Sock + Shoe + Overshoe combo?

turbotommy

Sorry if this has already been done to death... But maybe it needs updating for 2015? My feet were like blocks of ice 10 miles into a 50 mile ride this morning and I'm just wondering if anyone has a better combo for winter riding or I just need to man up ( quite possible! ). I've heard people suggest wrapping cling film around your feet / socks in the past but have never tried it.

My current combo is:

"Sealskinz mid length, thick thermal" sock
"Specialized elite" road shoe
"Endura road over" shoe

Anyone have the winning formula for toasty feet?!

sirmol

could try these http://www.wiggle.co.uk/castelli-toe-thingy-toe-cover/
These will fit on your shoe but will fit underneath your road over's. They will just stop any wind getting through at all

Monty Dog

Tight shoes = restricted circulation = cold feet. Winter boots that are a half-size bigger, thick socks and if necessary overshoes will see you down to minus 10.

imposter2.0

TurboTommy wrote:

Sorry if this has already been done to death... But maybe it needs updating for 2015? My feet were like blocks of ice 10 miles into a 50 mile ride this morning and I'm just wondering if anyone has a better combo for winter riding or I just need to man up ( quite possible! ). I've heard people suggest wrapping cling film around your feet / socks in the past but have never tried it.

My current combo is:

"Sealskinz mid length, thick thermal" sock
"Specialized elite" road shoe
"Endura road over" shoe

Anyone have the winning formula for toasty feet?!

Thick socks not needed. Regular cycling socks are fine. Especially if the thicker socks make your shoes tighter, as mentioned above...

crikey

What else were you wearing?

There is no point in having lots of foot protection if the rest of you is verging on being cold; your body works as a complete system. It will restrict blood flow to your feet if your core temperature isn't at the right level, and will restrict blood flow to your feet if too much heat is being lost through the big vessels which run through and around your ankle and lower leg.

Dress properly, keep your core warm to the point of being sweaty, maintain that temp by wearing longs and start off with warm feet.

thegibdog

Winter boots have made a big difference for me this year, much warmer than woolly socks/normal shoes/overshoes combo.

turbotommy

Thanks for the fast responses

I've heard the circulation thing mentioned before crikey. Apart from my feet I was pretty toastie to be honest. I was wearing a thermal long sleeved vest, tights, bib shorts over the top and a winter jacket. All pretty good kit. Having said that you've definitely given me food for thought and I'll try to analyse my body temperature better as a whole next time I'm out.

Imposter I bought the thicker socks as regular socks weren't cutting it. But as you say, the socks may not be the final solution

Monty's suggestion makes sense as it combines the thicker gear as well as the looser fit to allow circulation.

Have you tried those toe covers yourself simol? I've looked at them in the past.

Out of interest what overshoes if any do you guys use? Reading the reviews they all seem to make claims I'm not entirely convinced they live up to...

fudgey

I suffer from chill blains on my feet, have some at the mo.

Watched my lad play football this morning (wearing my cycling clothes under a jacket and tracky bottoms then went out on the bike.

I wear a pair of summer socks, a pair of the aldi long wolly socks, specialized shoes and bbb waterproof overshoes.
Feet were ok with that on.
The rest was dhb roubaix vaeon bib tights, long sleeve compression top, merino long sleeve top, aldi winter gloves and a schlamm gillet. I also had a buff thing on my neck.

Got rather hot going uphill, but was too cold within a couple of mins of taking the gillet off so had to stop and put it back on.

lone wheeler

Normal pair of cycling socks, sandwich bag over your toes, correctly fitting cycling shoes and a decent pair of overshoes. The sandwich bags really do work, don't leave the sandwich in there, eat it first!

ai_1

As above, thicker socks can be counter-productive if they restrict circulation.
I've encountered this problem in the past when I tried heavier socks to achieve warmer feet and liner gloves to get warmer hands. In both cases I ended up colder.

It's also worth noting that you should dress for what you'll need after you've warmed up and settled in. As crikey mentioned, your whole body factors into this. When I head out in cold weather my hands typically get very cold for the first 10-15 minutes but if I keep going they soon recover and are then comfortable for hours. I put this down to my body responding to exposure to the low air temperature by restricting airflow to the extremities. When my core temperature does not fall (due to adequate clothing and exertion) this restriction is released again and my hands warm back up.

gimpl

I agree with the above - this year I am wearing less on my hands and feet and I am warmer.

I have a pair of older shoes that I have put a double layer of foil under the innersole and have taped up all the vents. One pair of thick merino wool socks and some fairly thin Aldi overshoes and happy days, maybe not toasty but not freezing blocks of ice like last year either. Hands wise I just wear a pair of water/windproof Planet X gloves.

