MyBikeGotStolen

I am new to the biking thing. Actually I dont even have a bike yet! But I do want to get into biking and hopefully commuting. I'm just tired of paying for a car that I only drive to work in the first place (~1,000 miles last year). I/we allways just ride in my girlfriends car if I go anywere else besides work, so I thought what the heck, I might as well sell my car so I dont have to pay for a car.

Also, to save some more money, I old my g/f that once we do get bikes, we can not go out to eat unless we ride the bikes. So if we are to lazy to ride, we will eat at home for cheaper. And if we do go out, we will get some exercise!

But I am just curious, what does everyone do when it is raining and you have no other way of getting to work? I tried searching the forums but found nothing about it.

Thanks everyone.

randomgear

Fenders, and mudfaps!
Raincoat (goretex or other breathable fabric) and if it's really raining rainpants.
And if it's more than just a very light drizzle headlight and rear blinkie.
Depending on the commute length, a water resistant messenger bag or panniers might come in real handy. Or just wrap your carryons (dry shoes for work) in a plastic bag and strap it to your rack or basket.

CrosseyedCrickt

when it's raining - i ride
when it's snowing - i ride
when it's ****ing - i ride

Riding in the rain, snow, what_have_you is fun and doesn't require a scrotum of iron to do. Fenders and a decent set of raingear make rain riding so much more fun. I'm assuming you don't live somewhere that cold/snow is a factor? If not then you could get by for real cheap!
$20.00 for fenders (full coverage fenders, not the half assed ones)
$10.00 for a rain cover for your helmet
$20.00 for a rain suit at the local department store

Or you could pay big bucks for a rain suit made specifically for biking, which has more convenient features. (breathability and air vents, cut for cyclists, reflective trim, etc...)

ax0n

No bad weather, just bad clothing.

CrosseyedCrickt

I don't know about that. I heard that our European cousins had mother nature blowing a wrath thru there recently with wind speeds reaching well over 100mph. Now THAT is some bad weather!!

donnamb 

I'm a book person and like these 2 a lot:
https://www.amazon.com/Art-Urban-Cycl...e=UTF8&s=books
https://www.amazon.com/Urban-Bikers-T...e=UTF8&s=books

I've not had money for much in the way of raingear, so I've focused my resources on keeping what I bring to work dry. I wear clothes that will dry by the end of my workday, and they were much cheaper than excellent raingear. I hope to have good raingear by next rainy season.

The other must for riding in the rain is to keep your brakes in excellent working order.

marqueemoon

Yep.

Cyclist0383

Fenders, rain pants, rain jacket, and gloves. It rains a least once a week here on average.

Traicovn

I hope said girlfriend likes biking places.

greenstork

Can't let a little rain stop you...

ken cummings

Old truck, wife and her car, or bus (and get soaked at each end of the ride).

Billiam

Yes, a little investment and rain isn't a problem. Get some waterproof panniers or messenger bag for your workclothes (Ortliebs rock, but the cheap Nashbar ones work just fine). Full fenders, a waterproof shell and shoe covers (can be plastic bags) and you're golden.

I draw the line at driving rain and icy roads, but I'm getting old and whiny. Plus I have good bus service.

j3ns

That is a really good idea.

Like most people here say, riding in the rain is not a problem with the right gear. But if you for some reason don't want to ride in the rain you should see if you have other options besides driving. The most probable options include: walking, riding the bus (or subway etc.) or bumming a ride with your workmates (or girlfriend).

Daily Commute

Fenders are a must. Raingear is optional when it's warm out. Sometimes when it's warm I find that rain gear just makes me sweat, and I'd rather be wet from rain than from sweat. Use paper towels at work to towel off.

My feet are the exception to my just-get-wet rule. Get a pair of waterproof booties from your LBS or online.

Juha

[off-topic] I used to say the same: no bad weather, just inappropriate equipment. But judging from some of the footage, "appropriate equipment" would have meant having strong concrete walls all around you. I'm not sure what means of transportation would be safe in those conditions. Biking surely isn't. [/off-topic]

But yea, fenders, mud-flaps, suitable rain gear on self and making sure you're visible to others (e.g. reflective vest, reflectors, lights). What is suitable rain gear is a highly subjective thing. I have yet to find a waterproof shell that's also breathable enough in warm temperatures.

