How to keep feet warm? Seal skins are naff

A split has worn on the seam of my seal skins socks. But I never found them that good for biking. Are there any alternatives to keep feet warm? Not even necessairly dry. I’ve dried gore-tex lined boots, but the water runs in, then the water stays in the membrane all day, and they don’t seem to be any warmer than non gore-tex lined shoes, once they are wet.

So what is the best combination for warm feet over the winter?

Seal Skinz with a pair of twin layer running socks underneath, and shoe straps slightly looser so you don’t cut off circulation.

However, I tend not to get that cold even commuting at ten below zero.

I,m going to stick my neck out “AGAIN” and say thet “PERSONALLY” i cannot abide GOTE-TEX and also think Sealskinz are a complete waste of Money.

*NOTE*
this is my own view and NOT necessarily one that is shared by others.

I wear a pair of Bridgedale socks and just accept that my feet are going to get wet !

I’ve got a pair of these:

Singletrack branded by Sock Guy, nice lightweight wool and pretty warm even on their own. I then use sealskinz on top cos I actually find them quite good. They work best when worn with a pair of tights, it means the water stays on the tights rather than running down the top of the sock.

If you’re going to be one of those hardcore stupid people who insists on wearing baggies all year cos you think tights are gay then yes, you’ll get cold wet feet!

As a cheapy teenager I used to wear any old socks then a supermarket fruit bag between them and my shoes, tucked in as necessary to avoid flapping about. Never had cold feet. Even if they got wet it was always contained and warmed up.

Hmmm ! Wearing baggies makes ur feet cold ?

I’d say thats a pretty Bold Statement to make ?
How does wearing baggies make ur feet wetter, are you saying that bib longs remain waterproof and the water does not penetrate and run down the inside of the material against your leg ?

de feet woolie boolies and overshoes………no complaints. (got seal skins and never use them )

I,m going to stick my neck out “AGAIN” and say thet “PERSONALLY” i cannot abide GOTE-TEX and also think Sealskinz are a complete waste of Money.

*NOTE*
this is my own view and NOT necessarily one that is shared by others.

I wear a pair of Bridgedale socks and just accept that my feet are going to get wet !

what he says. sealskinz make my feet cold.

if you know you are going to get soaked try a pair of wetsuit socks – you will be toasty. otherwise just suck it up 😀

I use seal skinz over a normal pair of endura coolite socks. That’s good for me down to around -5c. Colder than that I use seal skinz and endura thermalites.

I have some overshoes bought for last winter but so far I haven’t used them. Sealskinz/thermalite sock combo were good for last years winter.

I don’t like the feel of sealskinz against the skin either/

are you saying that bib longs remain waterproof and the water does not penetrate and run down the inside of the material against your leg ?

Yes.
Well, most of the time anyway, it has to be REALLY wet to get through and down the top of the sock.

I’ve got nothing against wearing baggies or lycra shorts but if it’s warm enough for that it’s warm enough that the odd bit of water inside the sock isn’t going to bother me.

Yes.
Well, most of the time anyway, it has to be REALLY wet to get through and down the top of the sock.

SO ! The answer’s not Yes then 😕

Only i went out Yesterday afternoon with a pair of ENDURA bib longs on and threw caution to the wind and donned My Singletrack baggies over the top !

The force of the water against my legs on the trails had the water straight through mine and against my legs, It’s not the first time either, every time i go out in the wet i inevitebly end up getting wet !

If it’s properly cold I go for two pairs of socks and just accept that wearing cycling shoes means my feet are going to get wet.

Regarding cold feet…I’d suggest you have a look at what else you’re wearing and see if heat is escaping from elsewhere too.

I would try to keep your shins covered and insulated from the wind/water. The blood vessels on the shin that supply the foot are quite close to the surface and act like a radiator when exposed.

a warm sock will only go so far to keep your feet warm!

Out today, Sealskinz work for me – but use overshoes also.

MW80 & Smartwool socks = toasty feet. Simples.

wool socks ftw. merino by preference.

if it’s cold and wet. Used to wear them kayaking through winter now I wear them biking.

Otherwise good thick wool walking socks.

every time i go out in the wet i inevitebly end up getting wet !

Woh woh woh, slow down, let me get a pen.

I was stating the obvious !

Woh woh woh, slow down, let me get a pen.

