The cold ride
Getting outdoors on the road bike in the winter
Last Saturday the temperature was predicted to rise into the 40’s. In February in New England that is hot!
I had a long ride scheduled and thought it would save my soul to get out on the roads and off the evil trainer.
I know from years of motorcycle riding that it is always colder than you think when you’re moving in the wind. Especially of concern are your fingers and your toes.
I don’t own any of that real bike-wear. I just throw my chamois shorts over my thick running tights and fake the rest.
One thing all the bikers tell you that you need are toe covers or shoe covers. Basically these shoe covers are coverings for the shoes that block the wind and keep the heat in. Like gloves for the shoes.
My road bike shoes are Shimano SpeedPlay shoes. These shoes are designed to be lightweight and breathe which makes them bad for cold weather. They let the wind right through. The SpeedPlay part is where the shoes clip into the pedals. The pedals are a lollipop shape that fit into a circular cleat in the bottom of the shoe.
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Having an aversion to high priced bike gear I hunted around for an easy way to create shoe covers for my ride. My first thought was, of course, duct tape. But, I decided on modifying a pair of old socks, pictured here, and it worked great.
You cut a hole in the bottom of the socks where the cleat can come through. Then you just roll the socks up over your shoes. The elastic of the socks holds them in place and fit them tightly to the shoe.
I also wore two pairs of socks. This was a quick and dirty, reusable solution. My feet weren’t cold, they weren’t hot and it worked out fine.
For my hands I inserted some chemical heat packs into the back of each bike glove, one each. They don’t give off a lot of heat but enough to keep the chill off and in the back of the glove they fit snugly and don’t get in the way.
The rest was just a combination of various layers of stuff.
There you go. Quick and dirty cold weather cycling solutions.
Chris Russelllives and trains in suburban Massachusetts with his family and Border collie Buddy. Chris is the author of “The Mid-Packer’s Lament”, and “The Mid-Packer’s Guide to the Galaxy”, short stories on running, racing, and the human comedy of the mid-pack. Chris writes the Runnerati Blog at www.runnerati.com. Chris’ Podcast, RunRunLive is available on iTunes and at www.runrunlive.com. Chris also writes for CoolRunning.com (Active.com) and is a member of the Squannacook River Runners and the Goon Squad.
Email me at cyktrussell at Gmail dot com
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