Newbie question on what to wear?

brandyleigh35

Ok...this is probably gonna sound really dumb, but I figure since I'm new I can risk sounded a bit ignorant! LOL..

The question I have is how do you decide what clothing you need to wear My husband and I regularly do a lot of hill climbing routes. The temp has been about 50 -60 degrees on average daily but is rapidly dipping down into the 40's. I usually wear my bike shorts, socks,gloves, shoes, a sports bra, and a long sleeve jersey (Bellweather fitted zip type.) Everything is great going up, I'm pedaling my butt off so thus producing a lot of heat. If I was wearing anything else I think I would be too hot. So the question I have is this...what to wear on the way down, as that is the part I"m freezing on? I have a light biking windbreaker that I bring but often times that is not enough either. My husband brings a long sleeve shirt and pretty much strips down and puts it under his jersey on the way back, with his windbreaker over top. For obvious reasons I can't do this so how do I stay warm. I know there is a trick to the layering properly thing. Can you experts steer me in the right direction? How do the arm warmers and leg warmers etc fit into the picture? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much!

Brandy

Mellic

Clothing is a tough one, but it is better to have stuff that you can take on and off easily. One thing that I would recommend are arm and/or knee warmers. You can buy them at a variety of thermal levels and when you get too hot you can simply roll them down.

brandyleigh35

Thanks for the suggestions Mellic. Sounds as if its something I have to figure out on my own, since know one else has offered any other ideas. I guess what I want to know is: When its cooler outside, what do you all wear on top? Sports bra and a long sleeve jersey, or do you layer over the sports bra with camisole tops etc? How does everyone do the layering thing?

Brandy

Eden

The way I dress really depends on how cool it is and whether I expect it to warm up. I don't have a rack or anything bigger than my wedge on my bike so I try to not wear anything that I won't keep on or can't take off and carry. I have found that I prefer to be a little cold over too warm.

If it is cool - under probably 60 degrees or so, I'll wear arm and knee warmers and usually take them off if it warms up or I'm working hard. I can put them both in my jersey pockets or in my wedgie.

if it is cold or cool and raining I'll wear a light long sleeve jersey under my regular jersey, a jacket - I've got a soft shell- and full length unpadded tights over my shorts. If it is raining I'll put on shoe covers as well.

brandyleigh35

Thanks Eden, your response was very helpful!

Brandy

speedy_gt

If I was wearing anything else I think I would be too hot.

Wow, you can actually get too hot in Alaska.

brandyleigh35

OH YEA! Believe me the summers are very nice here, and Fall (right now) is not too bad either. Just a couple of weeks ago it got up to 85 degrees. Our temps are pretty much like everyone elses, just only have them for a short amount of time. 1 month of spring , 2 months of summer , 1 month fall , and about 8 months of winter.


Brandy

Mellic

8 months of winter would suck! We only get 3 months of winter here and the temperatures don't really go much lower than 60 and that is freezing for me. On those days I wear just a short sleeved jersey and arm warmers. The rest of the year it is nice with temperatures ranging from 70 to 110. Summer gets too hot to ride during the day so most people ride at night.

brandyleigh35

Oh...believe me..it totally does suck! I could truly die happy if I never ever saw snow again in my life! I know, what the heck am I doing in Alaska huh? Mostly it's home, been here 36 years, and only have 10 left until I retire so we're gonna stick it out til then. In all fairness though, the winters are hard, but Alaska is truly awe inspiring when it comes to beauty. Very pristine and lovely. Have never seen another place in my life more gorgeous and I've traveled a lot. We have 40 acres of land in North Carolina and plan to retire there. I'm counting the years! LOL...

I'm envious of your nice weather.....OMG! 60 degrees in the winter? That is bloody tanning weather here! I'm seriously not joking! We are laying out at 60 degrees.

Australia is on our list of vacation spots, hopefully sometime relatively soon I will make it there to personally check it out.

Brandy

Mellic

LOL, 60 degrees tanning whether, are you serious? But I guess it all comes down to what your body is accustomed to. Whenever we have visitors from overseas who live in really cold climates they prance around in shorts and t-shirts in the middle of our winter.

I would love to go to Alaska though. I have never seen snow before and riding a snow bike would be good fun. I would probably freeze to death though.

brandyleigh35

I think you mean a "Snow Machine" LOL They are pretty fun, and you would be fine as long as you dressed for the weather. Yeah, we are the same way when we go out of state. We are wearing tank tops and shorts when everyone else is in jeans and sweaters. It is just what you are used to. I have been in Alaska for 36 years so it is just home, and normal to me.

Brandy