This tip was sent in to us by Doug Williams, a Canadian roadie who knows a thing or two about riding in cool to cold weather.
He writes: My Quick Tip is the versatility of (polar) fleece headbands. I use them around my head to keep my ears warm, sure, but one or two of them around the neck seal out the cold air from coming into the vest or jacket.
Using a couple of headbands around my neck makes an easily adaptable bit of insulation and wind protection that is easy to adjust to warmer or cooler parts of the ride.
I combine this with a triangle (bandit-style) fleece neck scarf (don’t know if this has a real name) and lightweight liner gloves under my cycling gloves. Standard cool weather cycling gear of vest (with double zips) arm warmers, tights and a light tuque also apply. I cannot emphazise the importance of double zips on the cycling vest for easily adjusting for ride temperature and output level.
In a nutshell, this prevents bare skin from being exposed and chilled by the cold air.
A thin merino neck gaiter works fantastic – no gaps, designed for the neck and packs down pretty small. They are amazingly warm as well. They can be pulled up over the nose and mouth and are easy to breath through. When you pull them up and down they can easily adjust to the task without gapping or preventing breathing or overheating.