Make winter riding actually fun with these

I thought the 100% hydromatic was more of a waterproof than cool/cold weather glove

Didn’t know about the brisker extreme, that looks ideal. Any real world feedback on them?

My experience of the decathlon trousers has been that they’re vaguely water resistant but certainly not waterproof.

I’ve got the winter version and it’s really just an extremely DWR softshell.

I’d agree they’re not fully waterproof, but they are warm and dry-ish, even on a Welsh hillside in the rain while there’s still snow on the ground.
Kinda like a thicker, baggier set of Roubaix tights. They’re water repellant enough that they don’t get cold.

They are fantastic for the average night ride.

Haven’t tried the thin version thought.

here is a list of what works and what dont work for winter.

Works.

mudguards, puncture proof tyres, good soft shell jackets, wool socks, Columbia fairbanks boots, walking gaiters if wearing trousers, three quarter shorts, cheap ski gloves, good leather walking boots in extreme shyte weather, keela trousers.

Dont work

five 10 winter boots or shoes, expensive waterproofs, fleece jackets, expensive WATERPROOF gloves and socks, disco slippers.

you may or may not agree.

Briskers are great gloves but echo the not for winter comments. I might try the new extreme one. It’s wet and cold here in the south west so we don’t get cold and dry, so wind, wet and poor circulation means I need something toasty.

Have invested in boots this winter and those gribgrab gaiters seem a good idea, thanks. I found I would still get slightly wet and therefore cold toes with waterproof socks as water would get in through the ankle/leg, which this should hopefully help.

you don’t need glasses.

You do if you’re a contact lens wearer.

Also, in a frustrating twist – waxing chains and singlespeed don’t go that well together as a freshly waxed chain elongates quite a lot over the first ride or two as the wax gets displaced, and SS needs a manual readjustment to take up the slack.

Happily SS also uses BMX chains which are really cheap, and the system doesn’t get clogged up with oily messy gunk from wet lube so it doesn’t matter anyway.

Those gripgrab gaiters – would they work with Freerider EPS shoes?

I’ve got the winter version and it’s really just an extremely DWR softshell.

Ahh I don’t think they did a winter version when I got mine.

This thread really just goes to show that what works is different for everyone. I definitely want glasses when I ride, and I’m happy with a couple of layers, good waterproof jacket (I don’t sweat much), water resistant trousers, 2 pairs of socks, and normal riding shoes. If it’s negative temps then I have an ancient pair of endura cordura gloves I wear too, otherwise standard Briskers. I also hate having a rear mudguard, getting on and off the bike is hard enough for me already.

Glasses every ride for me.  I’d rather get grit on them than my eyeballs.

TLD Resit trousers are great when it’s soaking.  Pull them down over my Five Ten boots.  Waterproof socks with merino liners when it’s sub zero.

Beware of the fit on the Hydromatic Brisker.  They are very narrow on the fingers.  I think they kept the outer shell the same and added a liner.

My mate is a L in Briskers and my XL hyromatics were too small for him.  I’m crossing my fingers that Wiggle process my return/refund. At least I can cross my fingers now I’ve returned the gloves.

I like the standard ones down to about 5 degrees, then I add a linger. I carry some Galiber barrier deep winter gloves when it’s closer to freezing but loose feel.  It’s either loose feel from cold numb hands, or loose feel from thick gloves so I choose  warmth/comfort.

I found last year that winter riding was awesome. A lot of this was because I spent most of the winter in Spain.

Currently in Finale and will be cruising down the Boot to Sicily. Should be just about bearable in the winter sun.

Having said that I recently bought a pair of riding trousers for a sloppy day in the bike park. Not having pads that are covered in filth at the end of the day was worth the cost of the trousers.

Also have a pair of winter 5:10s that are well insulated and kinda waterproof and a pair of thin snowboard gloves if it is cold out.

I hate the slop for mtb, slow and slippery. Different in different parts of the country some of it is ok but crap down south. I now except it will only be the odd cold day that matches my free time until spring. Happy to do off road dad bike gravel poodle with family but MTB is out.

