Clothing for the Cold question

I've been bike commuting since May and would like to keep doing it but
my normal TShirt/Shorts combo is not going to make it happen. So I've
read a bunch of threads on the threads and have an idea of what would
be required. Plus I've read the IceBike site.

I've bought a few things online and at the local bike store but I need
quite a few bottom layers and middle layers. That could get costly. So
I checked Sports Authority. Still costly. Checked Modells, better but
still costly.

Finally ended up at Target where there is a line of stuff made from
something called C9, which I guess is the house brand of
polyester/spandex. I bought a few shirts at $14 or so and a light
jacket type for a few bucks more. Plus a fleece (that word seems to be
around a lot, including 80% cotton mixes) mid-layer thing that was
100% polyester.

This morning I wore a shirt and the jacket type thing, plus a cheapo
windbreaker and was fine this morning, although the temperature wasn't
supercold (42F). I did not feel wet at all, as I have in the past with
cotton stuff.

Is there some reason that this C9 stuff is not as good as the more
expensive varieties? I think it will be even warmer once I use the
fleece layer.

On Mon, 18 Oct 2004 11:54:15 -0400, dgk
wrote:

Finally ended up at Target where there is a line of stuff made from
something called C9, which I guess is the house brand of
polyester/spandex. I bought a few shirts at $14 or so and a light
jacket type for a few bucks more. Plus a fleece (that word seems to be
around a lot, including 80% cotton mixes) mid-layer thing that was
100% polyester.

This morning I wore a shirt and the jacket type thing, plus a cheapo
windbreaker and was fine this morning, although the temperature wasn't
supercold (42F). I did not feel wet at all, as I have in the past with
cotton stuff.

Is there some reason that this C9 stuff is not as good as the more
expensive varieties? I think it will be even warmer once I use the
fleece layer.

C9 is Champion Athletics brand of polyester. The price difference would
probably be just a function of brand name, group buying and made by cheap
labor. If you look at the stitching you can often tell about quality, but,
ime, some items wear very well, and are worth some extra bucks b/c they
last longer.The one thing that's important to be aware of is that it takes
a day for most things to dry out, so if you bike daily, or twice a day,
you'll need at least two sets of everything that needs washing. I have
three pairs of socks, several pairs of gloves, and a couple wool sweaters,
and several bike jerseys, and I wash everything by hand after every ride.

You didn't say what temps you'd be biking. If it's cold, and rainy, and
windy, look for a pvc jacket (rain suit), which functions as a windbreaker,
and water proof. The better kinds have a nylon lining, as opposed to one
layer of pvc.

-B

On Mon, 18 Oct 2004 12:59:47 -0400, Badger_South
wrote:

On Mon, 18 Oct 2004 11:54:15 -0400, dgk
wrote:

Finally ended up at Target where there is a line of stuff made from
something called C9, which I guess is the house brand of
polyester/spandex. I bought a few shirts at $14 or so and a light
jacket type for a few bucks more. Plus a fleece (that word seems to be
around a lot, including 80% cotton mixes) mid-layer thing that was
100% polyester.

This morning I wore a shirt and the jacket type thing, plus a cheapo
windbreaker and was fine this morning, although the temperature wasn't
supercold (42F). I did not feel wet at all, as I have in the past with
cotton stuff.

Is there some reason that this C9 stuff is not as good as the more
expensive varieties? I think it will be even warmer once I use the
fleece layer.

C9 is Champion Athletics brand of polyester. The price difference would
probably be just a function of brand name, group buying and made by cheap
labor. If you look at the stitching you can often tell about quality, but,
ime, some items wear very well, and are worth some extra bucks b/c they
last longer.The one thing that's important to be aware of is that it takes
a day for most things to dry out, so if you bike daily, or twice a day,
you'll need at least two sets of everything that needs washing. I have
three pairs of socks, several pairs of gloves, and a couple wool sweaters,
and several bike jerseys, and I wash everything by hand after every ride.

You didn't say what temps you'd be biking. If it's cold, and rainy, and
windy, look for a pvc jacket (rain suit), which functions as a windbreaker,
and water proof. The better kinds have a nylon lining, as opposed to one
layer of pvc.

-B

Yes, the stitching isn't very nice on the jacket. Not too important.
What is important is that it wick fairly well. I figured that I'd wear
the stuff while riding and switch to normal work clothes, and then
wear it again for the trip home when it will normally be a bit warmer.
I feel guilty about supporting cheap labor. I wonder if the folks
making the Brand Name stuff get paid any better. Somehow I doubt it. I
think they could double the wages and it wouldn't have an appreciable
impact on the prices.

