Night Rider in the PNW Winter Wonderland . . . of Constant Near Death

So you put your bike away . . . for the "season".  Yeah, I hate big oil and my ever expanding winter waistline too much for that!  Besides, I own a single speed Specialized Langster (Jack-Jack) with an aluminum frame and a boffo beefy chain.  Just spray 'im down, when the garden hose ain't frozen and your good to go tomorrow.  If however, the hose is froze', no biggy, just ride!  Spray later.  Anyway, I've been meaning to generate a "Got Gear?" page to list what I think are essential components for riding in the winter, at night, in the cold, and the dark, and the wet, and the scary--did I mention dark?

Now understand, those of you who live lower than the 48th parallel, night in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) starts promptly . . . around 4PM or so.  Whenever the sun goes down, dark happens.  And around these parts, it's damn early.  Same with the sunrise ('cept in reverse).  That happens, when its not cloudy--which is like one day a week--around 8AM.  Do the math and we're talkin' 'bout a scant 8 hours o' daylight and . . . (24 minus 8 equals) about 16 hours of, "where the hell did the road go?"  Just add a constant drip o' the wet stuff and voila!  You've got the PNW winter plus or minus friggin' cold.  Oh, and then there's cold--ours is a wet cold almost constantly--and then there's cold-cold.  Cold-cold is where the temps drop below 0 deg C or 32 deg F (for you non-canuckleheads).

So, in order to ride around these parts anytime after say, September, one needs to gots some gear!  So here's a list:

• A good ridin' rain jacket:
• I own a one or two but my fav is a Showers Pass Touring Jacket
• A GOOD pair of ridin' gloves:
• To be honest with you, I still, haven't, found, what I'm lookin' for!  I got three pair of winter riding gloves but none of them work for my poorly circulated finger tips for one reason or another.
• My first pair are from Trek and they are split finger or "lobstah" style gloves.  Their okay but not water proof.
• My second pair are from GoreTex called Gore Bike Wear Alp? gloves. They are the best pair I have but I still get the frozen fingertips on occassion.
• This year I bought another pair by Castelli but they are tighter fitting and don't work as well as the GoreTex gloves.
• Silk inserts that I purchased while skiing in Banff, Canada have made a huge difference when combined with my GoreTex gloves.  They replaced the latex gloves I was using when the temperature dipped below 17 degrees F last winter.  But, I'm still in the market.  BTW, the GoreTex and Castelli gloves cost over $60 each pair so I didn't think I was skimping.  But, I guess I need to do a bit more research before I find that truly stellar pair.  Stay tuned.
• December 2011 - I bought a pair of Omni-Tech gloves from Columbia Sportswear.  They're supposed to be "heat reflecting" AND "waterproof".  At over $90 a pair, I'm hoping they'll do the trick.  So far, I've ridden in 28 degree F this winter and have just noticed my finger tips getting cold.  That's using the silk liners mentioned above too.  I'll post when I ride longer during colder to really test these babies out.  So far however, these are the BEST to date!
• A descent pair of ridin' pants:
• I own at least three pair and only one for the serious stuff. (BTW, it's nearly impossible to buy a descent pair. They're either made in Europe or Asia which makes them unAmerican friendly (we're large people).  Or they make a descent pair and go outta business (we large people don't buy lots o' ridin' pants).  Or they make a descent pair and don't wanna go outta business so they change the damn dimensions to gain Euro market share, which means they no longer fit us large folk.)
• My first favorite pair are from former SuperGO (now Performance).
• My windstopper severe weather favs are from Performance.
• My most comfy cool weather pair are from Bellweather which I bought a few years back.  When I recently ordered two more pair, I was severely disappointed to find out they changed the dimensions such that when I grab my handlebars, I get a severe case of plumbers crack.  Not so good feeling in winter weather.
• My other pair are from BlackBottom and they just plain don't fit my calves.  Anyone want a pair?  Must be of stocky build with massive calves (way more massive than mine).
• December 2011 - Bought my first pair of bib longies from Performance late last year and loved them so much, I bought two more pairs at $69 each (on sale).  They're all I wear now.  Love 'em!  (I don't have to sneak on suspenders to keep them from rolling under my . . . uh, er, roll.)
• Pull-on Sleeves:
• Lisa and I purchased a pair of Sugio pull-on sleeves this summer and we've never looked back.  Why in the world did we wait sooo long?  We love-a-love-a-love 'em!  'Nuff said.
• A descent pair o' ridin' shoes WITH a descent pair o' shoe covers:
• I own a pair of NW MTB shoes w/ GoreTex and
• A pair of hideous but comfy neoprene covers
• Head gear:
• This winter my favorite purchase was a polar fleece balaclava. It nullifies the need for facial hair which although somewhat comforting at times, facial hair's got nothing against wind. And, it's damn itchy at times. I wear my balaclava when the temps dip below 40 degrees F.
• When it's a tad warmer, I've a polar fleece head band/ear muffs for the forehead and ears.
• For the mid forties to low fifties, I wear one of the coolest things I've purchased a few years ago and I swear by these things.  They are ear covers by 180s.  They even fold up flat and I park them in my jacket breast pocket for easy, ever ready access:
• Eye wear:
• I used to wear those cool but cheap $10 safety glasses until I started having issues reading street signs. Then I got some prescription lensed Adidas sport glasses with minimum frameage. I recommend some clear shades for cloudy days and night riding and some polarized "fish finder" type shades for the sunnier days.  The polarized lenses let you see into cars with tinted windows or severe glare. Seeing where the driver is looking keeps you alive.
• I also have a rear view mirror mounted to the side of my helmet to see whats coming, who's not gonna give me any room and whether or not that jerk behind me is gonna right cross me.
• Lights:
• No lie, I'm lit up like a friggin' Christmas tree on steroids! If I ever get hit, it won't be due to some lack of visibility issue.  In the fog, I'm a pulsing orb of freakish photonic . . . fervor.  At night, I have planes trying to land on me.  I'm tellin' you, I'm LIT UP!