Last year I had two pairs of socks on which restricted the movement I had in the shoe and took up the 'warm air' between my foot and the shoe, over it all I had Planet X neoprene overshoes. I also used to use a silk glove liner, again taking up the air pocket.

Finally, on a more general keeping warm point; I have worked out that in winter I need to keep my heart rate at above 150 bpm to stay warm all over so I tend to not go out for such long rides but ride a bit harder for less time.

cougie

I didn't think it was that cold round here yesterday anyway - I was running wooly gloves still with my Rapha Winter Jersey - I had to unzip the vents.

That said - I saw some people riding in shorts, and some people with buffs pulled up over their faces.

I dont think its worth paying big bucks for overshoes - all they need to do is keep the wind and rain off your shoes.
The PX ones seem to work well for me.

lakesluddite

Many of these points and more on the linked blog from BC (hope you can view it):

http://www.britishcycling.org.uk/insigh ... the-bike-0

I must try some or all of these, I also suffer from ice-block feet when the temperature drops. Anything over two hours and they are practically numb.

thegreatdivide

crikey wrote:

What else were you wearing?

There is no point in having lots of foot protection if the rest of you is verging on being cold; your body works as a complete system. It will restrict blood flow to your feet if your core temperature isn't at the right level, and will restrict blood flow to your feet if too much heat is being lost through the big vessels which run through and around your ankle and lower leg.

Dress properly, keep your core warm to the point of being sweaty, maintain that temp by wearing longs and start off with warm feet.

This. Warm core = warm extremities.

That's not to say that you won’t need a good foot combo but IMO you don’t need to go all out on winter specific boots etc if your core is sorted. A good pair of thickish merino socks, road shoes and quality overshoes that are either windproof or waterproof (or both). I’m a BIG fan of the ones Prendas do. I can spank a small country’s national debt on Rapha but nothing beats Prendas for overshoes!

TheHound

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/northwave-fahre ... oad-shoes/

With some merino socks and overshoes if it's really cold.

Tjgoodhew

+1 on the ones from Planet X

Might not look the best but i dont think i have ever suffered with cold feet whilst wearing them.

For me if my body is warm then my feet generally are. I have found that thick socks (football socks in my case) had the adverse effect as they made my shoes too tight.

lostboysaint

DeFeet Woolie Boolies +
BTwin 700 shoes +
Planet X windproof (fleecy line) overshoes

= happy toes!

lancew

Have a good look at your shoe to try and work out about vents etc on the shoe. My Shimano shoes have two drainage holes at the front which I duck tape over in the winter as unless its really warm, your toes freeze. I then have toe thingies over the shoes and a thick pair of merinos under.

Yesterday towards the end of my ride I was getting cold feet but during the main part of the ride I was fine. I am considering a full set of over shoes if it gets much colder.

onemoresolo

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Hot-Hands-Foot- ... B000YEZLD8

Can't recommend those enough, they're pretty thin as well so should fit most shoes.

mfin

I have 3 pairs of overshoes for different conditions and temperatures.

When it's about 2 degrees and lower (but DRY) all the way down to well sub-freezing I use Gore Softshell Windstoppers with good warm socks underneath. I have never had anything but toasty warm feet wearing these and my circulation is utterly crap.

My other ones for wet/cold are Castelli Diluvio are absolutely nowhere near as warm, but when it's wet the Gore are useless.

(My Gore ones I have had for years though, and I don't know if the design has changed! For all I know it could be a different overshoe now... they look the same as these though which are reduced at the moment http://www.wiggle.co.uk/gore-bike-wear-road-windstopper-softshell-overshoes/. Ignore the picture of someone wearing them as that fuppet is wearing too big a size and making the fit look crap).

turbotommy

Lots of great tips thanks

I'm gonna try different combos and see what works for me. FWIW I'm pretty happy with the rest of my set up. I have a decent range of clothes through trial and error, and generally don't suffer on rides apart from my feet, so long as I'm not caught by surprise.

Some of the winter shoes out there look pretty impressive, the NW ones included, but I'm desperately trying to avoid bike related purchases so I can attempt to justify buying a redic overpriced groupset in the near future. It's amazing what you can justify to yourself when you put your mind to it! :P

Think I'll start by duct taping up the front of my shoes. As well as being amongst the least comfortable shoes I've owned, it turns out they have monster vents in the fronts of em! Think I'll combine that with slightly thinner socks. If that dosen't quite do it, maybe it's time to bust out the sandwich bags!

Thanks again for the well thought out responses

ben@31

lostboysaint wrote:

DeFeet Woolie Boolies [socks]

+ lots

Best socks I've ever bought. Used with neoprene overshoes, I haven't had cold feet once this winter.