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As an injured runner this will be my first time biking in the cold. I am interested in what my fellow Chicagoans are wearing to keep warm.
I bike (single speed Scattante) for fitness about 60+ miles a week. Any cold weather tips are greatly appreciated.
Thanks!

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Check out these previous forum discussions below. There are more, simply search "winter" or "clothes" in the forum section for more.

Winter Commuting

Winter riding-clothing

And don't forget these two upcoming bike winter events if you are in the Chicagoland area -

Break The Gridlock's Unhappy Hour - Bike Winter Edition

Bike Winter Kick-Off Meeting and Sticker Release Party
Pearl Izumi AmFib tights are the best investment I ever made for riding in temps below freezing.
Sheila moon brand wool britches
Two "must" for me were a $50. pair of Novara wind pants. They have great zippers to get on /off easy, and very warm. Also a Seirus($30.) tight Balacava that fit under my helment. I commuted on some 19 degree days and stayed warm. Got the pants at REI and the hat at Sports Authority.
Definitely check out the other forums, there is a lot here. One of the most important things to remember is that you generate tons of heat while biking and don't necessarily need to bundle a ton. THe parts that need the most insulation are your feet, hands and head. A balaclava is great. Soon there will be free fleece balaclavas being given out at almost any cycling event. I have quite a few.

Biking is winter is great. On the street, I find that almost everyone I run into is friendly...we're all in it together, even if we can't make out each other's face.
Fingers, toes, and ears are where I'm most affected by cold. Regarding fingers, if you don't worry about shifting gears too much, try out a pair of snow mitts. They've kept my digits toasty down through -18°F (before windchill) while on the bike.
buy your gloves big................ gloves are not made to wrap around bars. so when you do it cuts off the blood flow. So if you buy them one size bigger then your digit'z will love you. mittens are good but NOT SAFE..

good luck ..
Welcome to year round biking! Just don't let bike fall get you down ;-) I find the unpredictability of fall to be worse than winter. I'll take 28 and snowing over 38 and raining any day. Hope to see you at some of the upcoming bike winter events Julie referenced above.
And I thought I was the only one to think this far in advance. This will actually be my first winter as well on a bike and I'm looking forward to it.

From what I have read, layers, layers, layers is the way to go but to avoid bulky clothing. I also heard from someone who told me that it's as simple as wearing what you would normally wear but just wear more of it. Any wisdom to this advice?
I swear by a merino wool base layer - and my favorite piece of winter gear of all is this dainty little number: http://www.rapha.cc/winter-collar/
I was thinking that new info is always good.

Julie Hochstadter said:
Check out these previous forum discussions below. There are more, simply search "winter" or "clothes" in the forum section for more.

Winter Commuting

Winter riding-clothing

And don't forget these two upcoming bike winter events if you are in the Chicagoland area -

Break The Gridlock's Unhappy Hour - Bike Winter Edition

Bike Winter Kick-Off Meeting and Sticker Release Party
VERY COOL!

jen said:
Sheila moon brand wool britches

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