• I've a Cateye Uno strapped to my helmet looking forward so that when I turn my head, I'm pointing the mother at folks coming from their driveways, cross streets and into my lane of travel.
• Strapped to the rear of my helmet, I've a Planet Bike blinky taillight. Again, a turn of the head and those coming up from behind get red flashiness scorching into their retinas.
• For the ability to actually see the road and its ubiquitous associated debris, I've the Nite Rider MiNewt.700 (lumen) Dual light kit.  I upgraded from the 400 (lumen) kit this year for my birthday since I ride greater distances (solo) than my wife and my route is typically on Deathwood, er Edgewood Dr.  Lisa got my 400 kit and she's almost always riding with me in town along mostly lamp illuminated streets.  Besides, 400 lumens is pretty potent lighting anyway.
• Strapped to the back of my bike bag/commuter lunch box/breifcase is a CatEye TL-LD1100 taillight.  It's a bad mamma jamma of red photonic funkiness that has several blinkiness options.
• This year, I turned the big Hawaii Five-O. My nephew bought me a set of really cool spoke mounted lights that blink red or change colors constantly.  So for T-Bone prevention, I've these cool do-dads by CatEye called Orbit lights.

• Speaking of T-Bone prevention, I also bought us a complete set of Armadillo All Condition Tires with reflective sidewalls.

• Oh AND, as my bike has the butterfly style handlebars, I also purchased and installed those little end tube blinkies.  It gives me a wider appearance when vehicles approach from the rear.
• Sound:
• For that audible presence, I purchased another coolest thing EVER, a refillable marine horn that fits into one of my two water bottle cages.  Seriously, this thing has saved me on numerous occasions.  Sometimes yelling isn't an option.  For example, a mean dog comes at you and you just know he means business.  Instead of wailing to the top of your lungs, which may be spent from riding effort, wait until the last second and reach down and pull the trigger on this bad boy.  Then watch the dog do a 180 and run from you.  Or, if a distracted driver is drifting into your path of travel, wake them the hell up with a 100 decibel blast.  Mostly, I'm warning folks at intersections who don't see me for whatever reason.  It works damn well and you can use your own bike pump to refill it.

I purchased all of this stuff over the years and received some as gifts.  Yeah, it all comes with price tags, but using the money I'm saving from NOT buying gas at or above $3 a gallon, it can be done.  Furthermore, don't skimp.  This is your well being we're talkin' here.  Life, limb and comfort are at stake here so be smart, consume responsibly.