I intend to ride down to 20F or so. Easy to say now that I've
conquered 46F. We'll see. I did get a fairly expensive outer layer
Jacket (Cannondale) which is water resistant. I am not sure what that
means. But it is very windproof and breathes well, plus has zippers so
I can open up the arms if it gets too hot. The arms even come off if
necessary.

Plus I got Cannondale booties that fit over shoes or sneakers.
Windproof and waterproof. I was looking for something like Totes but
saw these at the bike store and realized that it was exactly what I
was looking for.

I think everything should dry out during the day in the office. The
building gets pretty warm. I hadn't thought about multiple pairs of
gloves and socks. Today my hands got cold even wearing cheap gloves. I
have a pair of better ones to try out, plus a silk glove liner. There
were nice ones at the bike store, maybe I'll have to look closer. For
socks, I have one silk liner (wintersilks.com) and ordered nice
looking warm socks from Gekko. Only one pair though. I think I'm going
to have to remove my shoes out in the hallway if I don't get a few
more pairs of socks.

I do have all these sweaters that my mother knitted over the years,
but I really don't wear sweaters much so they pretty much sit there.
They're acylic rather than wool I think. That should be ok as a middle
layer? Seems like a plan.

As for rain, I'm not in favor of it. I have managed to avoid biking on
rainy days so far. Tomorrow rain is forecast but I have to take one of
the cats to the vet after work and have to get home quickly so I will
likely take a train. But eventually I will have to see if I can handle
wet. I would think that it is not really safe riding in crappy weather
in NYC.

I did once buy a PVC two piece rain outfit and only used it once. That
was during August and boy did that thing get hot. I was as wet as if I
hadn't worn it! But it should be much nicer in the winter I would
think.

So much to look forward to. Now, what about those studded tires...

On Mon, 18 Oct 2004 13:56:16 -0400, dgk
wrote:

Today my hands got cold even wearing cheap gloves. I
have a pair of better ones to try out, plus a silk glove liner. There
were nice ones at the bike store, maybe I'll have to look closer.

The function of biking gloves isn't really to keep your hands warm, though.
I use mine to wipe the tires, check the chain, reduce some vibration and
prevent road rash. A silk liner underneath the bike gloves seems like a
nice option. In that case you'd want to get one size larger biking gloves,
maybe? I have only been back to biking for one winter and I wore medium
weight polypro gloves at the time. I'll have to see how full fingered
biking gloves do with the cold.

I do have all these sweaters that my mother knitted over the years,
but I really don't wear sweaters much so they pretty much sit there.
They're acylic rather than wool I think. That should be ok as a middle
layer? Seems like a plan.

Acryllic should be fine since it probably doesn't absorb moisture and chill
you like cotton does. Actually as long as the cotton isn't next to your
skin it should be fine. I'll sometimes wear a cotton long sleeved shirt
overtop of my bike jersey and when I get back I notice it's wet, and the
jersey is dry. As I mentioned before, you can often find very inexpensive
but nice wool sweaters as second hand stores with a small hole or two at
most, making them nice for a second layer. The advantage of wool over
acryllic is that even when wet, wool can keep you warm, I believe.

As for rain, I'm not in favor of it. I have managed to avoid biking on
rainy days so far. Tomorrow rain is forecast but I have to take one of
the cats to the vet after work and have to get home quickly so I will
likely take a train. But eventually I will have to see if I can handle
wet. I would think that it is not really safe riding in crappy weather
in NYC.

Yeah, I wouldn't advise it on the roads, but how about in Central park?
It's really kind of neat biking in the rain if you can do it safely,
perhaps on a bike trail or in a park.

I did once buy a PVC two piece rain outfit and only used it once. That
was during August and boy did that thing get hot. I was as wet as if I
hadn't worn it! But it should be much nicer in the winter I would
think.

I like to sweat, and so it doesn't bother me if I'm getting wet if it's
warm. In the summer I wear it infrequently, and just expect to get wet if
it's raining - no big deal.

So much to look forward to. Now, what about those studded tires...

