Recommend Me Some Gloves and Overshoes!

buckmulligan

I've had a great summer-autumn of cycling but the weather the last couple of weeks has made it abundantly clear that winter is looming large on the horizon. Normally I'd just resort to the turbo trainer but this year I'm keen to keep some decent outdoor mileage going through until spring.

I currently have some Gore Windstopper gloves, overshoes and arm-warmers but don't really feel like these are all that good for temps below 5 degrees C, especially when we're talking about longer (3-6 hour) rides.

So, what kit are you guys using to stay warm in proper winter temperatures?

shirley_basso

Get some silk glove liners for a tenner from most online sports shops. Makes a huge difference.

I use craft base layers which are quite cheap and work really well despite how thin they are when it gets very cold.

A buff or equivalent is useful for neck/face/ears

Feet is more tricky, but I use defeet woolie boolie socks and don't do your shoes up too tight.

Then I have expensive jackets - Rapha Pro Team (the original one) is my go-to for the coldest weather and has never let me down.

tgotb

Proper Winter boots for me. More comfortable/practical, and the fact that you're not wearing out your Summer shoes means it doesn't cost you anything more in the long term (though it does tie up more cash in the short term).

For the really cold days (you're not going to wear these all the time) lobster gloves - Planet X ones are normally cheap and work well for me.

I have to admit, if it's very cold *and* raining *and* I don't have to go to the office, I normally take to Zwift.

keef66

Woolie Boolie socks, shoes with enough room for them, then cheapo PX neoprene overshoes over the top. That keeps my feet warm for several hours at temps just above zero.

I think the crucial bit is having enough room in the shoes.

Castelli Sorpasso bibtights, an Alpha ROS jacket, baselayer according to temperature, any number of buffs, and a Difesa cap under my helmet

Gloves I'm still experimenting with.

shirley_basso

TGOTB wrote:

I have to admit, if it's very cold *and* raining *and* I don't have to go to the office, I normally take to Zwift.

Any 2 of cold, wet and windy I can handle. The holy trinity and I go for a walk to the pub.

mrb123

Galibier Barrier gloves are decent value and pretty warm. For really cold temperatures however lobster style gloves are the way to go.

For the feet, I have got some Northwave winter boots which are good for low temperatures when combined with woolie boolies.

For both gloves and shoes, it's important they are not too tight, particularly if you want to wear thick socks like woolie boolies or a liner glove.

As mentioned above, Sorpasso tights are good, also La Passione winter tights and Pactimo's ones.

A decent soft shell jacket with room to fit a couple of layers underneath if needed. Buff or cap with ear protection for your swede.

step83

TGOTB wrote:

Proper Winter boots for me. More comfortable/practical, and the fact that you're not wearing out your Summer shoes means it doesn't cost you anything more in the long term (though it does tie up more cash in the short term).

For the really cold days (you're not going to wear these all the time) lobster gloves - Planet X ones are normally cheap and work well for me.

I have to admit, if it's very cold *and* raining *and* I don't have to go to the office, I normally take to Zwift.

Recently got some Northwave Raptors, make such a difference. Wore them on a rather wet evening ride, no issues with wet or cold.

pilot_pete

I’ve gone through most permutations of gloves and overshoes over the years.

I’ve settled on Dissent gloves, but ONLY the outer waterproof ones which I team up with Meraklon liner gloves (about a fiver). When it gets really cold (which is relative to individuals) I will add the DeFeet wool gloves between the two others.

When it comes to feet, I go for goretex lined winter boots, the ones I use are Sidi. In the dry they are great with a woolly walking sock (which have a thicker sole). In the wet, water will either run down the top of the boot or be drawn in via capillary action down your tights/ leg warmers and into your socks. The ONLY solution I have found to this (because anything over a couple of hours riding causes this, even with neoprene overshoes), is Spatz overshoes which cover your shoe/ boot and come a long way up your shin.

If you make sure the tops of your socks are below the top of the Spatz and put your tight legs or leg warmers OVER the Spatz there is no capillary action drawing moisture into your socks/ shoes/ boots. I have ridden for 6+hrs in rain/ wet weather/ wet roads and kept dry feet. This is the ONLY combination that I have found that accomplishes this.