--J

dalmore

If you ride in the rain, be very visible. Wear bright colors or one of those cheap high-vis vests from homedepo-lowes and use lights.

EDIT - Work got in the way of my completing my planned response. In addition to lights and high-vis gear. I use a folding bike with fat tires and great hydraulic brakes for bad weather commuting. The twenty inch wheels don't sling water has high as 26ers or 700s. So any water that escapes the fenders tends to hit me in the chest on my rain jacket instead of the face.

Since it folds, I have the option of bailing and calling whomever I can coax into taking me home or to work if I can't hack the weather. This includes cabs but I may be kidding myself that I can get a cab to respond in this area. I have bailed once and folded the bike up to fit in a co-worker's civic but it was due to injury not weather.

ItsJustMe

Fenders and mudflaps, as has been mentioned. If it's warm out (60*F or higher) I usually don't wear anything different, just my regular poly T shirt and bike shorts. Riding in the rain is actually pretty fun.

Turn your lights on in the rain/fog regardless of whether it's daytime or not.

I get my T shirts from alertshirt.com - they're very visible. You should wear something like this even in nice weather.

When it's cold, I'll put on my rain jacket. I have a vented/waterproof from J&G Cyclewear (www.bicycleclothing.com) that I also use in the winter as a windbreaker layer.

If the weather is bad enough that I can't ride, it's probably not safe to drive a car either.

ollo_ollo

Since you drove 1,000 miles a year, your commute must be about 2 miles each way. This should mean rain won't be much of a problem once you equip your bike with fenders & buy some rain gear.

CliftonGK1

Warm rain = just deal with it and get wet. Fenders/flaps to keep road grit off you and your ride.
Cool rain = Rain jacket, maybe rain pants in addition.
Cold rain (Seattle winter; 35*F for weeks at a time) = Tights, rain pants, booties, polypro shirt, rain jacket, gloves, helmet liner or helmet cover.

I rode all last November up here, and it was the rainiest month in Seattle history with over 15 inches of precipitation.

crtreedude 

Fenders and the ability to change at work. We don't have anything other than warm rain. I just consider it an impromptu shower - without the soap of course.

Wulfheir

I don't have any rain specific gear, i just throw a change of clothes in a grocery bag to keep them dry, then put that in my backpack or pannier.

joejack951

My dad used to always tell us before soccer games in the rain that we wouldn't melt. And guess what? We never did. I'm still not melting biking in the rain much to the surprise of some of my coworkers (who apparently think it's impossible to live if exposed to the elements for a half hour).

Like others, my breaking point for donning water proof gear is about 60F. I rode home once in a 57F downpour in just a short sleeve shirt and shorts and it was way too cold for comfort (I rode hard to try and keep warm). With a water proof jacket at the same temperature, I'll be warm but not overheating. I tried using my rain pants too at that temperature and it was too much heat for my hilly commute. The rain pants are nice when it's below 50 though.

chephy

Yes. Wet feet suck. Although this summer I rode in warm rain wearing a couple of those shoes.. you know, the colourful variety that everybody was suddenly wearing this summer... Crocks is it? They do have a really soft sole, which is unfortunate for biking, but they're great for riding in the rain. Once you're where you wanna be, you just wipe the feet and the shoes and everything is dry again. (Of course, I worked at a casual enough place where wearing such shoes was ok. If you don't... well, just make sure your spare pair of shoes is dry... wearing wet shoes is a miserable experience, lemme tell ya).

golftdi

Does anyone have experience with rain capes, such as these? https://www.bicycleclothing.com/Rain-Capes.html

(I know fenders are required with capes.)

squegeeboo

How do I get to work?

Generally a bit damp.

Also, for the feet getting wet issue, I'll have to agree with Booties 100% for the fall thru spring, in the summer, if you don't have clipless, you can always ride with sandels and then it's no biggie.