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Old 12-05-20, 11:39 AM
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Tourist in MSN
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Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Madison, WI
Posts: 11,203

Bikes: 1961 Ideor, 1966 Perfekt 3 Speed AB Hub, 1994 Bridgestone MB-6, 2006 Airnimal Joey, 2009 Thorn Sherpa, 2013 Thorn Nomad MkII, 2015 VO Pass Hunter, 2017 Lynskey Backroad, 2017 Raleigh Gran Prix, 1980s Bianchi Mixte on a trainer. Others are now gone.

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Rain jacket and rain pants that can be worn in the campsite too. Breathable and waterproof.

I never wear a hood on my bike, but I often wear a hood in the rain in the campsite. Should be a color that traffic can easily see at a distance behind you when their car windscreen is fogged over and they have worn out wipers. Just a few weeks ago I mentioned that I was quite happy with a Marmot Precip on this forum for rain jacket, someone else responded that he had a terrible experience with that brand and model. That said, I am still happy with it. Extra vents, such as arm pits and maybe on the back are nice. My jacket lacks vent on the back but has pit zips. That jacket is quite light and packs down quite small.

Rain pants, the ones I have are no longer sold so I won't suggest them. They are long enough that when my knees bend, I do not pull the bottom of the pants up higher than my shoe covers. Lots of rain pants have legs too short for cycling. Zippers on the sides that are high enough that I can get my pants on and off without taking my cycling shoes off. I probably am in a very tiny minority here, but I like suspenders on my rain pants, that way I am not repeatedly pulling my waist back up and cinching it tighter. You will need an ankle strap to keep the pants out of the chain, but I am sure you already knew that, I often carry a spare as that is something that is easy to misplace.




I prefer a rain cover for helmet, but most bike tourists do not bother with one. Can be waterproof or breathable, there is good ventilation under it. Visor on helmet and the cover helps keep most of the rain out of my eyes. And light color glasses (these have a yellow tint) for poor visibility days when you want to keep the rain out of your eyes.



Shoe covers.




But what I described above is for cool weather.

In hot weather I might forego the rain pants and shoe covers. But if I do that, my shoes will get soaked. I bring a pair of hiking shoes on my tours and I am always careful to keep one pair of shoes dry. So, if my cycle shoes were soaked, the next dry day I often wear my hiking shoes on the bike. And that is why my pedals are SPD cleat on one side, platform on the other. I also carry a pair of shower shoes (sandals) to wear in public showers. If need be, I can wear those sandals in the campsite.

I usually tour with Ortlieb Front Roller front panners (I think these were recently re-named to something else), those panniers have a strap over the top. I usually strap my rain jacket over the top of one front pannier, my rain pants over the other pannier. Thus, it is extremely fast to access it if it starts raining. My handlebar bag is not water proof, I have a cover for that and my helmet rain cover in a pocket in my handlebar bag.

Gloves - I have some that I bought from the UK that I like for cool and/or rainy days, not sold in USA and I suspect not sold in Canada. Just checked, they are no longer sold. They are thin, full finger, keep my hands somewhat warm without overheating, and they have some separate covers that can turn them into mittens. I do not have a good photo.

Last edited by Tourist in MSN; 12-07-20 at 10:44 AM.
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