Winter Gear

Winter is fast approaching and the mornings are getting colder,
especially in Canberra and the capital region.

As I'm still fairly new to riding, I have not ridden in real winter
temperatures before, and know that I'll need to look at investing in
some warmer gear soon

I have had several suggestions for various bits of the body. For the
legs thermal undies with Dragins over the top, and some tracksuit pants
over the top of them. For the torso, put my leather jacket away for 6
months and buy something with man made material, plus wear a few layers
underneath.

For the hands I've been told to get winter gloves, which makes sense,
however others have told me that riding with winter gloves is a pain in
the arse, and it's better to get silk liners to wear under summer
gloves. Another person told me to buy some leather working gloves from
Bunnings that are lined with wool inside.

I realise that it will boil down to my own personal preference in the
end, however at this point I'm still open to suggestions. What do you
guys do to keep warm, yet comfortable when it's below 0 outside?
Besides giving the cage a run?

Cheers,
SL.

 

sucks in canberra doesnt it

ask Clem on those ones but i think he wears em without the wool

i think you would be a prime candidate for heated grips
for the rest of you its a case of buying the right gear
a turtle neck (like a balaclava ) works well

the real secret is to keep the cold air out of getting in the gaps of your
clothes
which is where the turtle neck or neck warmer works well

 

two words:
hand warmers.

My BMW R1100GS has bar based warmers. I thought they were a wank until
I was heading out on the western HWY last June to Horsham in pouring,
sideways rain. Beemer winter gloves on (under $100!) and my Joe Rocket
touring jacket. Thermal pants, Draggin Cargos, waterproof overpants,
neck warmer, baylisstic poly vest, thermal top, long and short sleeve
tshits....

I STILL FROZE! Hit the emergency heat packs- lover-ly! Hands were never
cold- though I did get the all to common too hot palms with cold
fingers!

'er ladyship froze too- so our next big winter trip will have her in a
heated vest. the beemer one is $500-600, so an after market $300 jobbie
will be the go.

The Speed Triple stays indoors during the winter- she's just not up for
it!

Cheers
Tom
Speed Triple '02
R1100GS '94
thomasr.blogspot.com

 

http://www.soundrider.com/archive/products/gerbing.htm

http://www.gerbing.com/

http://www.heated-motorcycle-clothing.co.uk/

http://www.shadowriders.org/faq/electricvests.html

http://www.motorcyclecruiser.com/accessoriesandgear/electricclothing/


Dont stuff around get connected.

Boxer

 

If you talk to hiking type people, they'll tell you about layers: on the
inside there's a wicking layer, then insulation layer(s), then a shell
over the top to keep the wind out. For motorcycling, add a protective
layer. The wind will just blast straight through your trakkies, and
they'll add nothing.

Polypropylene longjohns make a great next-to-the-skin layer. I'm sure
someone will point out that in the case of one particular kind of
accident, they might indeed melt into your skin causing untold
nastiness, but frankly I don't worry about it. They provide a bit of
insulation, but mostly what they do is carry moisture away from your
skin, stopping you from getting cold and clammy. Avoid cotton next to
the skin, as it doesn't wick at all.

Insulation: think Polarfleece, and if you get to Snowgum or Kathmandu or
somewhere, you'll get more warmth than a couple of K-mart fleecies.
You'll pay for it, mind you (wait for the sales). Make sure the cuffs
don't ride up when you're in 'riding' position. I normally don't bother
on my legs, finding Draggins provide enough of an airgap between
polypros and wetpants.

If it's pissing down you'll get wet, and both of the above stay warm
even when damp, and dry out quickly when you get to the pub.

Shell: something windproof, like a jacket that does up at the neck,
cuffs and waist. Waterproof overtrousers are great for your legs, even
if its not raining and even if they're old ones that aren't quite
waterproof any more.

I mostly ride in summer gloves with the heated grips on, but I've also
got a pair of winter gloves. They're okay, they just take a while to
break in. If you don't have enormous hands, consider buying a second
pair of summer gloves one size up, and a set of thermal gloves to wear
underneath them. Some people go with rubber gloves in there somehow as
well, but I reckon you're better off using heated grips and insulation
which still works when its wet, because the water always seems to get in
eventually.

Ah, well, below 0 you'd better ask someone else, in subzero conditions I
prefer to insulate myself with a pub on the outside and a counter meal
on the inside (eh Pete?)

-----sharks

 

I have been quite comfortable in temperatures down to -6 on my K1100LT with
heated grips, wearing a protective gortex suit (areostich) as an outer layer
fleece inner layer & electric vest. Although the toes got a little cool.

Boxer

 

I don't work there but:
Kathmandu in melbourne (Bourke St) are having a really worthy pre
winter sale: 50-60% off everything.

I'm gearing up for more GS type adventures. Those self inflating top of
the range mats: normally $179- got 2 for less than that. Beauty!!

Thermals, socks, vests (got a sleeveless poly vest for $20- normally
$50) all the good stuff!

Tom

 

In aus.motorcycles on Tue, 28 Mar 2006 10:33:16 +1100

The key to warmth on a bike is a combination of layers and
windproofing.

