bigguyonbike

I've been riding for about a year. My initial goal was to get in better shape and lose weight. I've become addicted to riding and am working toward my goals with a smile. Last year I didn't ride much in the winter due to an injury. This year I want to keep up the pace on my bike. I usually ride 3 days per week, but I'm not sure about the best clothing for cool weather riding. I'm in texas. So cool weather to me is 30 to 50f. I have a few assos and pearl bib shorts and love them. Is it best to wear insulated cycling tights over my bib shorts or buy long bibs? I've also seen some insulated pants with a chamois. What do most guys wear in winter? Thanks.

Homebrew01

I usually wear shorts/bibs, with tights over. I can remove the tights if it warms up.

SA_Brak

I bought some Castelli bib knickers last year. They have an inner fleece lining and should work for me down into the 30's. Leg warmers have the advantage of being removeable should it warm up and can include fleece lining but you may need something to wear under your normal bibs since those aren't insulated. I do have a pair of tights that I could wear over regular bibs but haven't had the occasion to use them. All cold weather clothing is subjective as people have a wide variation of cold tolerance. I've seen lots of people bundled up when temps get down into the 60's and others wearing shorts in the 40's. For me, hands and head get cold first, then arms, and legs last.

Looigi

For me it's bib/shorts with leg warmers down from ~ 50F down to the low 40s. Below that I wear bibs and put on tights that have windstopper fronts. If you wear shorts with tights, you can find the stacking of waistbands to be uncomfortable. With bib shorts/tights you're trading off the discomfort of waistbands for the discomfort of shoulder straps.

caloso

We have similar winter temperatures. The easiest and most cost effective bottoms solution for me is generic running tights over bib shorts. I also have a couple pair of roubaix-material bib knickers which I bought for CX racing but they're also good for those temps. Wear long wool socks when it's too cold for bare shins.

Kai Winters

I wear a variety of bib tights, from basic to medium and heavy weight depending on the temp and wind, over my bib shorts.
My jacket is a Castelli wind proof jacket and under this I wear a variety of layers depending on the temp.
I use Pearli and Castelli tights and a couple pair of bib knickers by Voler.

JohnDThompson 

Below about 60°F, I wear a long sleeve wool jersey and wool tights. Below about 50°F, I add a silk long underwear top under the jersey, and a nylon windbreaker vest. Below about 30°F, I add silk long underwear bottoms under the tights. Below about 20°F, I add catalytic warmers to my socks and gloves.

delcrossv

+1 that's pretty much what I do as well. Woolies and some sort of shell as it gets colder.

bbattle

First rule is: you will be cold/cool the first 10-15 minutes of a ride or you are overdressed. I've often started cool/cold weather rides with a nice climb to get me warmed up.

I'd start with a wool baselayer to wear under your jersey. Add some arm warmers. And leg warmers. Lot of rides in the fall start out cool then warm up and you can remove or roll down these arm/leg warmers easily. Sometimes a windbreaker vest is nice to have along. They can be rolled up and stowed in a jersey pocket if it gets too warm.

When it gets colder, a long sleeved jersey that can stop a bit of wind. Often, these jerseys have zippered vents or the back is vented so you don't get too hot. Full bib tights you wear instead of bib shorts. Castelli, Hincapie Arenberg have worked for me. They aren't windproof but I don't need that in North Alabama. I had some windproof tights and they were kinda stiff and tight on the knees. Not comfortable.

Any colder and I have jackets and long sleeved wool baselayers to keep me warm.

Wool socks, most definitely. I have toe covers then I switch to the full shoe covers.

I go from a sweat band to one that covers my ears to this hat thing that has a drawstring so I can open the top of it when I warm up and let the steam out. Then I have a couple of balaclavas that cover my face as well. I use them mostly when riding my Vespa.

caloso

Also, once it dips into the 40s I'll dig out my toe warmers. I'd like to try these silicone covers (Tall Shoe Cover ? veloToze) but they seem to be sold out of the non-obnoxious colors.

Bunyanderman

I run with thin padded shorts, and a long sleeve jersey If it hits low 50's or high 40's. I usually don't feel my legs getting cold, but my hands get cold first but riding with gloves really helps.

surgeonstone

Merino wool is your friend. Wool shorts year round and wool leg warmers down to 28-30 F. Below that another thin layer of wool. Wool long sleeve and wind Breaker down to 35 . Short sleeve thin layer wool under that down to 25. Wool is good for warmth wet or dry. Instead of separate wind breaker and winter rain ./ snow jacket I use the fantastic and unsurpassed Showers Pass elite 2.1 rain jacket, I wear it whether raining or not under 45-50 degrees. Always dry, always warm. Regarding the merino w3ool, my best experience has been with Ibex Merino, unsurpassed comfort, durability and customer service. It's the only thing I wear whether 100 F or 10 below.

caloso

Like others have said, if I take care of my head (skullcap under the helmet), hands (full finger gloves), and feet (toe covers), I'm usually pretty comfortable.

woodcraft

I have some padded mid- weight tights that get used a lot. The heavier ones go out when it won't warm up much.

Hat that covers the ears is key, & I also use coated palm light weight knit work gloves under regular cycling gloves in cold & wet.

This extends the comfort range , & packs to not much bigger than an inner tube. It does flap a bit.

https://shop.pearlizumi.com/product....color_code=3OV

JeremyLC

I wear a light wind breaker between 50-60, I add an under armour thermal shirt under my jersey and full length tights over my shorts between 40-50, below 30 I start adding thin layers of merino, up to two layers when it gets in the 10-20 range. My part of Texas doesn't get many of those days, though.

robbyville

I'll agree with this, thin cap under helmet has been my best friend.