Bit of a change of subject, but dry frosty rides or rides in the snow can be amazing.  They could be some of my favourite rides.  Night rides in the snow are also fantastic.

I can get onboard with frosty and snowy rides

Yep. Love those rides when you come home with the bike lathered in snow, it melts off and the bike is shiny clean. 

I may be committing a heresy, but the Rohloff gives me the simplicity of a single speed with the advantage of dependable gears even in the heaviest filth. I may fit Gates at some point. I like a merino base layer and Bridgedale hiking socks. Six different winter gloves and neoprene for the rain, and three different under helmet hats. For my 27.5+ the surly dirt wizard is my mud tyre of choice, but awful and draggy in everything but deep filth. I commute mostly off road.

@ton

Columbia fairbanks boots

do you use the omni-heat ones? You made me look, and I must admit that those + gaiters look immensely good.

do you use the omni-heat ones?

That’s the ones.

Some great advice here everyone. Tempted to try some gaiters after these recs. Also another fairbanks omni-heat owner here- have been really pleased with mine over the years particularly when it’s properly cold. Grip can be a bit slippy in proper mud but they’re so warm and waterproof. I think the only water ingress I’ve had is when I was carrying the bike through a stream and it went over the boot top, but even wading through I was fine.

I hate the slop for mtb, slow and slippery. Different in different parts of the country some of it is ok but crap down south. I now except it will only be the odd cold day that matches my free time until spring. Happy to do off road dad bike gravel poodle with family but MTB is out.

2 bikes yesterday were horrific, then the boy went out again this afternoon! Arggghhhh.

Full clean needed, then blow dried and lubed on all

“ best thing for winter riding is more rain. the sloppier teh trails the better and the more sideways you can get. the sticky, drying-out mud is just grim.”

This is so true! I love properly wet winter rides, where the mud just washes off the tyres.

My other things I love for winter are big front mudguards so I can see where I’m going, proper tyres (Hillbilly T9 is my fav front tyre, I’m not so fussy about the back), and either going singlespeed hardtail or full-fat full-bounce ebike. Both have their place and both make more sense to me than unpowered geared bikes.

“ Night rides in the snow are also fantastic.”

Yes, group snowy night-rides are the best. There is nothing quite like the (absence of) sound of getting air on a crunchy snowy trail.

Dunno if it’s something odd about my Bizango, but I have a Mucky nutz large front mudguard and still end up covered from ankle to chest. Admittedly it keeps shizzle out of my eyes (along with glasses to stop me crying (I’m old) 😂), but the combination of mudguard, downtube angle and shape, means I’m splattered every ride. I’ve even had to invest in capped bottles.

I inherited some leather sheepskin gloves from my grandad.

They are awesome on dry, it has to be dry, sub zero rides.

As long as I’m putting in some effort I have warm hands.

I don’t fancy getting the sheepskin liner wet. They’ve been fine for sweat, maybe the would be ok.

After 20 years the palms are a bit shiny. Other than that, no signs of wear.

Old school crown mounted mudguards. They’re cheap, light, easy to fit, they work great, they’re less ridiculous looking than the crown-mounted ones, and work better than all but the really massive ones, they can never clog or pick up a stick… .Topeak Shockboard is still great kit, the mounting hardware is terrible but god gave us cable ties. For me, crown-mount is for little all-year-round mudguards, crown mount is for actual weather.

These don’t work with all bikes and they look terrible, but, they’re good…

Win Wing 2 Gravel Black Dot

Fits most of my bikes (but wouldn’t fit the Orange, and sits a long way out on anything 26er or 650b. Basically if it has something thta looks like a hardtail’s seat stay it’ll probably work). They go on and off in seconds which is a big bonus, and though they’re small, they cover the really important bits.

big_scot_nanny
Full Member

do you use the omni-heat ones? You made me look, and I must admit that those + gaiters look immensely good.

I am not Ton, but, I have these too and they are my favourite winter riding shoes. VERY warm though, I just got them out of storage, I can’t wear them til it’s proper cold.