How to Assemble a Winter Cycling Kit—Without a Fat Bike

I gained’t lie: there’s nothing higher on a winter morning than fats skis and a foot of recent snow. However as a bicycle owner, I additionally respect the great thing about a winter ride.

Snowy outings in your bike are a bit of totally different than summer time ones. The air feels thick and heavy from the chilly. A few of my regular routes are by deep powder. I’m by no means as match. If my aim have been to coach, I’d be inside, on Zwift, the place it’s at all times heat and dry and you may pack in a journey of any size on any schedule. However I’m nonetheless exterior.

Winter driving holds specific delights. Trails are abandoned, and even ho-hum sections can tackle a problem and an unpredictability that they lack in summer time. However what I like most of all is that gentle silence throughout or after a snowfall, when it’s simply me, the bike, and the suggestion of singletrack laid out forward underneath a blanket of white.

You don’t want a closet filled with particular gear for this. Just some choose additions to your regular driving equipment will go far. Listed here are some necessities I come again to each season for winter driving in dry, chilly, sunny Colorado, plus suggestions for folk in different climates. (No, not one of the following objects is a fats bike.)

A Wool Earflap Cap 

Ounce for ounce and greenback for greenback, I don’t suppose you’ll discover a higher wager for staying heat than an excellent wool biking cap with earflaps. You’ll discover variations of this idea from 45Nrth, Giro, Snek, and loads of different manufacturers. What to search for: flaps which might be giant sufficient to completely cowl your ears and the again of your neck, a versatile brim that deflects chilly breezes and stuffs right into a jacket pocket, and a midweight merino-wool cloth that’s heat however trim sufficient to suit underneath a helmet. In very chilly and humid climes, you would possibly go for a windproof cap, however I’ve discovered that these are likely to entice moisture subsequent to my scalp. I’m sizzling at first after which cool down as my head will get progressively damper.

A Neck Gaiter 

Quantity two on my warmth-per-dollar scale, these easy items of material go by varied names (my favourite is likely to be snood). All are basically a 6-to-12-inch tube that’s as versatile and ingenious as it’s easy. Worn across the neck, it helps hold chilly drafts from happening your jacket collar. Pull it up a bit to guard your nostril and chin, or fold and twist it right into a hat or headband in the event you forgot yours. I attain for one among two choices, relying on the temperature: a light-weight artificial that supplies simply sufficient protection to maintain out above-freezing chill, or a midweight merino-wool model that’s ultimate for actually frigid days. This one from Buff is ideal.

Thermal Shorts

A pair of biking shorts in a thick, thermal-weight cloth is among the many most versatile objects in my wardrobe. For cool highway rides, I put on them to maintain my rear heat, and I pair them with knee heaters as a necessary technique of maintaining these joints toasty. I layer that combo underneath path pants on really chilly days or for snowy path adventures as an alternative of thermal tights. For a very long time, these have been area of interest objects, however an increasing number of corporations are seeing the sunshine. You’ll find them from Pearl Izumi and Rapha, amongst different manufacturers. Santa introduced me a pair of Velocio thermals ($209) for Christmas, and to date I’m an enormous fan of the match and performance. They arrive in particular variations for men and women.

Overshoes 

For those who journey in very chilly circumstances, you might have considered trying devoted winter biking footwear, which supply insulation and are sometimes waterproof. However for many of us, I’m undecided they’re essential, just because they’re costly for a specialty merchandise you’ll use just a few months a yr. One various is to place flat pedals in your bike and journey within the insulated hikers or winter boots you already personal. For those who’re searching for some further heat round your toes when temperatures drop right down to about 15 levels, I counsel an excellent pair of insulated overshoes. Neoprene is probably the most generally used insulation, however I desire fleece-lined variations. When my present pair of Bontragers dies (sadly, they’re now not made), I’ll in all probability exchange them with Louis Garneau’s fleece and neoprene Thermax II ($45). Must you get highway or mountain covers? Both, relying on the place you spend most of your winter miles, however the latter are extra walkable than highway covers and generally extra sturdily made, but they nonetheless match over highway cleats.

Good Gloves

Seasoned winter fat-bike riders swear by pogies (these bar-mounted hand covers) as the one factor that actually works in single-digit temperatures. For one thing much less excessive, attempt split-finger mitts, that are appropriate with biking’s necessities on braking and shifting, not like full mittens. Pearl Izumi’s Pro AmFib Lobster is a basic. You can too at all times go along with cheap Carhartt or Kinco work gloves, which sacrifice a little bit of dexterity however get the job accomplished. An alternative choice is to look to manufacturers that make gear for cross-country snowboarding, like Craft, Hestra, Swix, and Toko. 

