Good but inexpensive Michigan cold-weather MX gear?

[Getwild2]

I am hindered from riding during this mild winter due to a lack of cold-weather gear. We typically ride Mio and St. Helen. Can you point me in the direction of some inexpensive gear? I dont have the slightest clue what the pros/cons are about certain items, a nice list would be fabulous. For instance, long underwear, headgear (under helmet, gloves, etc. I have the typical warm-weather garb now (MX pants/jersey/gloves).

Thanks for your input!

 

[YZMAN400]

Well I have been using some poly long underwhere that I got from Mc Sports. They were like $40 but worth it. They dont look like much but sure seem to keep me warm.

Then over that I put on some thin nylon rain pants that I got at Sams Club. That keeps me dry and helps keep the heat in.

I wear some heavy winter socks that I got at meijers along with some Seal Skin waterproof socks.

I them duct tape the leg of the rain pants to at the ankle to the socks to keep any water out.

I then put my Shift over the boot riding pants on over all that.

I still wear my Alpinestar T-6 boots. Snowmobile boots just dont cut it on a bike. Too bulky.


For my top I use the same poly underwhere.
A thor windchill jearsy
My Thor insulated riding jacket.


For my hands I wear some MSR Cold Pro gloves.
I have some MSR elephant ear handguard shields on my bars to keep the wind / snow off my hands.

I use an amber dual pane lens in my oakley gogles.
I have a thin nylon like baclava that I wear under my MX healmet.
I also got a generic breath box that I velcrod into the helmet to keep my breath away from the goggles. The breath box was like $5 at the local shop.

About the only thing that will get cold with this setup is my feet. They go thru fazes of cold and warm. After a while they will find there temp. But keeping your feet dry is critical in the winter. Hence the seal skin socks.

If its really wet/cold outside I may throw the rain jacket that came with the sam club pants on as well. Either over or under the Thor jacket.


I was eyeing this stuff a while ago. It looked pretty nice and a fair price

http://www.castlesales.com/html/productDetail.psp?catid=5&prodid=342&start_indx=2

http://www.castlesales.com/html/productDetail.psp?catid=5&prodid=344&start_indx=3

http://www.castlesales.com/html/productDetail.psp?catid=5&prodid=260&start_indx=1

 

[KTM Mike]

I find it all to easy to over dress. Because of that, layers that I can ventilate easily are important. I likely dress a bit lighter than Don does. On top, a thermax ultra light weight zip turtle neck long john top, a jersey...maybe a fleece top if really cold, or maybe a patagonia capiline heavy weight top - if warmer, maybe just a jersey or sweat shirt. Under a MSR enduro jacket i picked up on a blow out sale a few year back. The jacket has vents on the front chest and under each arm the all the way across the back that you can open. Sometime I ditch that MSR jacket and use a simple lightweight nylon wind jacket on top. I can stay amazingly warm with just that. I would say that most times I ride in cold weather with that MSR jacket, at some point I am to warm!

On the bottom, thermax mid weight longjohns, under my normal riding pants.

On my hands, i use some MSR windstopper gloves, lightly lined, maybe with a lightweight liner glove under them. I use a snomo baclava on my head ONLY when really cold out - I overheat otherwise. Feet - good old warm socks in regular mx boots..

For you longies, you want to think like a XC skier would - must wick persperation away - so stuff like polypropelene, thermax or other wicking materials are important.

Carry some hand warmer packets in your pack. Heated grips would be nice, but i dont have them. Have a warm layer you can add in if you stop and chill off - I carry some warmer gloves for example.

ARC (rockymountainatv.com) has some inexpensive foul weather sort of jackets and pants that at least look good in the catalogs - but i have heard of some quality issue with them (but that they stood behind them no trouble). Or, about any enduro type jacket that has vents you can open and close. Shop around for some close outs - you can find some good deals.

 

[KTM Mike]

BTW - Wild - next time you ride up this way, give me a shout. I live near t he mio loop - can ride from my house, down the MCCT to get to north side of Mio loop easily.

 

[crazytrails]

Getwild2, i wear my Acerbis motocross gloves more often than not because i need to feel the bike.. if the rest of your body is warm and you have some enduro gaurds maybe, then keeping your hands moderately warm shouldn't be a problem.. i where a long sleeve shirt and cheap fleece top"because i have torn expensive one's, and my MX jersey.. Then i put some sweat pants on that are cut at the knee, and some cheap snowboard pants"k-mart, walmart", that are also cut at the knee.. i then put my knee guards on over some long wigwam thin socks, and my acerbis MX pants over those.. then my boots.. my feet, and calves never get cold thats why i cut the pants.. im someone who hates to wear too much clothing, but i really hate sweating when it's cold out.. this little recipe works for me great, and because the rest of my body is warm, my hands feel great.. even with MX gloves.. But everyone has different circulation, my dad had a broken leg.. Because of it he lost alot of blood flow to his foot, so it gets cold.. i guess what im sayin is that you should try different things and see what suits you best.. :nod: snowboard pants work well too, but they tear easy..and Fall jackets with some breathable layers underneath..

