- Rather than bundling up toasty, dress to be a little bit chilly when you leave. Otherwise you will be hot and miserable once you get going.
- After a winter trip, write down what the temperature was, what you wore, and how comfortable you were. Eventually you will have a list of exactly what clothing works best at every possible temperature.
- If you wear something with a zipper, you can unzip a bit if you get too hot.
- You can bring an extra scarf or something if you’re afraid you’ll be too cold.
- Often snow is not a major traction problem, but ice is always dangerous. Bad drivers can make snow dangerous, too.
- Snow melt can create icy conditions on clear, sunny days long after it has stopped snowing.
- In the winter rain is extremely cold! Rainy 34F can be easily be more annoying than dry 0F.
- You may need a wind shell. Before I had a down parka, I used to wear a bright green windbreaker on top of layered sweatshirts. Without the windbreaker, you have to limit your top speed because the wind cuts right through.
- Road salt, and especially wet salt, will destroy your bicycle. It’s best to ride an old “beater” bicycle in the winter. Avoid salty puddles!
- At 10°F and below, it is nice to have gloves or mittens with long “tails” that keep the wind out of your sleeves.
- Mittens might be warmer than gloves at low temps, but they can also make it more challenging to operate shifters, brake levers, etc
- Consider oversized gloves or mittens: then you can wear glove liners or even another pair of gloves underneath. It’s also nice not to have your bare skin exposed when you have to remove the gloves to activate a headlight or adjust your gear or whatever.
Cycling in the Suburbs 