"Practical Skirt" Challenge #2 -- Skirt for bicycling

[crfriend]

Guys,
Shoveling snow and riding a bike in cold weather may qualify for (dare I say) pants! There is a time and a place for everything!

The whole notion that water can come from the sky in a frozen form is quite completely pants if you ask me. All I want to figure out is how to stay warm when Mother Nature is clearly having us on.

By the by, my turquoise windbreaker is what I usually use for "outerwear" in the winter. It's likely the Viking blood that refuses to solidify.

[sapphire]

Oh dear! I've created a turquoise frenzy.

I think I'll make dinner now

[Sarongman]

Fleece lined jeans and thinsulate quilted overalls are the only option for me in the extreme cold, after all, isn't this about freedom to wear what suits us and not what we are forced into by "convention"? This also includes the alternative convention pushed by some on this board. As a religious heretic, I'll stick my heretical neck further out and declare that sometimes trousers are the best, most practical and comfortable option. Don't shut that door completely.

[DavidsSkirts]

Update:

I'm still bicycling in a skirt, but it's getting pretty cold (under 40 F -- 5 C)

I've been trying to figure out ways to stay warm on the bike while retaining the skirt advantages -- mainly not having all that fabric rubbing in sensitive places around where the seat is, and not feeling restricted in my movements.

One thing I've tried is wearing microfiber tights, knee socks, and a nylon or polyester slip under a 24" long skirt. (The main point of the slip is to reduce friction.) But my thighs get chilled. My calves get cold, too, after a while. And the "sensitive places" still get chafed.

I've also tried a slip with a ruffled hem, in the hopes that it would reduce the draft, but that didn't help, either.

Basically, whatever I try, everything from the top of the thighs on down and from the neck up is chilled, and what's in between is sweaty.

Any ideas (besides staying inside in the winter)?

Why bother about a skirt in those conditions ?
Trying to make a point, ahead of practicality ??


In that sort of weather I would be wearing "Powerstretch" fleece tights, or maybe a pair of overpants over your regular tights if you want a cheaper option...

[Since1982]

Any ideas (besides staying inside in the winter)?

You can always do what most women do when the weather gets very cold, WEAR FLEECE TROUSERS!!! OOOPS, there I go using the T-word. Well, there IS a time and a place for nearly everything. Thank the powers that be it never gets below 65f here. :):)

[sapphire]

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Yes, sometimes trou are more appropriate than skirts

Freedom, means freedom to choose and feel comfortable in your choices

[Departed Member]

What do folk here regard as "cold", as in "too cold to wear a skirt", when cycling?

My criteria for temperature, taking into account the all important 'wind chill' factor, is:

Too hot! :65F+
Very Hot :60-65F
Just Nice! :55-60F
Mid range :50-55F
Cool :40-50F
Chilly :32-40F
Cold :32F-

The only one I would consider adding tights (to a skirt+maybe 2 slips!) would be "Chilly". Below 32F, chances are, the roads are too dangerous to cycle, unless you have to!

[crfriend]

My criteria for temperature, taking into account the all important 'wind chill' factor, is:

Too hot! :65F+

With all due respect, sir, please remind me not to move anywhere near where you call home. It seems you live in arctic climes.

For me the list might read:

Too bloomin' hot: 90F+
Hot: 80F-90F
Perfect: 75F-80F
Warm; 70F-75F
Tolerable: 65F-70F (indoors)
Chilly: 60F-65F (indoors, else 40F-60F)
Cold: 35F-45F (outdoors)
Nasty: 25F-30F (and wet. Wet stinks.)
Cold: 10F-25F
Interesting: -10F - 10F (fascinating things happen in this range; snow starts to sound interesting underfoot)
Strange: -10F and below (at this point textures change and the cold actually becomes compelling (and deadly))

I've been known to wear (heavy) skirts and (heavy) tights in 30(F) degree weather; the key to my health (sanity need not be mentioned here) was staying dry. Once even the faintest hint of wet (external, that is; internal can be moderated by shedding layers judiciously) sets in, all bets are off!

At the bottom end, I just give the game up and bundle up 'til I look like a pillow. I hate being cold.

[Departed Member]

My criteria for temperature, taking into account the all important 'wind chill' factor, is:

Too hot! :65F+

With all due respect, sir, please remind me not to move anywhere near where you call home. It seems you live in arctic climes.

Aha! Those figures are just my 'comfort zone' temperatures, especially when cycling, not the actual local temperatures where I live!

[AMM]

Well, I hadn't realized that cold weather was such a problem for so many people here!

I've been practicing walking around in skirts in all kinds of weather, from -10 C to +35 C, wet or dry, and I haven't found any weather in which I wasn't comfortable wearing a skirt, as long as I was properly dressed. Or at least as comfortable in a skirt as in trousers. Colder weather calls for longer skirts, thicker (and longer) socks, and more layers. If it's really cold, then tights. If it's wet, a skirt that's not so long that the hem drags in the puddles and wet grass, plus warm socks, not to mention an umbrella.

Activity level makes a big difference: if I'm sitting around doing nothing, then no amount of clothing will keep me warm in cold weather, whereas if I'm doing strenuous exercise, like shovelling snow, I can run around in shorts and a T-shirt. (I haven't shovelled much snow lately, so I don't know what it's like in a skirt.) For that matter, hot weather is more of a problem if I'm sitting around doing nothing: in the summer sun, I have to keep moving, or I'll overheat.

As for bicycling in the cold: my usual ride consists of riding up over the ridge that runs along the Hudson River (maybe 90 m vertical distance ) and then down the other side along the village reservoir for a mile, and then I come back. I'm not cold going uphill, for obvious reasons, but on the long downhill and level portions, my legs get chilly. (Actually, they get chilly if I wear jeans, too.) Despite the cold, it's still more comfortable than in trousers, since I don't have to deal with the friction of the trousers along my legs.

It's beginning to sound like I'm "boldly go[ing] where no man has gone before," though I'm sure that in previous generations, when women always wore skirts, there were a fair number of women who went out on bicycles in all kinds of weather.

One idea would be to get a "women's" bicycle and wear a longer skirt; sticking with my old Schwinn Varsity(tm) may indeed be

[t]rying to make a point, ahead of practicality

But if I never try, I'll never know if I could have succeeded!

+ + + + +

My next "Challenge": the Old Croton Aqueduct runs by not far from my apartment. It's a nice level path with no cars which runs (with some interruptions and cross streets) from the Bronx to the Croton Reservoir. I can't wait for it to snow so I can try cross-country skiing in a skirt!

[sapphire]

I used to be an avid x-c skiier. In fact, one of the reasons I bought my house was that my property abuts a golf course.

I've never tried skiing in a skirt, but I will share some of my experiences for keeping warm. LAYERS Layer everything. I would wear tights, thin socks and heavy outer socks. Gaiters of it looked like a wet day. I would wear knickers, the short outer pant that buckles below the knee. T shirt, sweater and windbreaker. Hat and waterproof gloves. And a backpack.

BOOTS. Its very important to wear boots that fit properly. Too tight and your feet will freeze, too loose and you'll fall down more frequently.

The backpack? Well, x-c skiing is fairly vigorous and one tends to build up a lot of body heat. WHen you do, you'll want to start shedding layers, so you stuff the layers into the backpack. When you start to chill down, put the layers back on.

The only concern I'd have about wearing a skirt is if the skirt would tangle between the legs and throw one off balance.