I'm a bit of a clothing junky and have tried a ton. I also like to ride outside as often as possible although I'd say mid 20's tend to be as low as I go.

Personally I can't stand pulling on tights over my shorts, regardless of bibs or not. Just too restricting. I do have a pair of Gore Windstopper tights that I can pull over shorts in really cold weather but frankly I've found better and I felt the windstopper was too restrictive for my use.

50's-60, I generally wear my bib shorts with long wool socks, regular jersey (if upper 50's) with arm warmers (so nice you can lower them when warm and raise them on descents). They fit nicely in jersey pockets too.

Depending on wind chill mid 40's to low 50's, I'll wear one of my tights, I have both bib and non bib. I always get them with chamois now that I have experimented with layers and found that it's not for me. Many companies have great pricing and mid level tights. My favorites right now are a Castelli with kiss chamois that is perfect for mid 40 temps, can often find them on sale. Slightly cooler than this or in the 30's I have a heavier Giordana Silverline Tight that I picked up for around $100 (great chamois).

Wool socks and toe covers normally work for me in this temp zone.

Long sleeve jersey with either a vest or a light wind jacket generally does me fine from 48-55

Lower temps and into freezing I've found that some of the new Bontrager stuff is both reasonably priced and really really good quality. I recently purchased a convertible Jacket/Vest (Stormshell 180), that I thought would be good for mid temps but is perhaps better suited for cooler say mid 30's, great wind protection and warm. The other day I tried it with a long sleeve jersey at about 45 degrees and felt overdressed, had to remove the sleeves.

Lastly, also for very cold temps I found a Bontrager Stormshell tight with chamois that is incredibly comfortable and windproof. Too warm for what I intended to use them for but will use them instead of the Gore Windstopper tights which I mentioned above. I also use a heavier jacket once I get into the high 20's (Giordana Silverline, comfortable, flexible, very warm, and you can generally find them on sale somewhere), along with some type of additional neck warmer and full shoe covers (wind proof and warm). At that point for me it boils down to windchill and gloves. I only have a mid level gloves and can't stand the ones for really cold weather.

Cold weather riding is a lot of fun, get the clothes that fit you best and layer, layer, layer!

modelmartin

To keep my head nice and toasty below 40 degrees I use a balaclava. They are inexpensive. My nose still gets cold.

rm -rf

I got these REI glove liners to wear under some heavier gloves when it gets quite cold.

But they are thin enough to wear under my fingerless gloves. That works great down to about 50F. They are surprisingly warm, and don't take up much room in my jersey pockets when I'm not wearing them. I just bought a second pair, in case REI stops selling them in the future.

~~~~~~~~~
I got a jacket with zip-off sleeves last year. The two sleeves are attached with a yoke across the shoulders. I can wear it as a vest, and the sleeves go in the back zippered pocket. Or I can roll up the sleeves and vest separately, and they fit into two jersey pockets (but then those pockets are completely full.)

The sleeve yoke is the top surface of a huge air vent across the back. So I can partially unzip the front and get great airflow. Even on very cold days, this is needed on climbs.

~~~~~~~~~
Below about 40F, I have an inexpensive "neck gaiter". It's just a tube made of fleece. I can push it down around my neck, or pull it over my mouth and nose on downhills.

indyfabz

+1. People also need to take into account whether the temperature is supposed to rise during the ride and, if so, by how much. I have seen far too many people on club rides dress to be warm standing around in the parking lot. 15 minuntes into the ride they are sweating like pigs and end up having to cram extra layers into their pockets or wrap them around their wastes.

A few weekends ago I did a 75 mile ride with some decent climbing in places. It was about 36 degrees a foggy when we left the hotel. The predicted high was around 59 and the fog was supposed to burn off within the hour. I knew there would be some sunny areas along the route, but also a lot of riding in the shade. I wore shoe covers, bibs, a Rapha base layer, arm and leg warmers and a light jacket. On my hands were Polypro glove liners, a thin pair of full fingered gloves and a final, mid-weight pair of full fingered gloves. I was cold when we started out, but by about mile 10 the jacket came off because the sun was higher in the sky and the fog had lifted. I ended up being comfortable for the rest of the ride, and the only other thing that came off were the leg warmers with about 15 miles to go.

banerjek

Do you need rain protection? If not, a windbreaker combined with layering lightweight layers above and shorts with leg warmers or light to medium weight tights below will do the trick.

If you have rain, a lightweight waterproof breathable layer in combination with light layers will work.

You shouldn't need insulated anything at those temps unless you ride in the rain and don't have a waterproof layer. Even then, you'd only want the insulation towards the bottom of that range.

joe_5700

I live a few states north, but here is what I wear for each temp range.

65+ bib shorts, short sleeve jersey, fingerless gloves
55-65 bib shorts long sleeve jersey, fingerless gloves
45-55 bib shorts if sunny, long tights if not, long sleeve jersey, full finger gloves
45 and below, long tights, long sleeve jersey, insulated full finger gloves.

In 2013 I raced in temps of 10 and 20 degrees. I wore a long sleeve jersey with insulated long sleeve jersey over that with insulated tights, wool under gloves with insulated gloves over, skull cap under helmet, wool socks, insulated full shoe covers. My finger tips were numb at the end of the 10 degree 40 minute crit, and I was warm and toasty at the end of the 20 degree road race. I must like cold weather because I was on the podium both races!

Seattle Forrest

You can also fold it in half (or quarters) and cover your ears and forehead. I have a thin wool one, it's warm when I fold it, but stuffs into a pocket.

Wool just about everything, wind breaker, and an insulation layer when it's cold enough to need one. When it's really frigid I'll bring a down vest in a stuff sack, carry it in a bottle cage, and throw it on over the wind breaker. But it's got to be below freezing for that.