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One
of the biggest mistakes that people make is overdressing.
Exercise generates heat (and sweat). If you are slightly cool
when you step outside for your ride, you'll likely be comfortable
when riding.
For an all day ride, dress in layers to regulate
temperature throughout the ride. As it warms up, remove layers.
When it starts to cool down as the sun goes down, put them back
on. Zippers are very important for temperature regulation. Tops
with long front zippers and jackets with pit zips allow a rider
to be comfortable through a varied range of temperatures, simply
by opening or closing the zippers.
Base layers that wick moisture away from the body
help you stay dryer and therefore warmer. Many years ago wool
was a staple of any cyclist's wardrobe. Wool wicks well and stays
resilient when it gets wet. It's warm in cool weather, and is
surprisingly comfortable in warmer conditions. It's also one of
the best fabrics to wear in rainy conditions, since it will keep
you warm even when wet. Unfortunately, in the old days, most wool
cycling apparel was quite itchy and many cyclists, myself included,
moved to synthetics like polypro, thermax and fleece.
Over the years I have used many synthetics with good luck, but
with one important exception: The down side of most synthetics
is their tendency to retain odor, even after washing. Fortunately
merino wool has come to my rescue. Merino wool fibers are much
finer and therefore less itchy than the wool I had as a youngster.
I can wear merino wool right next to my skin with no problems.
And I can practically wear the same top for a week on a bike tour
without washing it and without it smelling like a toxic waste
dump. Wool simply doesn't retain odor like synthetics. Wool is
now the staple of my cycling wardrobe.
A few years ago, much to the delight or dismay of our banker,
John discovered Rapha,
a UK company that makes very classy, fine wool blend bike clothing.
The clothes are expensive, but the styling and quality is very
impressive. Locally, Ride
Studio Cafe carries their stuff, which helps us tremendously
with shipping and makes being able to look at, touch and try things
on easier. One of my favorite sources for merino wool clothing
(both sport and casual) is Ibex.
I order a lot directly from them and make an annual pilgrimmage
to the Tent Sale they hold near Woodstock Vermont over Columbus
Day weekend. They also now have a retail outlet in Boston.
Wool has become very popular again, and this list could get very
long...
I have a rack full of Swobo
jerseys, which I'd highly recommend. Swobo disappeared for a few
years, but they have now reappeared. Boure
make a classy long sleeve wool jersey, and well as a few base
layer items. I did have trouble with shrinkage (yes women do know
about shrinkage) with my first Boure jersey, but hopefully they
have solved that problem with their newer jerseys. Kucharik
produce several wool jerseys (long and short sleeve) as well as
wool arm and leg warmers. Salsa
has added a few wool items to their line, including a short sleeve
jersey, arm and knee warmers. Rivendell
created a wool line under the name Wooly Warm. Earth,
Wind and Rider is local to us (in Massachusetts) and have
some lovely colorful jerseys and a great customer service attitude.
Base layers (and others for that matter) need not be cycling
specific. It's amazing how much rear pockets (or advertisements)
add to the price of a garment! Smartwool
make some nice zipped wool t-necks, which work quite well as a
base layer. They also make nice wool socks. New Zealand, home
of 44 million sheep and 4 million people, is also home to several
makers of high quality merino wool clothing. Icebreaker
is one of my favourites. Icebreaker have opened a few stores in
North America - we've been in the store in Portland, Oregon and
friends in Montreal have reported a store there. I've also recently
seen Icebreaker gear locally at EMS. And despite the amazing amount
of merino wool clothing in NZ (heaps of long and short and no
sleeve tops, tights, undies, caps), finding cycle-specific items
like arm or knee warmers there was an exercise in fuitilty. While
living there, I actually ordered a pair of NZ made knee warmers
from Salsa, a US company, to be shipped back to NZ! I did find
that I could easily get things made if I provided samples. I literally
walked down to our local Saturday market and went to one of the
booths that had wool tops. I took an old pair of leg warmers and
they made me two new pair based on the old ones! One of the great
things about NZ was how easy it is to get things made to order.
BTW, for years we used Woolite, but I'm now seeing recomendations
against it for wool clothes. We now use Ivory Snow. We
also have a front loading washing machine with a delicates cycle
that makes machine washing all that wool clothing possible. We
do hang our woolies on racks to dry. Dryers are the enemy of wool.
Silk is another natural fiber with great insulating properties.
It makes a good base layer for those who cannot tolerate any type
of wool next to the skin.
Polar fleece is a synthetic that is quite popular for winter
sports. It has similar insulating properties to wool, and dries
quickly. In my experience it doesn't retain odor as much as many
other synthetics, but fleece garmets still should be laundered
frequently.
A few years ago fleece was combined with technology from the
folks at Gore
to produce windstopper
fleece, and I must say this seems to be another recurrent theme
in my wardrobe. I have windstopper gloves, socks, overshoes, pants,
hats, headbands, vests, and jackets. The windstopper technology
is available without fleece as well. Lightweight windstopper vests
and jackets are great for layering.
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