I used to ride around 80-odd thousand kays a year. I still manage to put over 50K under the wheels of various bikes – which, of course, necessitates riding in winter.
We are lucky in Australia. We can ride all year. Does it get cold? Hell, to the yes, it gets cold. Can we ride in this cold and not die? Absolutely. The gear available to us today is simply stunning. But, and this is a big “but”, you need to buy it – and good gear is not cheap. You very much get what you pay for.
I have mates who don’t ride that much. When they go riding in winter, they suffer hugely because their gear is old or cheap, or both. They swear to the Road Gods they will upgrade the gear as soon as they get back to civilisation, but then they come home, put their bike away and don’t ride again for six months. They forget about their gear as soon as the suffering stops.
Sound familiar?
So there’s not much I can do about human nature. All I can do is tell you what I wear that enables me to ride in all types of weather, for hours on end. It is not advice. It’s just what I wear.
Now bear in mind I have tonnes of gear I have accumulated over the years, big name brand gear, and it all pretty much sits in the cupboard or is given to my friends. I have been using the German Held gear and Daytona boots for years now. It works. It lasts. And it looks good. There’s a reason it wins awards.
So here’s what I wear…
Quality thermal undergarments. Shop European if you can. They understand cold weather. I use Held, Vigilante, and the Aussie brand, Andy Strapz. Brilliant.
I then do a thick long-sleeve cotton T-shirt and a normal short sleeve cotton T-shirt, sometimes with swear-words written on it.
Then I put this on, because it is amazing.
https://bikeme.tv/index.php/held-softshell-vest-review-my-soft-little-secret/
My preferred all-weather cool and cold temperature jacket is this one.
https://bikeme.tv/index.php/held-imola-flash-jacket-review-flashy-as-a-flashy-thing/
On my legs I then put these pants on.
https://bikeme.tv/index.php/held-adventure-touring-gear-review-come-at-me-everything/
On my feet go the greatest boots ever made. Yes, they are truly waterproof and you don’t need thermal socks. Ordinary Explorers will do the trick just fine.
https://bikeme.tv/index.php/daytona-ac-dry-gtx-boot-review-toss-all-your-other-boots-into-the-bin/
Now, because I wear a Schuberth M1Pro, I have been known to use a neck warmer or a neck sock. Held has the best of them things too. Here…
https://bikeme.tv/index.php/held-for-your-head-german-warmth-is-serious/
You may also wanna check these jobbies out. They’re brilliant.
https://bikeme.tv/index.php/held-infinium-skin-under-glove-never-take-them-off-in-winter/
So that’s me, I guess. You will, of course, do you. But after almost half-a-century of riding, I’m not even looking for better gear anymore. This is as good as riding gear needs to get for me. I don’t have to plug myself into a power-outlet, I don’t need to wrap myself in furs (though I would like to), and I can ride through the most heinous shit because my gear is great.
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