Hi All,

Right, its getting cold and Im suffering from a total soaking feeling of sweat! Im struggling with how many layers and what top layer/coat.
I think Im putting too many layers on to begin with, the fact Im warm and comfortable at the beginning of the ride suggests so. 2-3hrs later Im a bit shivery as the sweat has build up on the base and second layer but not got out through the jacket.
Im wearing a very tight base layer (sub armour) with wicking properties, then a less tight fit 2nd layer again with wicking, over which the bib tights pull over the stomach area, then a water/wind proof jacket. The jacket is not tight.

After a few hours Im soaked from the inside out and the chill begins. Am I starting out with too much on and is the jacket not wicking well enough?

Thanks and Im sure Ive missed a post on this very subject somewhere, apologies!

The weather in the UK is really mild at the moment and it sounds like you are overdressed (what you are wearing at the moment is what I would wear in freezing temperatures). I'd say a good barometer is to start a ride feeling cold. The most versatile piece of clothing I have is a windproof gilet - being sleeveless, ventilation is not an issue but it cuts out wind chill. I presume you meant to say Under Armour for your baselayer? Maybe a cycling specific brand would have better wicking qualities?

At the moment I would wear fleecy bib tights with or without windproof areas, doesn't matter much, then on top an insulating base layer with the bibs over that. Then either an Altura Night Vision windproof fleecy top with windproof front for commuting, or an Assos fleecy layer and a windproof vest with holey back. For short rides I don't bother with overshoes, but for more than 1/2h they're needed. And I have moderately warm gloves.

Weather at the moment is not quite cold enough for full winter gear, so more layers than that is not necessary unless you're dead skinny. Key is to be warm indoors first (i.e. don't walk around stone floors with bare feet or socks) then have some room to cool down a bit when you start and then warm up again on the first couple of hills. Also you can always take something off if you get too hot!

For cooler conditions down to 0 deg C I normally replace the windproof vest with a full windproof top either Rapha softshell or a Castelli Fusione. And add a warm hat and maybe warmer socks. Or instead I just ride really hard for 1 hour then retreat to warmth!

Also at a few degrees above 0 you need mudguards as you're otherwise always damp from the road and that makes a lot of difference I find. If it's below 0 deg it's a mug's game riding as there's ice and your bottle will freeze. The Assos system of a £400 jacket, 3 layers of gloves, 2 layers of overshoes etc. might be nice if you live in Sweden and feel the need to ride, but for UK it's totally unnecessary unless you like to ride at 10mph at -2 degrees and stop regularly. That said Castelli / Assos / Rapha stuff is very good. With modern clothing you should only need max 3 layers on top. You only need more if you're into 1980s technology gear.

this morning it was 28f when I went for a ride. I wore,

Head: face mask, goretex hat and helmet

Upper body: short sleeve jersey, long sleeve airblock jersey and Endura windchill jacket. I unzip the endura halfway way down every once and a while if I start to warm up.

Hands: Goretex gloves with some lycra gloves inside those gloves.

lower body: some tights, nalini Pro fleece bib tights, socks shoes and some neoprene booties.

CRAFT of Sweden XC skiing clothing is hard to beat.

imho that's one too many base layers for current uk weather, and personally i wouldn't use a waterproof jacket - just a windproof and if it's raining so hard that water would get through, use a superlight windproof or waterproof on top, like a castelli leggero or sottile, that way the jacket can breathe more and if the rain stops you can slip off the top without losing insulation

i prefer a mesh base layer for next to the skin, as they don't feel so cold/clammy if things do wet-out, if it's really cold i can always use another normal baselayer over it

At 5 degrees (roughly what it's supposed to be in London at the moment) I'm wearing a winter base layer (Skins or UnderArmour) and a long sleeve jersey jersey, nothing more. I take a very light rain jacket (Castelli Sottile) rolled up in my pocket if conditions are changeable.

I'd suggest that you try not taking the waterproof jacket out as that's the item of clothing that will trap moisture most. I suspect once you have that off you'll be fine as you are this weekend (when hands and feet will be the hard part to keep warm).

For those of you that get wet from sweat the key is no windproof layers that cannot be removed and put in your pocket. You get condensation on the back side that soaks back into your wicking base layers. Just add more base layers until you are warm enough. If I can't feel the wind go through I know I will be wet before the end.

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I agree somewhat, except that I still have localized sweating at the rear pockets. No airflow due to items in the pockets (cell phone, gloves that I removed, etc) means that I'm still wet there and it slowly saturates the base layer.

Hi Guys, thanks for all the replies. Im out today and tomorrow, a bit more of a chill today as overnight frost so will see how a base layer and just windproof jacket with wicking goes today. Will pack a waterproof gilet just incase get chilly and can add for last hour or so.

What they said .... plus ... if it's really cold, make your rides shorter.

Turbo!

Problem solved

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2010 Bianchi 928 SL / SRAM Red, Easton EA90 SLX

Member of C.S. Grupetto

I usually will put a base layer (or two if its really cold), my jacket, and a wind vest overtop when I start out. If I start to sweat pretty badly in that I simply take off the wind vest and I cool down pretty quickly.

Seems to work well for my torso, my fingers are another story - I can never keep those warm.

The simple test is, you have to be cold when you walk out the door and for the first five or ten minutes you have to be thinking I am still cold. After ten or fifteen minutes if you are reasonably comfortable then you know what works for you at that temperature.

and when you finally figure things out write down what to wear at every temp so you don't have to do trial and error next year.