Anyone else bother with these, or am I the biggest girls blouse on the forum for the nth year running?

I was considering upgrading my old (fairly agricultural) set to a shiny set of lightweight ones... but then I realised that I've probably used them three times total in the last four years. I do quite like having them for when it's really nasty though, as if nothing else they stop the water running down my legs and into my waterproof socks.

I know a lot of you get strapped into ankle length lycra, so I guess it doesn't apply for you, but for those of you of a baggy shorted preference... do you just live with the wet legs when the skies open?

Wet legs and wet merino socks. Took me years to get over my dry weather lovin' self and embrace the UK damp. But it allowed me to move forward at a faster rate.

Greetz

S.

Either live with wet legs (probably for around half the time) or wear a pair of madison waterproof shorts. This latter options works surprisingly OK, even with non-waterproof pockets in them. I've been in some truly foul conditions too (one of those foul weather trips was in mid Wales with you!)

Trousers aren't long enough on me to properly cover my feet when cycling, plus they're annoying and flappy, so I don't carry or wear them

Don't wear shorts and long waterproof socks - my feet were surrounded by bucket of freezing cold water in the lake district, it was really quite grim. Normal wet feet would have been better

Rain is only really a problem when it's accompanied by strong winds especially in the cooler months. I've never bothered with anything from late spring to autumn but if it gets really bad then it's just a case of finding a bit of shelter until the worst passes. In winter I'll just wear long roubaix tights with three quarter length showerproof baggies.

benp1 wrote:I've been in some truly foul conditions too (one of those foul weather trips was in mid Wales with you!)

As I recall, I didn't have overtrousers on that one...

endura stealth work for me

can get a bit cold in deepest winter when wet as the water itself is cold but never leak and they are breathable

about £100 but nothing comes close IME

I do, and when I've needed them I've really needed them so was pleased I had them with me. Without them my wet lycra clad legs would of been very cold in the wind and on a multi-day trip that's not much fun and if the heat loss keeps up I tend to get cold all over and then it can start to get dangerous.

Never liked the idea, until a couple of winters back it was wet enough that there was a lot of spray off the front wheel nearly all the time and cold enough that the water constantly chilled your legs. My feet were practically permafrost that winter until a friend suggested I give it a try.

I now have a set of very lightweight, slim fit waterproof trousers from Mavic (my other half works for the parent company so I can get some stuff cheap- thought it worth a punt). Combined with lightweight lycra legs underneath they've been a firm favourite.

For 'wet from the ground' they give you a barrier that keeps the cold water away from your legs and a little warm air pocket- i can wear much lighter under layers so overheating is no worse. I'll wear them even if it's not raining but the ground is cold and wet. They work particularly well in combination with goretex boots as they solve/minimise the problem of water coming into the foot hole.

For 'wet from the sky', jacket+ trousers+ gore Tex gloves and boots actually work really nicely when all together, for at least a few hours of rain until the inevitable happens, and I have managed two hours in really excessive rain and still got back with dry base layers. Sort of a 'greater than the sum of it's parts' I suppose.

They feel like they should be fragile but so far don't seem unduly worn and they've done some decent miles on muddy trails. I doubt they'll last as long as some of the much chunkier offerings but the light weight is why they're so nice to pedal in

I wear Gore Bike Wear Fusion pants. Friggin in my opinion. Lightweight, breathable and rolls up small if you need to carry them (I don't ride in my trollies!)

They no longer seem to exist as a thing.

Rab pertex ones for me - dead light, zips to get them over your boots and so far effective

Someone just pointed me towards the Alpkit ones. Seem pretty light, and decent ratings so have to be worth a blast.

Waterproof shorts for most of my riding,just bought some Haglofs LIM pants though for running and they were spot on in the alps last week(they’re own 2.5 layer fabric). So impressed with them, I may invest in their jacket

Richard G wrote:Someone just pointed me towards the Alpkit ones. Seem pretty light, and decent ratings so have to be worth a blast.

Yep, Alpkit ones are pretty good for riding in.

Have some very cheap regatta waterproof trousers
Likely zero percent breathable; however, keeps legs dry (from rain), stop wind chill on wet legs, pack to very little, weigh bugger all, and being dirt cheap don’t care if they get ripped.
Couple of elastic bands around the ankle of the right leg.
Does become boil in a bag when it stops raining. Though usually take off at this point.

I have an old pair of rab full length goretex, they have full length zips so easy to put on. They also have poppers so you can just zip the top. I’ve worn them for many miles doing jogle but off road I’ve had good success with sealskin long socks which come up to the knees together with 3/4 length waterproof shorts ( I cutdown a pair of Army goretex trousers)

This combination beats the full length trousers and remains comfortable for extended riding.

Montane Atomic DT have been my choice when it gets wet. Not used a lot but they pack small and weigh little so carry on my trips. For day trips if it is foul enough to wear them I wouldn't go out.

I wouldn’t be without waterproof trousers in bad weather.

Legs have a lot of surface area and I find that once wet can really cool me down. Plus my top half sweats more than my bottom half. I’d rather wear less layers up top.

Sounds like you have the answer but I’ve been happy with various versions of inov8 and OMM pants over the years. Alpkits look similar to be fair.

Once again Im voting for a pair of army goretex trousers cut down to 3/4s. Cheap, very light, totally waterproof and last forever. Mine are now six years old and I cant fault them.

Another user of cut-down 3/4 Army Camouflage waterproofs. Simple, Light, Cheap Durable & Effective. Not just about staying dry and warm, but keeping muddy water off your arse makes a huge difference to long-term comfort.

Recently upgraded to an amazing pair of Assos WP knickers - streets ahead technically from everything else I have seen, but probably too fragile (and expensive) to trash on UK muddy trails, so keeping for the road/gravel.

I've yet to try these in the wet, but the fit is great and they're reduced to £105 from £140

https://www.pedalon.co.uk/acatalog/endu ... x060BK_2f3

Alpkit ones arrived. Really light, comfortable to wear... now I just hope they're actually waterproof.

I wore my Alpkit ones for 2 days of torrential rain on the Ridgeway at Easter and they kept my legs dry

Excellent.

Fairly pointless contrib from the old fogie department: Depending on how much water present: Berghaus Paclite g/tex overtrousers, hundreds of years old but been perfect. Madison Tempest 3/4 shorts, also perfect. Bare legs, hundreds of years old but been perfect up to now albeit slightly bow-legged.