 

[woodsy]

How to dress warm in the winter CHEAPLY - Written By Woodsy (trust me, I am a pro at this)..
For the top - YZMAN hit it - a cheap nylon balacalava (sp) is a must and should remain in your jacket at all times. His helmet/lens combo is correct BUT, if you watch during the summer time you can find Full Face sled helmets w/ dual lenses CHEAP and they are the max for real cold weather.. Either way, DO get the little breath deflector to keep the breath off the lense.. An even wayyyy better setup is a heated sheild on a sled hat - wayyyy cool but you gotta have a wired bike.... On my breath deflector in my sled hat I have ran two sections of gas line into the bottom of it to help get air out - works great!!
Body - start with cotton-t, put on long sleeve jersey, then a hooded sweat shirt (find most of this stuff at Goodwill..). There is a "Steve & Barrys" in GR somewhere that sells these REALLY cool riding jackets for under $10. There are insulated - have draw strings, a zipper that zips the collar all the way up the neck AND they are WATERPROOF beyond belief!! Randy bought these for us Monday Riders and I LOVE mine!! I wear mine ALL the time and it is WARM!!! If it gets REAL cold wear two sweats under it.. The nice thing about dressing in layers is you just take off a layer as you heat up.. So what do you do with the layer after you take it off?? You just tie it around your neck and drape it over your back and put the jacket back on!!
Glove - my favorite is heated grips and either MX Gloves or no gloves.. Elephant ears work GREAT with MX Gloves under them BUT - if you use this method make sure that the "Ears" will tear away from the bars if you fall our they WILL hold you on the bike.. I just "pre-rip" mine and then use tie-wraps in two spots on the seam to keep them on.. Back when I had no budget I used milk jugs for the same purpose - just cut them open enough to get it over the end of the bar and BINGO - instant "E-Ears".. Snowmobile gloves work ok too but I always find them hard to "feel" my bike when I have them on..
Pants - cotton underware, Spandex riding shorts (yea, monkey butt is a problem even in the dead of winter), seat pants, knee pads, riding pants..
Feet - I just wear two pair of white socks and my boots - never get cold..
Now, I have also worn Carharts for winter riding and they work great!! I personally like one piecers cause its soooo easy to take them on and off.. Just gotta shop during the summer and you can find Carharts cheap too!!!
Oh yea, if there's snow - be safe and get some Kold Kutters for your tires!! CHEAP INSURANCE!!!
Hope this helps!
Woodsy :ride:

 

[woodsy]

Hey Craze - I must have been writting my response as you were puting yours on.. I DIDNT read yours first and, after I posted mine then I noticed it... You and I BOTH have the need to "feel" our bikes.. Sheeeshhh, maybe that means something eay....

 

[crazytrails]

This is true, if i can't feel the bike than i won't be having fun... and i will get arm pump like crazy from the loose gloves and trying to hold on too tight..

 

[YZMAN400]

Those MSR Cold Pro Gloves really work well. They are warm but not bulky enough that you loose the feel of the bike or cause arm pump. I have had problems with other winter gloves but those cold pro's seem to do the trick for me.

 

[YZMAN400]

Hey someome told me a good trick for winter riding. Wear Laytex golves under your regular MX golves. The Latex dont breath and they keep your hands warm. Granted probably bit sweaty but warm.

 

[3KDXXR2]

(a cheap nylon balacalava) ? What is a baclava I always thought it was some kind of greek desert.
(There is a "Steve & Barrys" in GR somewhere that sells these REALLY cool riding jackets for under $10. There are insulated - have draw strings, a zipper that zips the collar all the way up the neck) What is steve and barrys ?

 

[KTM Mike]

While it might work for Woodsy - I try to avoid cotton as a layer anywhere with direct body contact.