LMFAO 😛

i’m going to reitterate what i do

KNee length sealskinz with knee warmers (endua 260 ) helps keep the waterproofness + normal riding shoes ( works to about 1-4oC)
Below 1oC i then use my MW80 with same combo
Below -5-8oC i also use overshoes

great combo, warm feet all the time

Woolie boolies 😆

each to their own, but I find the merino lined sealskinz and Spesh Defrosters are toasty. Had a few night rides at -10 and colder last winter and still just warm enough

Never really understood why it is that some people get good results with Sealskinz and some don’t. I love ’em myself, they don’t keep my feet totally dry- some gets down the top- but they’re massively, massively better than just merino socks. In really cold conditions I add a merino liner as mine aren’t the thermal sealskinz But others just find they don’t work. Don’t know why.

I think some people do miss the point that they’re not warm socks, they’re designed that way- that’s why there’s a thermal version or merino liners available.

Everybody’s different and we’ll all get different results with products.
Experiment and find out what works best for you.
There are plenty of excellent suggestions above.

Sealskinz with coolmax or merino liner socks work brilliantly for me.
I rode, waded, bog trotted and stood for hours viewing Rally GB on the military ranges at Epynt last weekend.
My feet were warm and dry all day, I use flat pedals and wear log trousers to ride so i don’t get water running down my legs into the socks and don’t constrict the foot with tight spd shoes or straps.

In summary, consider ALL of the following
(reduce amount of items if too hot. Learn which temperature requires what level of clothing – remember 1oC temp drop for every 165m of climbing + acount for windchill & rain)

– techy socks i.e. Woolie Boolies/Sealskins, I like ski socks (liking the idea of neoprene above or Military Gore-Tex Boot Liners)
– Winter boots – northwave/ shimano/ diadora / LAkes etc
– Overshoes – MT500 for me
– Feet not too squashed
– Winter bib tights and/or knee warmers – keep shins warm
– keep core warm i.e. many layers.
– baggys on top of bibtights
– Maybe stop mid way round for a warm up – eat & drink properly
– Gloves …..now that is a new thread (I use winter gloves with optional waterproof overgloves (sealskin I think))

…. but I am getting old and don’t want to suffer.

sorted

(met a 13 year old today. Been out for 5 hours, 2oC, with NO GLOVES today. Wearing shorts, ankle socks & trainers!!!!! – he was perfectly happy!!!!!!!!!!)

Never really understood why it is that some people get good results with Sealskinz and some don’t.

Maybe because they’re thicker than regular socks and for some make their shoes too tight?

Seal skinz never worked for me as above, probably made my shoes a bit too tight therefore rendering them useless, however I also always foudn that water got down inside them from the top which just made them worse.

Since then I’ve used wool socks, and my feet stay toasties warm, even when wet.

Just wool socks keep my feet dry whatever the conditions

I suffer from Raynauds and Seal Skinz are shite for me, probably (as stated above) because they’re too tight with shoes and restrict your blood flow.

Best solution for me is decent merino wool socks, but sadly I’ll always suffer badly in the winter.

I am wearing altura winter cruisers under endura superlite shorts tucked into sealksinz with merino linings. Shoes are MP66

Feet are very warm

5:10 Freeriders 1 size too big then liner sock, walking sock and Sealskinz works reasonably for me, even though I suffer from cold feet at the best of times.

IMO you are better off in flats. Cleats for clipless gives you a nice big hole where water gets in, heat escapes, and there’s a big lump of metal to transmit heat to the outside

Merino lined Sealskinz work a treat for me – just about zero today – feet fine.

I use Sealskinz mid light during the warmer months. Same but with merino liner socks from 10 ish degrees down to about 4 or 5 degrees. This is with PI Alp-X shoes, which are designed to be pourous for breathability & quick drying. Any colder than that & the winter boots come out, same sock combo.

These wool socks work a treat. Mmmm, toasty

Winter socks of your choice, Gore-Tex oversocks and shoes big enough not to restrict the circulation to your feet when you have the thick socks + oversocks on. I can’t emphasise the latter enough, you may need to go half-to-one size bigger than normal.

I tried seal skinz and a big fail for me. Merino wool or wool hiking socks and some good winter boots.
Best thing I found is to stick them on the radiator before you go out.
If its really cold I’ll stick on an overshoe as well, but I get cold feet in summer!

Vitamin D.

As someone who motorbike commutes between Plymouth and Portsmouth at the moment I’m taking extremity temperature quite seriously at the moment. My current foot precaution is lining the bottom of my boots with laminate floor underlay (the silver stuff) and this is quite effective. I’m going further this weekend by putting bubble wrap in there as well as a sort of double glazing.

Good coating of goose fat.

Oversocks for temps down to about zero.
Overshoes for zero and below or if it’s raining heavily.

Sealskinz then work fine on both occasions.