Winter riding clothes

[spoon]

Sportsterpaul's take on Hippohands (handlebar muffs) is interesting. I approach the warmth issue as wind control. My handlebar muffs have fleese lining but I had never seen the reasoning behind that. The muffs are a wind block. I have bark busters on year round and they do nothing to keep my hands warm or dry by themselvs. They do keep bugs off of my knuckles! My hands and feet will not self generate any kind of heat. My core can be sweating and the fingers freezing so I need artificial heat. Heated gloves will not keep me warm without handlebar muffs.

[60Gunner]

I see riding in these conditions as dangerous to say the least. No offense intended but its just not safe when you need to bulk up that much to stay half way warm. Fingers going numb. At the very least it's a major distraction. Would be for me anyway. But then I find helmets a distraction from my surroundings so...

[45Brit]

Hippo Hands are great for British winter conditions, which are usually cold, wet and lousy. That, or a clear cold spell around a degree or so of freezing. They keep your gloves dry, and keep the wind off them. They are pretty much useless for anything else, but in British conditions they are really useful.

I don’t know about the draught around the handlebar fixings. I always used them with a short or medium height screen, so the ends would be more-or-less covered by the screen.

There was a time when I travelled everywhere, including commutes up to 45 miles in all weathers, by bike. Haven’t done that in years, and don’t intend to return to it in any foreseeable future!

[Glamazon]

I had a 300 mile ride last year in late October from Essex to Lancashire. I had a thermal long sleeved top & pants, thermal socks, lined pants, long sleeved T shirt, long sleeved fleecr top under Dainese Ridder gortex jacket & pants with Dainese Fulcrum gortex boots & Dainese gloves. I had Keis heated inner gloves and stayed warm despite the temperature barely into single figures.

https://scontent.fman2-2.fna.fbcdn.n...73&oe=5E410D9E

[sportsterpaul]

Funny how you have a tendency to acclimate as time goes on. October and early November 30F temps were cold. Now high teens and lower 20’s are good and the 30F’s much more doable. Just yesterday did an hour running high 20f’s/low30F’s with just a light base layer under AD1 pants and again a light base layer upper under a heavy fleece top under the Transitions coat ,(without its insulated liner), with the return ride in snow flurry’s and was okay both ways.