PP

Alejandrosdog

I tend to just wear lizard skins and get on with it. water ingress is no probs, the water gets warm

tgotb

Alejandrosdog wrote:

I tend to just wear lizard skins and get on with it. water ingress is no probs, the water gets warm

That's fine for a relatively continuous ride. Allow your wet feet to get cold (lunch stop, long coffee stop, pitting at a CX race) and they're going to be pretty hard to warm up again...

lakesluddite

Pilot Pete wrote:

I’ve gone through most permutations of gloves and overshoes over the years.

I’ve settled on Dissent gloves, but ONLY the outer waterproof ones which I team up with Meraklon liner gloves (about a fiver). When it gets really cold (which is relative to individuals) I will add the DeFeet wool gloves between the two others.

When it comes to feet, I go for goretex lined winter boots, the ones I use are Sidi. In the dry they are great with a woolly walking sock (which have a thicker sole). In the wet, water will either run down the top of the boot or be drawn in via capillary action down your tights/ leg warmers and into your socks. The ONLY solution I have found to this (because anything over a couple of hours riding causes this, even with neoprene overshoes), is Spatz overshoes which cover your shoe/ boot and come a long way up your shin.

If you make sure the tops of your socks are below the top of the Spatz and put your tight legs or leg warmers OVER the Spatz there is no capillary action drawing moisture into your socks/ shoes/ boots. I have ridden for 6+hrs in rain/ wet weather/ wet roads and kept dry feet. This is the ONLY combination that I have found that accomplishes this.

PP

This is good to hear - my two most recent purchases have been the Dissent gloves and some Spatz. I haven't tried the Spatz yet, as the forecast here has been for light to moderate rain showers only, so I thought they might be a bit overkill. Wrong. The commute home yesterday started rainy, but within 30 seconds the heavens opened - instant flash flooding type rain, normal rainproof overshoes just wouldn't cut it, and my feet were soaked in minutes.

On the other hand (ho ho), the Dissent w/p gloves were excellent, even in that biblical downpour my hands were dry.

homers_double

I use DHB windslam gloves for the milder days and DHB deep winter for the colder days. I've used Gore Windstopper in the past and still have them but find the DHB versions a little looser so they tend to keep slightly warmer.

On the feet, wooly bullies and some DHB neoprene overshoes with standard cycling shoes work for me.

kingstongraham

Ski gloves. Got a pair from Decathlon and they are 100% better when it is properly cold than any cycling gloves I've had.

Not good at all when it isn't cold though - too warm.

pilot_pete

LakesLuddite wrote:

Pilot Pete wrote:

I’ve gone through most permutations of gloves and overshoes over the years.

I’ve settled on Dissent gloves, but ONLY the outer waterproof ones which I team up with Meraklon liner gloves (about a fiver). When it gets really cold (which is relative to individuals) I will add the DeFeet wool gloves between the two others.

When it comes to feet, I go for goretex lined winter boots, the ones I use are Sidi. In the dry they are great with a woolly walking sock (which have a thicker sole). In the wet, water will either run down the top of the boot or be drawn in via capillary action down your tights/ leg warmers and into your socks. The ONLY solution I have found to this (because anything over a couple of hours riding causes this, even with neoprene overshoes), is Spatz overshoes which cover your shoe/ boot and come a long way up your shin.

If you make sure the tops of your socks are below the top of the Spatz and put your tight legs or leg warmers OVER the Spatz there is no capillary action drawing moisture into your socks/ shoes/ boots. I have ridden for 6+hrs in rain/ wet weather/ wet roads and kept dry feet. This is the ONLY combination that I have found that accomplishes this.

PP

This is good to hear - my two most recent purchases have been the Dissent gloves and some Spatz. I haven't tried the Spatz yet, as the forecast here has been for light to moderate rain showers only, so I thought they might be a bit overkill. Wrong. The commute home yesterday started rainy, but within 30 seconds the heavens opened - instant flash flooding type rain, normal rainproof overshoes just wouldn't cut it, and my feet were soaked in minutes.

On the other hand (ho ho), the Dissent w/p gloves were excellent, even in that biblical downpour my hands were dry.

I also find that putting tight legs or leg warmers over the Spatz means you don’t look too much of a spangle as well! Win, win!

PP