Through a combination of factors (I was sick, Robert was sick, I had to drive out to job sites a couple of days) I didn’t bike much last week, so getting back into the saddle this week was a bit of a shock, as it’s finally getting pretty chilly. I know that lots of exercise oriented magazines tell you to dress lightly enough that you’re a bit cold when you get started, so that you don’t get sweaty.
I’m just not brave enough to do that- if I had to be cold every time I had to leave the house, I wouldn’t leave much, and would end up taking the T to work a lot more.
So, I dress in layers, start out warm, and do a slowly progressing strip tease. At one light I’ll unzip my jacket. Going down a hill, I’ll remove my scarf. Most days about half way there I’ll take off my jacket altogether, and today I even took off my cardigan and cycled in my sleevless shift dress, and gloves
Yes I was a bit chilled when I got to work, and everyone was shocked, but better to be a bit chilly and not sweaty, than sweaty, then clammy damp, then freezing an hour after I get into work.
Important in this scheme is my giant basket into which I can toss all my discarded items without getting off the bike.
Tonight I kept my layers on, as it was spitting not quite freezing precipitation. The weird thing was that there were a TON of bikers out. In downtown I probably saw 10 bikers, which is odd that time of evening (7pm) and especially with slightly icky weather. Normally I don't see any bikers until I hit MGH, and not really until I get to Cambridge. More importantly I think that every one of them have both front and back lights! I felt cheered about bicycle culture!
I concur re the importance of a giant front basket for this purpose! I tend to get hot in the middle of a ride no matter how slowly I am going. It's mysterious really, because I see other cyclists riding all bundled up. Normally, I get cold very easily, just not while cycling.
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