HarperRide.net

Top Clothing & Temperature Mistakes

Temperature and Clothing Guide

How does one know what to wear at what temperature? Today, it is easy to check the temperature prior to a training ride as a result of the Internet, but until now, the World Wide Web has not been able to tell you if that means you should wear your knee warmers or leg warmers. The HarperRide.net Temperature and Clothing Guide is meant to be just that: A Guide. This guide is based purely on temperature and not on wind chill because, of course, wind chill varies depending on the speed at which you are riding and the direction in which you are travelling (ie, headwind vs. tailwind). Our philosophy is that, as important as it is to look cool, it is better to be too warm than too cold!

Use the HarperRide.net Temperature and Clothing Guide to avoid being the one rider out there in shorts when everyone else is wearing leg warmers!

Torso/Upper Body

Temp (C/F)	Clothing
0-5/32-41	Full-on thermal! Thermal jacket with at least one or two long-sleeve layers underneath. If you wear a thermal vest, two layers on your arms are a minimum, and three are recommended (ie, arm warmers plus two long-sleeve jerseys).
5-10/41-50	Perfect weather for a thermal vest with a Roubaix-lined long-sleeve jersey underneath. At the lower end of this temperature range, two layers of long-sleeve jerseys is a good idea!
10-13/50-55	In this weather, wear a long-sleeve jersey with a wind vest. Otherwise, it is still definitely cool enough to wear two jerseys.
13-16/55-61	It is still cool enough that you can wear a long-sleeve jersey because you are not going to pull down arm warmers at this temperature.
16-23/61-74	Wear a short-sleeve jersey with arm warmers. If it is at the warmer end of this range, you may be lucky enough to pull the arm warmers off!
23-Up/74-Up	Short-sleeve jersey!
ALWAYS	A good base layer designed to wick sweat away from the skin!

Legs

Temp (C/F)	Clothing
0-5/32-41	Full-on thermal! Wind-front bib tights are in order here. Shorts should be worn underneath. At the colder end of this range, depending on your tights, it may be wise to also wear leg warmers under your tights.
5-10/41-50	Shorts with leg warmers--warm, Roubaix-lined leg warmers
10-13/50-55	You can get away with knee warmers, but there is really no reason not to wear full-on leg warmers at this temperature range.
13-16/55-61	Knee warmers or leg warmers!
16-21/61-70	Wear knee warmers all the way through this temperature range even though many of you will think it too warm for them! It's not; Protect your knees!
23-Up/74-Up	Shorts!

Hands/Feet

Temp (C/F)	Clothing
0-4/32-39	Full-on thermal! This is the time to wear those bulky gloves! Big, thermal booties are necessary!!!
4-10/39-50	An in-between glove is necessary. It should be made out of neoprene, and it should not be bulky. These gloves should have a long cuff to keep your wrist covered. Thermal booties continue to be necessary, though a mid-weight bootie will likely suffice.
10-13/50-55	A lightweight glove made of knit fabric is still necessary. Wind/aero booties or neoprene toe covers are helpful, but they are not necessary.
13-Up/55-Up	No gloves needed! Just your shoes...

Head

Temp (C/F)	Clothing
0-10/32-50	You MUST have something on your head! Between 0 and 5 (32 and 41), you can wear something with ear coverings, but many cyclists will also be fine wearing a cotton cycling cap throughout this temperature range.
10-16/50-61	Not a bad idea to continue wearing a cycling cap underneath one's helmet at this temperature range.
16-Up/61-Up	No cap is necessary...