With the first snow storm of the season fast approching Boston I thought I’d post something about keeping warm on the bike in the winter. If I had to distill this advice into a single word it would be “WOOL” and by that don’t mean the bulky itchy stuff that shrinks in the wash, but the soft, warm and washable Merino wool clothes made by companies like Smartwool and Ibex. By adding a few pieces of wool clothing to my usual biking clothes I am comfortable below freezing.
My regular cycling gear consists of Smartwool socks, and lightweight T shirt, padded underwear, Rapha fixed knickers, and sometimes a jacket. When it gets cold I just add a wool beanie, neck gaiter, gloves, an extra mid weight wool T shirt, Smartwool long underwear and pair of long wool socks and I’m good to go.
Let’s start with the head. I wear a combination of a Smartwool beanie and a neck gaiter. Together they make an adjustable balaclava. When it’s bitterly cold I pull the gaiter up over my ears and nose and pull the beanie down low so that there’s only a slit left for my eyes. This works really well and if it warms up it’s an easy matter to pull the gaiter down.
The hands are notoriously difficult to keep warm on the bike in cold weather. To date I’ve worn a pair of Pearl Izumi gloves, but they don’t work well in sub freezing weather so I plan to replace them with some Smartwool gloves soon. I’m sorry if this post is starting to sound a little repetitive, but Smartwool really is a great defense against winter cold.
On my body I add a layer of a mid weight wool T-shirt over my usual wool T-shirts and combined with a Rapha lightweight softshell I’ll stay nice and cozy.
Finally I keep my legs warm by wearing a par of Smartwool long underwear underneath some Rapha fixed knickers and my feet are kept toasty with some wool socks. I know all this wool sounds terribly old-fashioned and heavy, but modern merino wool products are soft and lightweight and better still they don’t smell after a long day in the saddle.
Filed under: Review
You are right about the virtues of modern merino wool for riding this time of year. If you want to add more warmth without bulk, you might try silk baselayers and silk socks for REI or other vendors. On gloves, check out Assos three winter glove system (thin baselayer/early winter glove/lobster claw); they are expensive but worth it, like your Rapoh bib knickers.