Rain, floods, no problem, but snow? Now that's a place to which I do not
go! ;-D

-B

Badger_South wrote:
The function of biking gloves isn't really to keep your hands warm, though.
I use mine to wipe the tires, check the chain, reduce some vibration and
prevent road rash.

they're snot rags. in the winter that's their secondary purpose (first is
warmth). try also a lighter wool glove underneath something heavier like
the pearl izumi pittards glove or one of the lobster gloves if it gets
much below 10F.

most, making them nice for a second layer. The advantage of wool over
acryllic is that even when wet, wool can keep you warm, I believe.

i love wool. this is my favourite base layer:

http://www.vintagevelos.com/baseLS-extreme.html

this under a l/s wool jersey and a sugoi jacket gets me down to 10F. not
that it ever gets that cold here in sw idaho. dressing for winter is yet
another wasted skillset for me (somewhat happily so, i suppose).
--
david reuteler

On 18 Oct 2004 19:04:37 GMT, David Reuteler wrote:

i love wool. this is my favourite base layer:

http://www.vintagevelos.com/baseLS-extreme.html

this under a l/s wool jersey and a sugoi jacket gets me down to 10F. not
that it ever gets that cold here in sw idaho.

Yeah that looks nice. Wonder if it has some kind of nylon/lycra
composition, too to keep the shape. I have two merino wool sweaters that I
wear over a jersey. Thanks for the link!

dressing for winter is yet
another wasted skillset for me (somewhat happily so, i suppose).

Uh, nudist?

-B

--
david reuteler

Badger_South wrote:
http://www.vintagevelos.com/baseLS-extreme.html

Yeah that looks nice. Wonder if it has some kind of nylon/lycra
composition, too to keep the shape. I have two merino wool sweaters that I
wear over a jersey. Thanks for the link!

iirc, it's 100% wool. i used just one last winter for my daily commute
(i bought a sceond for this year) and it did pretty well .. held its shape
just fine. (machine) washed it once a week but that was pushing it a bit
odor-wise.

dressing for winter is yet
another wasted skillset for me (somewhat happily so, i suppose).

Uh, nudist?

14 years in minnesota. i'm in southwestern idaho now and the coldest it
got last year was 18F but mostly it hovered around 40F. if it was 40F in
minnesota during january i was out in shorts and a t-shirt celebrating.
--
david reuteler

On 18 Oct 2004 19:04:37 GMT, David Reuteler wrote:

Badger_South wrote:
The function of biking gloves isn't really to keep your hands warm, though.
I use mine to wipe the tires, check the chain, reduce some vibration and
prevent road rash.

they're snot rags. in the winter that's their secondary purpose (first is
warmth). try also a lighter wool glove underneath something heavier like
the pearl izumi pittards glove or one of the lobster gloves if it gets
much below 10F.

most, making them nice for a second layer. The advantage of wool over
acryllic is that even when wet, wool can keep you warm, I believe.

i love wool. this is my favourite base layer:

http://www.vintagevelos.com/baseLS-extreme.html

this under a l/s wool jersey and a sugoi jacket gets me down to 10F. not
that it ever gets that cold here in sw idaho. dressing for winter is yet
another wasted skillset for me (somewhat happily so, i suppose).

I saved that link. First I'll see if I can get by with Mom's sweaters.
I have an abundance of them. Luckily there are a few grandkids popping
out so she shifted to making sweaters for them.

On 18 Oct 2004 19:20:18 GMT, David Reuteler wrote:

Badger_South wrote:
http://www.vintagevelos.com/baseLS-extreme.html

Yeah that looks nice. Wonder if it has some kind of nylon/lycra
composition, too to keep the shape. I have two merino wool sweaters that I
wear over a jersey. Thanks for the link!

iirc, it's 100% wool. i used just one last winter for my daily commute
(i bought a sceond for this year) and it did pretty well .. held its shape
just fine. (machine) washed it once a week but that was pushing it a bit
odor-wise.

Just noticed you said 'base layer'. Uh wonder if it wouldn't hold out
longer and smell less if you wore a jersey under it?

dressing for winter is yet
another wasted skillset for me (somewhat happily so, i suppose).

Uh, nudist?

14 years in minnesota. i'm in southwestern idaho now and the coldest it
got last year was 18F but mostly it hovered around 40F. if it was 40F in
minnesota during january i was out in shorts and a t-shirt celebrating.

Oh-Kay, point taken. My brother was complaining about the cold in Va Beach.
I'm like 'dude, it's 69 degrees!'. He goes, 'well not in the shade'. Haha.

-B

Badger_South wrote:
http://www.vintagevelos.com/baseLS-extreme.html

Just noticed you said 'base layer'. Uh wonder if it wouldn't hold out
longer and smell less if you wore a jersey under it?

it really is a base layer. it fits *snug* .. on the plus my jerseys
don't need to be washed very often.

Oh-Kay, point taken. My brother was complaining about the cold in Va Beach.
I'm like 'dude, it's 69 degrees!'. He goes, 'well not in the shade'. Haha.

man.
--
david reuteler