There are a couple of sorts of gloves I keep away from. First: I’m not a fan of neoprene subsequent to my pores and skin. Neoprene doesn’t breathe, so my palms get moist, which is dangerous once I inevitably must take away a glove on a below-freezing journey. It additionally doesn’t hold me heat. Second: touchscreen compatibility is fiction when coping with thick, insulated gloves, however that’s not a purposeful characteristic anyway, so ignore it. 

A Tasty Drink Combine

Power-food firm Skratch Labs makes a hot apple-cider drink combine that mixes electrolytes with the style of these powdered apple-cider drinks you discover in nearly any ski lodge. It’s the right nexus of purposeful sport gas and heat consolation. Hydration is crucial in winter, too; whilst you might not sweat as a lot or really feel as thirsty within the chilly, you’re nonetheless getting dehydrated whenever you work out, and the tasty taste means I don’t must remind myself to drink. I generally go journey within the chilly simply as an excuse to carry some.

An Insulated Mug

Common plastic water bottles are a sucky alternative for a sizzling drink. They lose warmth so rapidly that your beverage will probably be chilly in minutes. And sizzling water brings out the style of plastic, so that you’ll wind up ingesting sizzling low-density-polyethylene apple cider. Yum! As a substitute, I exploit a double-wall vacuum-insulated metal journey mug with a push-button spout. I’ve a (now discontinued) previous Avex that matches in a jersey pocket or commonplace water-bottle cage. The up to date model of my mug is the ReCharge from Coleman ($16). It retains drinks sizzling for about an hour and heat for as much as two. If you would like one thing that’s higher insulated and retains sizzling drinks sizzling longer, I’d have a look at Yeti’s Rambler 18 bottle ($30) and its HotShot cap ($13).

Path Pants

I wrote about this class final yr, and I’m nonetheless a believer that good windproof path pants with a little bit of stretch are the right on-bike shell layer. My Pearl Izumi Summit AmFib Lites, which characteristic weather-resistant polyester on the entrance and a breathable poly-Lycra mix in again, have labored flawlessly by a full season, with no put on or different points. They’re heat, with a soft-backed inside that’s comfy in opposition to my pores and skin, and characteristic loads of stretch. The reduce, which is tailor-made however nonetheless unfastened sufficient to comfortably match over base layers for extra insulation, makes them an excellent crossover piece for cross-country snowboarding or cold-weather runs. There’s a hotter model as properly with thicker cloth and extra windproofing. For those who want one thing cozier nonetheless, look to 45Nrth’s Naughtvind, which are supposed to be layered over thermal tights. 

An Insulated Midlayer or a Tender Shell

The kind of insulation that’s best for you will depend on your local weather, the type of driving you do, and the circumstances. For those who’re a roadie, a cycling-specific thermal jacket like Rapha’s Brevet Insulated ($205) could also be your best option. The trade-off is versatility: road-oriented shells just like the Brevet have a comfortable match and are reduce for a reasonably aggressive on-bike place, which makes them much less ultimate for different cardio winter sports activities. Looser alternate options from biking manufacturers embrace 7Mesh’s Outflow ($330) and Gore’s C3 Thermium ($400). The third choice is a general-purpose midlayer from an out of doors model. A few of my favorites currently have been wind-resistant items with lofted artificial insulation—the sort you may also use for alpine touring or snowshoeing. Arc’teryx’s Atom LT ($259), Smartwool’s Smartloft-X 60 ($250), and Stio’s Alpiner ($289) hoodies all work nice for winter path rides and are available in males’s and ladies’s variations. 

Bonus: A Crappy Bike

You don’t want a particular bike to journey in winter—particularly not a fats bike—except you reside in an space the place driving on groomed or packed snow and ice is your major choice. Common mountain-bike tires work simply high-quality on hardpack, combined surfaces, and even recent snow lower than six inches deep, and cyclocross or gravel bikes are perfect for roads and dry trails. However when you’ve got the finances and cupboard space, there’s one thing to be stated for the beater bike. Winter driving is fairly abusive to gear. Bikes get moist, muddy, and coated with highway salt and deicing chemical substances, and it’s typically too chilly to clean your journey. Because of this I like having one thing I don’t thoughts placing away moist and leaving soiled for a month. Mine is an previous metal hardtail with 26-inch wheels (quelle horreur) that I transformed to a singlespeed and use largely in winter, as a result of it’s easy and low-maintenance. Its restricted suspension, slim two-inch rubber, and single gear additionally makes simple trails spicier and extra enjoyable. You don’t must spend a ton right here and will search for choices that may pull double responsibility, say as a warm-weather commuter. You’ll find secondhand gear at native swaps, consignment shops, on Craigslist or eBay, or by specialty resellers just like the Pro’s Closet.