Winter Wear

Did 160 miles today in 25-30 degree temp.

I purchased a pair of leather coveralls (heavy grade) from stone lake leather works which work fabulous and a pair of Gerbing heated gloves which saves my life. Nothing worse than cold hands, that's all I think about once they're cold. I also got an Under Armor ski mask that really keeps my face comfy. Underneath I had on a pair of long johns and 2 thermal shirts under the leather jacket.

Out of the 160 miles, I did about 120 of the miles on the 4 lane to see how it all handles at 70-80 mph and I got to say I stayed pretty comfortable. I'm good to go. H

Glad you're comfortable at those temps! I've considered handguards for off season riding to block the wind. They seem to be easy on, easy off.

Be safe

dave

criminaldesign said:

Did 160 miles today in 25-30 degree temp.

I purchased a pair of leather coveralls (heavy grade) from stone lake leather works which work fabulous and a pair of Gerbing heated gloves which saves my life. Nothing worse than cold hands, that's all I think about once they're cold. I also got an Under Armor ski mask that really keeps my face comfy. Underneath I had on a pair of long johns and 2 thermal shirts under the leather jacket.

Out of the 160 miles, I did about 120 of the miles on the 4 lane to see how it all handles at 70-80 mph and I got to say I stayed pretty comfortable. I'm good to go. H

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I love my leather bibs from Stone Lake,they really do keep the cold off,are easy to get on and off,well worth the money!

Oznay said:

I love my leather bibs from Stone Lake,they really do keep the cold off,are easy to get on and off,well worth the money!

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very nice people to deal with it as well. making sure you get what you want/pay for.

The best winter riding gear improvement I ever made was getting a neck gaiter (for free from Buell!). Man, I was a lot warmer after that.

Now, I also just throw on my rain gear over my normal riding gear. I'm good to go, too.

I've done a few rides lately. One was 17 degrees and 120 miles. I was pretty good on that one except for freezing thumbs despite my Gerbing G3s. My cold weather formula is -

a neoprene helmet skirt, fleece neck warmer (essential!), 6 top layers consisting of polypro tank, cotton turtle neck, 611 armor vest, fleece sweater, rei windproof stretchy jacket, and 1st Gear 3/4 length lined, water proof jacket. Gerbings G3 gloves with silk liners, handguards on bike, fleece lined wind pants under Scorpion armored pants, 2 pairs of wool socks, and heavy, waterproof Garneau boots.

Yes, I weigh about 50 lbs more after I get dressed! I want to get a Gerbings heated jacket liner to take the place of the Rei jacket and fleece. Hopefully it will reduce some bulk.

i ride all year round in the NE and here is what works for me:

temps in the 30's:

hands: heated grips w/Held "steve" gloves inside hippos hands

head: outdoor research balaclava.

upper body: wickers light weight shirt, wickers expedition weight shirt, BMW windblocker shirt, Olympia thermal/waterproof liner under my Olympia riding jacket. with the temps in the low 30's i will use my warm & safe heated jacket liner w/only one wickers shirt.

lower body: Daytona riding boots w/smart wool socks, wickers light weight long underware, Olympia riding pants.


when the temps drop into the low 20's or below this is what keeps me warm:

hands: i do not use my heated grips but instead, inside the hippo hands i use my Gerbing heated gloves

head: outdoor research ninja clava

upper body: wickers light weight shirt, warm & safe heated jacket liner, BMW windblocker shirt. when the temps are in the teens/single digits i will add the Olympia thremal/waterproof liner over top of the BMW shirt.

lower body: Daytona riding boots w/Gerbing heated socks, wicker light weight or expedition weight long underware depending on the temp. temps in the single digits i use both pair of wickers. Olympia thremal/waterproof liners, Olympia riding pants.

additonal note: once the temps drops into the 30's (or below) i use my Shoei helmet with a pinlock visor to prevent fogging. when the temps drop into the teens i will add a Respro foggy mask to keep the shield from freezing from my breath. when using the heated gloves/jacket & socks i use a dual heat troller and keep the socks on one side and the jacket/gloves on the other so i can adjust the temp independantly as needed.

if your bike does not have a high output alt. your going to need a good battery monitor/volt meter to make sure your heated gear is not drawing so much juice that your battery is not charging. my bike ('07 F650GS) only puts out 400 watts so i need to keep an eye on my battery monitor when running below 4000 rpm and when in stop & go traffic turn off some of my heated gear to keep my battery charging. i also drop my CS sprocket from the stock 16 tooth to a 15 tooth so the bike turns a little higher rpm during the winter riding season.

one final note, take off those street tires and put a pair of Mefo Explorer tires on both the front & rear for those slushy/snowy rides home from work.

I've ridden many times in the lower 30's with First Gear's insulated one-piece rainproof coveralls and balaclava. T shirt & jeans underneith . The only thing to get cold was the hands but I didn't have heated grips then. Downside is no armor.