So for the body, thermals are good, but under something that keeps the
wind out. Leathers tend to be colder than textile, and jeans are no
good at keeping wind out at all.

I've had best results with thermals under normal clothes, and textile
bike gear. Cordura pants are better than jeans if you don't mind wearing
them at the other end. Or you could wear them as well but I think
you'd find that too bulky and awkward.

Make sure you have a good seal at the neck - a scarf or throat tube.
Also make sure your gloves seal well at the wrist so the wind can't get
in and up your sleeves. Some like gloves under sleeves, some over -
depends a lot on riding position.

also make sure the thermals are long - most of them don't deal well
with the motorcycle riding position, riding up at the back and
exposing shivering kidneys. A kidney belt can be useful to help
there.

The best possible thing for warm hands in winter is some form of wind
protection - a fairing with good hand protection, or dirtbike hand
protectors. You won't believe the difference!

You can make truly ugly and naff (but very effective) hand protectors out
of 2l cordial bottles, if that's too much then the dirtbike plastics you
can hoseclamp on, or else the big waxed cotton "dryfingerz" or similar
covers that envelop the handlebars do a better job than almost all gloves.

I've tried the 2 glove idea and not been impressed. I prefer good
winter gloves but it can be hard to find ones that are warm, waterproof,
and are not too hard to use the controls with. The trick is to find
ones that don't have that much padding under your palm, and where the
padding doesn't slide about between palm and bar. If it is too thick,
or you hand slides about inside the outer glove while holding the bar,
you'll get sore hands and arms trying to ride the bike any length of time.

I've not used heated bars, I suspect they'd be good but a lot better
if there was wind protection as well.

A decent fairing Mine;s a 70s job bought at a swap meet.

If I was living in Canberra and didn't have a good hand protecting
fairing I'd bodge up a set of dirtbike hand protectors to shield my
hands.

Sydney's weather's not so cold in winter so I get away with riding the
other bikes in good winter gloves. If I find my hands getting too
cold, a few minutes resting them on conveniently located Guzzi
cylinder heads works fine....

Zebee

Zebee

 

You've already been given a lot of sensible advice, but for what it's
worth my $0.02 says: commuting or touring (a lot of the advice you've
already got is more applicable to touring because of the length of time
it takes you to get dressed)?

Commuting in Canberra in sub-zero isn't as bad as you might think,
because the typical commute is 30 minutes and so you don't get very
cold. Waterproofs over your jeans, motorcycle boots, several woollen
layers under your leather jacket (e.g. scarf + pullover) will be fine.

For a commute silk gloves under your summer gloves sounds like a bloody
good idea. Alternatively you could change gear and brake a lot, because
keeping the blood circulation going is what is important; you might
have to be doing that if you're going near any of the black ice spots
anyway.

Last year I rode a big touring bike from Canberra to Sydney, with
sub-zero from my home to the end of the Southern Highlands, dressed as
I'm suggesting to you, and the only bit of me that got cold was my
hands; so cold that I had to stop near Berrima for 10 mins to warm them
up (no heated hand-grips).

OTOH Touring: what the others have suggested.

 

Google the Kanetsu Airvantage electric vest. WOOHOO!

Otherwise, get some riding wets and wear them over your gear. It's going to
provide the best barrier against the wind and cold....that's the cheapest
option.

Play around with your selection of gear and work up. Some people have great
circulation and don't need that much great gear to survive a winter. (I'm
thinking PaulH on the Icicle rally) others do. Beyond gear, get some heated
grips.....they work wonders.

justAL

 

http://www.aerostich.com/home.php?cat=284

No need to Google.

I have one of the vests and a jacket as well, very effective and have kept
me warm riding in -6.

Boxer

 

I know. I was lazy. The catalogue is an entertaining read.


justAL

 

The windproofing is the bit that makes the most difference and is the
most likely to be forgotten. Leather and Dri Riders aren't wind proof,
they're wind resistant, which is a subtle distinction of little
consequence until it gets below zero. Putting my wet weather gear (PVC)
on over the top of the leathers makes a huge difference.

JL

 

Ah, Little Bourke, yesno? There's also a good clearance center in Smith St.

-----sharks (no, not the one near Central Station)

 

*snip*

Don't forget the tights....

Jeffles

 

I thought it was only scottish bikers that went in for that.

Right enough, you are near enough scottish.

regards,
CrazyCam

 

I prefer long undies, but then I don't have to worry about how my legs look
because I don't normally ride in a kilt


G-S

 

He is not tight, just frugal.

Theo

 

They're on Bourke now, moved from Little Bourke.
Clearance centre is good during normal times, but when the main stores have
sale, not much difference.

Adrian.

 

no, it's around the corner in Bourke St proper.. There's a bookstore on
the cnr Bourke and Elizanbeth- head up the hill away from the mall and
25 metres up- ZING.

Kathmandu
360 Bourke St (Cnr Bourke & Elizabeth Sts) Melbourne VIC 3000
ph: (03) 9642 1942 Outdoor Adventure Activities & Supplies

http://www.yellowpages.com.au/search/postSearchEntry.do?clueType=1&clue=kathmandu&locationClue=3000

ta da!

tom