On 2017-11-19 13:21, jbeattie wrote:
On Sunday, November 19, 2017 at 10:12:05 AM UTC-8, Joerg wrote:
On 2017-11-19 09:13, jbeattie wrote:

[...]

My base layer yesterday and today is wool -- although I use
polypro a lot (almost always for skiing). Poly pro is better for
wet weather because it dries faster.


100% natural wool would be ok for me as well but 5-10mi into the
ride I'd start sweating profusely.

Unless you have a metabolic disorder, ...


Don't know if that means anything but my metabolism has slowed after I
started cyclibng again. Meaning that even 4000mi/year do not help with
losing weight anymore.


... I doubt you would be sweating
that hard when its 35F or below, and if you did sweat, wool wicks a
lot better than cotton -- but more importantly, wool traps air and
stays warm when it is wet. As a base layer, cotton is like wearing a
wet washrag.


At 35F not so much but yesterday it was about 50F up the hill where we
rode and on the way up the front of my T-shirt became wet. Yeah, it
feels like a wash rag when roaring down the hill later but the key
advantage is that it doesn't give me a skin rash. Artificial fibers do.


I just did a 30 mile spin with probably 3K climbing around the West
Hills in a wool base layer, a winter poly jersey and a vest -- which
was a perfect mix for a 35F-ish dry day.


With all those layers I'd have sweated so bad that it would run out from
underneath.


... Unzipping the vest kept me
from sweating too much on the climbs, and zipping it back up kept me
warm on the descents. My wool base layer got wet, but it stayed
warm. I think poly would have wicked better. I also had my
ear-warmer.


I carry a lumberjack shirt in winter. Sometimes my wife (who feels cold
when it drops anywhere below 75F) is concerned and urges me to don it
when starting the ride. A few miles later I take it off.


I think layering is an art form, particularly when it is raining, and
you want to do a long ride.


I grew up in an area where layering was considered "pamper-suffocating"
(loose translation, there is no English word for it) :-)

The extreme is a Russian couple building a house in our neighborhood
right now. "So what are you plans for heating? A wood stove?" ... "What
heating? It not get cold in this area, do not need heat". They grew up
in Siberia.

--
Regards, Joerg

http://www.analogconsultants.com/