Front light - cateye opticube something, some smart dual cell as reserve.
rear -smart 1/2 wat
alpkit gamma headtorch as reserve
spare rear light
most of it stays in my pannier.

Spot the person who is primarily a hillwalker/scrambler

nevman

top to bottom
giordano skull cap
john smedley merino vest
l/s club jersey
gore windstopper jacket
lusso winter bibtights
merino socks from Costco
northwave fahrenheit road boots
planet x windtex gloves.

cyclingprop

DaxPlusPlus wrote:

notsoblue wrote:

cyclingprop wrote:

Ref feet, have you tried having part of the shoe slightly looser? I went out with toe caps only yesterday for 60 miles and my feet were fine, though the shoes are arguably a tiny bit big (49 but I should be in a 48)... Perhaps reducing restriction on circulation might help?

Yeah, I've tried that, and it certainly does help a lot. But it just tends to put the numbness off rather than sort it for the whole ride. I think I just have poor circulation! I might see if I can pick up some winter specific footware at some point and see if that solves the problem. My road shoes are pretty thin and ventilated.

In the same boat - after an hour or so at around 0C my feet start feeling the pain. So I'm all ears if you do go down that route (of buying winter specific shoes)

Saw this tonight and thought of you lot.

rick_chasey

How cold we going?

Below 5 degrees I have 3/4s Endura fleeced bib shorts, Holly henson long sleeve baselayer, a sugoi fleeces long sleeved jersey, some endura thermal socks and either neoprene endura overshoes or craft toe covers.

Then a cotton cycling cap and gore earwarmer headband, or, if it's really cold, a rapha woolen belgium cap thing over the top.

That's as warm as I can get really, unless i put my nike windstopper gilet on or, worse case, my altura pocket waterproof, which also works as a full upperbody windbreaker - very light.

nation

My commute is only six/seven miles or so, and I run hot, so most of the time I wear pretty much what I normally would.

Tends to be:

Shoes: Shimano M087 (on a road bike, sue me)
Socks: Woolly hiking ones, from Asda, if cold. Normal if not.
Shorts: Endura Humvee 3/4s (year round) and normal underwear. I did wonder if they were over the top for commuting but they're saved me from road rash on my last couple of offs so I'll stick with them, I think.

Upper half varies, usually it's a combination of a long sleeved Enduraa Baa Baa base layer, which I'll wear as a jersey if it's just a bit chilly. Hoody on the top if it's very cold and dry, Altura Nevis jacket if it's heaving it down (instead of the hoody), Altura gilet if it's a bit drizzly (with or without hoody depending on temperature).

I also have some Endura Strike gloves and a couple of buffs. The buff either goes round my neck to keep the draught out, or around my head/ears if it's icy and the ears are starting to sting.

meanredspider

Rick Chasey wrote:

How cold we going?

Just typical proper winter Dec-Feb I was thinking. Obviously milder for some. No point in discussing minus double figures - by that point I'm raiding the cupboard for overtrousers and wearing waterproof jackets as windproof layers.

notsoblue

cyclingprop wrote:

DaxPlusPlus wrote:

notsoblue wrote:

cyclingprop wrote:

Ref feet, have you tried having part of the shoe slightly looser? I went out with toe caps only yesterday for 60 miles and my feet were fine, though the shoes are arguably a tiny bit big (49 but I should be in a 48)... Perhaps reducing restriction on circulation might help?

Yeah, I've tried that, and it certainly does help a lot. But it just tends to put the numbness off rather than sort it for the whole ride. I think I just have poor circulation! I might see if I can pick up some winter specific footware at some point and see if that solves the problem. My road shoes are pretty thin and ventilated.

In the same boat - after an hour or so at around 0C my feet start feeling the pain. So I'm all ears if you do go down that route (of buying winter specific shoes)

Saw this tonight and thought of you lot.

Just ordered some of these, will report back...

rick_chasey

One thing I have noticed is that on my canyon the ultegra crank rubs against the inside of my neoprene overshoes. .. balls.

il_principe

Jacket: Rapha Softshell
Jersey: Rapha Winter
Bibs: Castelli Sorpasso tights
Gloves: Castelli - 3 years old now, I forget the name
Socks: Prendas Thermolite
Baselayer: Castelli
Overshoes: Prendas Airtunnel
Headwear: Rapha winter cap

Edit - the Prendas sock/overshoe combo kept me toasty all last winter, rode in sub 0 temps and feet stayed warm.

asprilla

Jacket: Rapha Softshell
Jersey: Rapha Winter (worn this morning with a a base and was perfect)
Bibs: Summer shorts
Over bibs: dhb Vaeon tights
Gloves: Gore Xenon Gore-Tex (haven't actually worn them yet).
Socks: Endura Baa Baa winter
Baselayer: Icebreaker 200
Overshoes: BBB Ultraflex
Head: Giro Merino Winter Cap

Edit: I forgot shoes - This winter I'm moving to Giro Privateers which means SPD pedals. My Diadora Chilli Extremes don't really keep my feet warm and the Giros are a much better fit. My Factors definitely don't keep my feet warm...

Phil_D

Here's my cobbled together outfit:

Socks: Unbro 5 pairs for £3 from Sports Direct
Shoes: DHB cheapos
Overshoes: Endura (seen better days)
Shorts: Aldi
Trousers: A pair of my wife's old leggings
Base layer: T shirt (next I think)
Jersey: Karrimor
Jumper: an old golf windsheeter that used to be waterproof
Jacket: none unless it's hammering down, in which case it's Berghaus (my one indulgence)
Gloves: Altura night vision

That has lasted me two years of winter 20 mile commuting.