Winter gear must haves?

RobW

Well-Known Member

Patrick

Overthinking the draft from the basement already
Staff member
$11.50 beanie.

Link: http://a.co/d/1Oq9mhB

works well, even with my "haircut"

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stb222

Love Drunk
Jerk Squad
It is no secret that Gore Bike Wear is top notch winter riding gear, mainly because of their Windstopper material. Sometimes it is hard to keep up with what products are what and the Gore Tool was a beloved piece. I had the tool for a hot minute, but it overlapped the Phantom and I couldnt really justify the two.

Anyways, got the Gore C5 Thermo Trail Jacket this week and rode it Wed, Thur, Friday, which included 2.5 hours around 0, both road and trail and just under 2 hours in signle digits, road, canal path and trails.

This jacket is fleeced lined windstopper, same weight as the Tool. It has zipper front and rear pockets and a zippered chest pocket. The pockets go all the way into the middle of the front/back so mucho room for stuffs. One downside is that the pockets are angled, do if you are trying to stash a water bottle or saw in there, maybe no as secure as a vertical pocket. The fit is "fitted" but I would say closer to a club fit and the bottom seam / edge is more loose than it is cinched.

This jacket meet and maybe exceeds the level expected from gore.

https://www.gorewear.com/us/en-us/gore-c5-gore-windstopper-thermo-trail-jacket-100376.html
 

1speed

Incredibly profound yet fantastically flawed
I have a pretty short commute to work (~4-5 miles depending on route), but it's been a great excuse to play around with new gear options. I just got a pair of Velotoze neoprene gloves and used them for the first time on my ride in today. So I don't have a very full sample, but even wearing them once I've been able to get a good impression of what they're all about. I like Velotoze gear - they're rubber shoe covers are a PIA to put on, but once in place they are the most waterproof shoe cover I've ever used.

These are definitely not a true "winter" glove - today was probably a bit too cold for them. I was fine on my short 15 minute ride in, but if I were out for much longer in this morning's sub-30 temps, my hands would have frozen. But they're probably the grippiest gloves I've ever put on. My hands were glued to the bars the whole time. My 45North Sturmfist 4's are fantastic for warmth, but they feel like I'm riding with catcher's mitts on my hands. They're close-to-zero on the tactile scale. These gloves are exactly the opposite. I felt like if someone threw me a football as I was riding along, I could have caught it one-handed with an open palm - that's not surprising because they're basically thicker receiver's gloves. One thing to be aware of, though - while they're very tactile overall, they do NOT work on touch-screens.

I think these could be great gloves for filling the middle ground of, say, upper-30's to 50 degrees on the road. And they are a road glove - the neoprene would probably get slaughtered in the woods. That fact matters w.r.t. the appropriate temps as well - the exposure is what makes them less than ideal for very cold temps. Neoprene isn't the most wind-stopping material you can buy, but just standing outside in them once I got to work, my hands were sweating. So if you did use them off-road, you could probably get away with using them in colder temps but I think that would be a bad idea because they'd likely rip open on the first errant tree branch.

Another attractive part of them is that they're pretty cheap, all things considered. I think I paid $48 for them off Amazon. Compared to most riding gloves, that's a bargain.

Finally, one other element of them that I personally liked a lot - they are long: they stretch far below your wrist. I liked that because it made them feel very snug on my hands. I went with medium, which is what I use for pretty much all glove sizes, so I'd say they run normal in terms of sizing.

So if you're looking for a relatively cheap set of gloves for above-freezing temps on the road that are super grippy and don't feel too thick, check them out. They're on Amazon or sold directly through the Velotoze site.

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Soundguy

#SenditGuy
Team MTBNJ Halter's
Anyways, got the Gore C5 Thermo Trail Jacket this week and rode it Wed, Thur, Friday, which included 2.5 hours around 0, both road and trail and just under 2 hours in signle digits, road, canal path and trails.
How's that jacket holding up? I just ordered one....got a sweet 50% deal.
 

gpTron

Well-Known Member
For me it's a scarf, or any neck protection. With some tights under my shorts, a cheap moisture wicking shirt and a hoodie over that I can ride or run comfortably in any temperature as long as I'm wearing neck protection and gloves.
 

Soundguy

#SenditGuy
Team MTBNJ Halter's
It is holding up well, but I typically don't use it above 20-25, so it hangs out in my bin most of the time. Very happy with it.
Nice, that's what I was looking for. I have a lighter Gore road jacket that is great down to around 30. It is also super fitted.... hoping the trail is a little more relaxed like you said.
 
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