I used to do a lot of winter time, overnight wilderness backpacking using XC skis or snowshoes where we would go out for mulitple consequtive days and nights, staying in a tent in rather cold temps (30 below at times!). The saying was "Cotton is Rotten" when it came to this stuff -or any winter time sport where you can work up a sweat, then maybe cool off a bit, sweat again etc. as exertion levels change. Reason is, the cotton will tend to hold onto your persperation, and as it evaporates, will tend to cool you off quickly, causing a chill. The "wicking" synthetics like Thermax, Polypropelyne (sp?), Capilene, etc. work so well because they are "hydro phobic" and wick the moisture away from the body and into your more outer layers of clothing. When the moisture is then into those outer layers and start to evaporate, they dont cool you off. Then a breathable (this is where stuff like goretex comes in) or ventilated windshell allows that moisture to pass through to the air around you. This sort of stuff was a huge help in those trips, as well as on routine XC ski or snowshoe day trips. It also helps a great deal with winter bike riding. Huge difference in comfort level. I have had times where my outer layer would be nearly totally saturated with sweat, yet my skin was totally dry. The stuff works!

Of course, not over dressing always helps avoid sweating to much - but I find I cant ever totally NOT sweat, almost regardless of what I wear. And if i dress so lightly I am not gonna sweat, I freeze when the pace slows down or if i stop for a breather.

Curtis - remember those goofy things your mom used to make you wear in the winter when you were a kid...embarrassed the heck out of you because it looked soooo stupid? You pull it over your head, then on over your face. It had holes for eyes, nose and mouth? (classic ski mask a robber would use when holding up a store!) A balacalava simply has one big opening for your face - typically thinner material on top of the head - fit well under a helmet. You can pull the bottom of the opening up over your mouth and maybe nose with some. Added plus is the neck coverage they offer. It has to be major cold for me to wear one of these and not over heat.

 

[woodsy]

While not to take issue with KTMMike,,, well, to go ahead and take issue with KTMMike, be careful with anything that is "Hydro-Phobic".. When I was a kid I had a dog that was hydro-phobic and, while he never did freeze in the winter he sure did act kinda strange... Perhaps Mr. Stephenson's "view" of all this explains alot of his parculiar behavoural traights, especially pyschocoloically speaking!!
He is right about one thing though, that cotton stuff DOES have a tendency to keep you wet....
Yesterday I rode with Don Marsh and the boys.. Being that it was VERY cold up near Boon the topic of conversation swayed to this very discussion.. They (Don, Mark, Wolverine and think) were telling us about some gear that does exactly what Mike is talking about.. I forget what the name of the stuff was but Mark (TrashyRider hahah) had some on.. I felt the collar of the shirt he was wearing and I was VERY impressed with not only it NOT being wet with sweat but also the softness of the material.. REALLY nice stuff!! Now backto the issue of costs.. I think Don or Denny mentioned that the stuff is pretty costly...
Also, I am pretty sure that the stuff they had didnt have Hydorphobia cause, while they all did act a little strange throughout the day they didnt foam at the mouth like my dog did..
Oh yea, Mark spent a little extra time after dark shaking off the Woodsy Lost Curse in VERY cold temps wearing just that stuff and his jacket.. I was VERY concerned about this as I wasnt with him and couldnt find him so I knew he didnt know how to make burnt squirrel (go fiqure Ted, some of this guys still travel above the bridge without a "Emergency Kit").
We were all GLAD to see Mark again and I am sure he can attest to the accuracy of what Mike is saying..
THere Mike, did I earn more points for a Chaos invite??
Scott

 

[Don Marsh]

Under Armour coldgear for winter, heatgear for summer works great.
For most of the day I wore that and a riding jersey. When we came back on the snowmobile I put on my Moose jacket that was folded up into a fanny pack.
Don

 

[WaltCMoto]

(a cheap nylon balacalava) ? What is a baclava I always thought it was some kind of greek desert.
(

Its a hood with an opening big enough for your goggles. They are about $20 and can be found at a running shoe store.

 

[MWEISSEN]

UnderArmor is great stuff for sure! In downhill skiing sections, particularly at Dick's Sporting Goods, you'll find long underwear-like clothing (called base layer) that's made out of similar material, but lighter. This wicks off moisture really well. There's many different brands to select from, and can be had for $13-15 each.

 

[3KDXXR2]

Mark ,cool new avitar !

 

[RedGreen]

If you don't want gloves that are big and bulky, but are waterproof and very warm, MSR Mud Pro gloves are a great choice. They run about $30 and work really well. They even come with a rubber squeegee on the index finger for your goggles :nod:

 

[Wolverine423]

All I was wearing Sat. was a Moose enduro jacket & pants with {tight fit} "cold gear" under armour top and 100% silk bottoms.

underarmour.com is the websight. READ ALL THE INFO on their diffrent types of clothing. Yes its pricey but well worth the money! Cody & myself wear this stuff while racing in 80 - 90 degree temps to sub zero temps while doing winter sports. No BS...this stuff does just what Under Armor claims!

Don - Trash - Cody and myself all use it.

DW