I’ve seen more folks on bikes this winter than ever before, and most of them have been dressed in everyday clothes. Few wore a helmet. A couple of them were obviously devoted cyclists in full roadie kit. But a surprising number of folks on bikes hadn’t bothered with a warm jacket, gloves, or a hat, despite temperatures in the teens and a slicing north wind. Those people were in pain, shifting their hands to warm them under armpits or by blowing on fingers. One man was the picture of extreme agony—he wore baggy shorts, a sweater, and had a bare head and no gloves. His knees were a blotchy red, his hands were frozen claws as white as his beard, and his rictus grin told the tale of his misery. Maybe he drew his comfort from the expensive bike he rode.

One man stood apart from the usual run of practical cyclists. Here’s a photo of him riding to the grocery store:

 

 
He’s dressed in street clothes, but he’s also armored against the cold. Don’t let the bright sun fool you. The day was frigid. As this man makes clear, you don’t need to be dressed in the latest cycling fashions to use a bike in winter. Of course, the kind of cycling you do will help determine your wardrobe. This cyclist lives only a mile or so away, but that didn’t stop him from putting on a balaclava, gloves, a brimmed cap under his helmet to keep sun out of his eyes, big sunglasses to shield his eyes from glare, high rubber boots (windproof and waterproof), and a parka that kept wind at bay. His bike is well outfitted, too. Tires are in fine shape and properly inflated, he has a rearview mirror on the left handlebar end, his panniers will hold all his groceries, his bike frame gives him an adequate stand-over, and his saddle is set at a comfortable height. Bravo!

 
Riding in winter requires special considerations. If you’re destination is more than a few blocks away you’ll want to outfit yourself and your bike differently than for a shorter run, but in either case, you have to recognize the importance of staying warm and protecting yourself from wind chill. The winter wind is a lot colder when you’re underway than when you stand still. Unless you wear gloves that keep your hands warm, your hands will quickly become so cold you cannot manipulate shifters and brakes. Your face, ears, and neck are also vulnerable places. You’ll lose a lot of heat from your head and neck if they’re uncovered, and frostbite is a certainty if you don’t cover your face when wind chills drop.

The other side of the coin is that in dressing warmly you also bulk up. Even if you’re wearing layers of high-tech cycling togs, you’ll be bulkier than in summer. Thicker gloves make it a bit harder to shift and brake—or to grip the handlebars, come to that. My typical cold weather outfit includes a long-sleeve base layer top or a long-sleeve jersey, a fleece spot-top, and a foul-weather jacket, plus bike shorts under polar tights, wool socks and mountain biker shoes. A neck gator comes up over my mouth and nose. A skull cap covers my head and ears under the helmet. And protective glasses help reduce the risk of tearing and being hit in the eye with splatter or a kicked-up bit of road sand. On my hands I’ll wear a thin pair of wind resistant gloves under a warm insulated glove for warmth. In the coldest weather I might even wear a fleece vest or fleece jacket under my foul-weather jacket, and neoprene booties over my shoes. This rig makes me feel like the Michelin man, but it also keeps me warm.

Is my outfit really necessary when just doing the grocery shopping or banking? You bet it is. Home is 12 miles from town, with several hundred feet of elevation gain on the return. That means a lot of steep descents on the way in—bitter cold in the depths of winter. On the return I can always stop and shuck some layers as I heat up in the hills. Is it inconvenient to stow this extra clothing? Yep. But hypothermia and frostbite are a lot more inconvenient.

 

 
Winter isn’t a time for hotshot road cycling. At least not for me, not in this climate. And I’m not alone in this thinking. Several roadies I know—folks who in warm weather ride tires as narrow as my pinkie and frames as light as a feather—switch to more utilitarian steeds and wide studded tires once snow and ice are the norm here. It’s a way to stay alive when the temperature does a dive, while defying winter and getting out on two wheels.

 
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