Cold weather riding has it’s advantages. If you ride the paths, you begin to notice that there is much less traffic on the bike paths. The people out there tend to be more experienced and cordial that the fair weather folks that you’ll run into (literally).

There’s a few pieces of equipment that are worth investing in for cold weather riding; lights, breathable clothing and gloves. I’ve used a few different brands and types of gloves, from multi layer – to monster mittens.

Today – I’m riding with Novara Stratos Tech-Compatible Bike Gloves – I purchased a pair after looking at a lot of brands and models available from REI and some LBS’s in the area. So, be prepared to shell out fifty bucks or so for a pair.

First ride impressions: It was a cool morning – 35 degrees or so, which get chilly as soon as your riding along at 20 miles an hour, and I slipped the gloves on over my standard riding gloves. Honestly, I thought they would be warmer right off the bat, but after rode the first few miles – I forgot about the initial chill. The extended cuff do a great job of keeping cold air out of the sleeves of my riding jacket, and the two finger combo with the claw for the two outer finger is an really nice design and offers much better flexibility and movement options on the shifters and brakes than your standard “two claw” lobster mitts like the Pearl Izumi PRO gloves. The trade off those two digits keep you a bit warmer, but less agile on the bars.

Since I first wrote this – I’ve had about a dozen or so opportunies to ride with the gloves – They work much better in conjunction with a pair of riding gloves and a silk liner 🙂