Sunday, January 23, 2011

When Fuzzy Slippers Aren't An Option.....

...and the situation demands bike shoes, keeping your feet warm can be challenging. While shoe covers and some good wool socks will suffice on most Arkansas winter days, there are times when extreme measures should be called into play. I try to preempt frigid feet by first adding a layer. This is really highly technical, so pay attention....

Cut off the forefoot section of an old fleece or wool sock.....
Stretch the sock over the toe of the shoe and cut out around your cleats. Then pull on your shoe covers. There are days when even this isn't enough and I resort to chemical weapons....

These little warmers can make your feet a heat source for a couple of hours when placed inside the shoe cover on top of the shoe.
I didn't want to take the heat pack out of its package for this demo, but you get the picture on placement. I don't have room in my shoes for anything but socks, so I use hand-size warmers in this position. They make smaller warmers to go inside the shoe, but that won't work for me.
Scoff at this measure if you will, but on a sub-30 degree day,  warm feet can make you feel pretty damned spunky.

6 comments:

Arkansas Mountain Biker said...

You can always add a walmart sack to the outside of the shoe. Tie it around the ankle and add a strip or two of duct tape to make it more aerodynamic.

JBar said...

The simple elegance of any endeavour involving Wal-Mart sacks and duct tape gives this solution massive appeal. Applying duct tape to bare ankles also serves as yet another bullet point on the list of reasons cyclists use to rationalize shaving their legs. I think it goes right below,"It makes me feel pretty." on theat list.
My system is aimed primarily at image conscious road riders, whereas the WMS-DT approach calls out to the more pragmatic mountain bike crowd.

Arkansas Mountain Biker said...

Are you trying to say that the only difference between a vacuum cleaner and a mountain bike is how you attach the dirtbag?

anoncow said...

Thanks for this post. I wish I'd have thought of this earlier - I have overly large feet and shoe/toe covers don't fit well, but I own plenty of old thick wool socks.

Ironman said...

I must thank Mr. Barton for the "Chemical warmers" tip from a couple of years back. I use the small ones that go in the shoe. With those and my shoe covers, my toes stay toasty. The hand warmers also work well in your jacket pockets or taped to the inside of your jacket. I hate being cold!

JBar said...

To fgadfly: Yes