Cold Weather Cycling Gear – Preparing for Autumn & beyond
As the mornings get bitter, now’s the perfect time to make sure you’ve got the correct cold weather cycling gear for the forthcoming months. As always, we are here to help! Here’s our Autumn cycle clothing checklist and temptations (if you need anything).
Firstly, empty out your cycle clothing wardrobe and organise all of your gear into seasonal piles. Grab your summer gear and stash that away, I don’t believe you will be needing those anymore, until spring, although you may like to wear a short sleeve cycling jersey under a winter jacket when it gets very cold. Focus on long sleeves, waterproofs, and thermals. It’s not winter just yet, big windproof jackets are probably not necessary for now, but it all depends on the weather conditions near you.
We always say this but it’s so true and important. Wearing the right cycling clothing is the best defence against the seasonal elements and will always bring you more pleasure and motivation if you’ve got the correct clothing on. There’s no need to struggle unnecessarily.
Footwear – Overshoes // socks //
The extremities like hands and feet are always the first to get cold. Keep these warm and your whole body will stay warmer for longer. The best defence for cold feet is a good set of thermal socks and or overshoes. stolen goat overshoes are currently not available (we’re working on it!).
Lower Body – Legwear // Shorts // Tights // Warmers //
Keeping your lower body at its optimum temperature is tricky. During Autumn, the weather can be susceptible to all sorts of temperature fluctuations and weather conditions.
While temperatures are still around the 10-12 degree mark, we feel that shorts are the best option. Our Orkaan weatherproof shorts are ideal for Autumn riding. They are made from a waterproof and breathable fabric which is lined with a soft Roubaix fabric designed to keep your body working at the right temperature.
Wear our Orkaan legwarmers when you first set off in the morning until it warms up later in the day, then remove when necessary.
If the temperature starts to lower considerably less than 9-degrees then look at wearing our Orkaan 3/4 lengths or our Climb & Conquer tights if it’s really cold out.
Upper Body – Cycling Tops & Jerseys // Arm Warmers // Light Jackets // Caps & Hats //
During Autumn it can be difficult to gauge what the best cold weather cycling gear is to wear because the weather is so unpredictable. Unlike winter where you know it’s going to be freezing and possibly raining, Autumn can have warmish, dry days or cold, wet days or all of the above within an hour.
So…… what do you wear on your upper body on days like this?
Orkaan Long Sleeved jersey (modelled in the above photo) springs to mind straight away. This jersey has a tight but forgivable fit if you needed to layer up. Made from a waterproof, breathable fabric and a soft Roubaix inside lining designed to act like a thermal, makes it the perfect upper body garment to brave the unpredictable Autumn weather. The Orkaan waterproof jersey is also available in a short sleeve and paired with our Orkaan armwarmers is another great multi season combination.
Important factoid
– Your head temperature controls your body temperature and body performance.
A high head temperature means an increase in the amount of sweat the body is producing. That leads to a higher loss of liquids and to dehydration, which in turn has a negative impact on the rider’s level of performance – Met Helmets
It also works on the opposite side of the spectrum, if your head is too cold, it, in turn, will make the body shiver to achieve the correct temperature. Wasting energy unnecessarily if your body is already at the correct temperature.
Have a look at Bioracer’s windproof and waterproof cycling hat here.
The hands, head and feet contain a lot of surface area with many important blood vessels. Because of this, these body parts are susceptible to drastic temperature change. By keeping these parts and your upper body at the right temperature, will help boost your performance.
