As someone once said, there is no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothes.
After my plastic bag booties ride the days continued to shorten and the average temperatures fell into the single digits centigrade. I am a tropical person through and through. If I was going to ride through the Houston winter I had no choice but to add to my cold-weather wardrobe. The guys at West End Bicycles equipped me with DeFeet Blaze socks for my eternally cold feet, Endura tights and a jacket for my torso, and Specialised long-fingered gloves. Icebreaker base layers and a beanie completed my starter winter ensemble. When below-freezing temperatures arrived I bought a scarf and a balaclava. This is what kept my head, neck and hands warm.
There were times when I looked more like the Michelin Man than a cyclist. Dane S took this photo of our Six Thirty group shivering at the start of the 2010 Tour de Houston. Do you think Skip regretted not wearing a jacket?
By the time I moved to Den Haag my tolerance for cold had improved somewhat. Even so double socks weren’t enough to keep my toes warm in the constant wind. So I added a pair of Shimano RW80 Winter Road shoes to my arsenal. Three of us were wearing RW80s on the Not Possibles Christmas ride last year. Andrew B’s son on the other hand looks like he spends most of his days in Antarctica.
Old Roots, New Routes 
had a rude awakening after returning from vacation this morning… t’was -1C when i rolled through the polders. the combination of merino undershirt, campy jacket and leg warmers, and lobster-claw gloves kept me warm and comfy. well, those and the shimano rw80s – thank goodness for van eijk fietsen, gift certificates and good friends!
hope all is well!
p.s. good job with the postings – you’ve almost inspired me to start writing again!