Temperatures dropped this week, and whilst riding past drivers de-icing their cars is always a bit of a giggle, frozen fingers are less enjoyable.
Cold fingers aren’t just unpleasant, they impede your ability to brake, change gear, and they’re not great for your concentration, either.
However, with the right gloves, you really can make numb fingers a thing of the past. Here’s are our top 5 glove recommendations…
Castelli Diluvio Deluxe Gloves – here
These are my number one recommendation if you find you get cold fingers, but want a glove that is flexible, and allows free movement.
The Diluvio Deluxe gloves (around £35) are made from neoprene – they are not breathable – they don’t let the cold in, and they don’t let heat out.
The nature of these gloves means that your hands will get sweaty, but since the cold is barred, this stays warm, effectively turning everything below your wrist into a personal radiator.
Admittedly, this form of hand heating is not for everyone – but if you want a pair of gloves that allow you to move your hands as though they were encased in lightweight, spring gloves, but will the bonus of internal heating, they are for you.
The Deluxe gloves have added grippers, and a ‘french terry sweat wipe’, otherwise known as drippy nose wipe.
There isn’t a women’s specific version, but as will most Castelli kit, the size ‘small’ is pretty small and likely to fit even very dainty hands.
Gore Bike Wear Road Windstopper Soft Shell Lobster Gloves – here
Not your average glove, is it? The Lobster glove (starting at £59.99) is shaped to allow your fingers to keep each other company, thus sharing warmth, without impeding braking or shifting.
Gore Windstopper material of course creates a barrier against the wind, whilst allowing you to work as hard as you like without overheating through great breathability. Windstopper material is incredibly soft and flexible, and there is an inner cuff and Velcro adjustment to ensure you get the fit tight.
The lobster claw gloves are water resistant, and have a high cuff to keep drips from invading your space, but they won’t keep the rain out completely as a neoprene glove would. The fingers are silicone coated, and there is a sweat wipe on the thumb.
Endura Thermolite Roubaix Cycling Glove – here
For those after value, these sub £20 gloves are where it’s at. Made from a Teflon HT treated Thermolite fabric, which promises insulation, and the inside feature brushed Roubaix for both warmth and comfort.
This light material promises breathability, and the cuff is cut high to fit under jacket wrists, creating a sealed outfit.
Grip has been taken into careful consideration, as you can see from the underside of the glove, with silicone sections on the fingers and palms.
SealSkinz Extra Cold gloves – men’s and women’s
SealSkinz are the go-to brand for waterproof socks, and their waterproof gloves (£44.99/£31.99 for women’s) are packed with great features, too.
These are heavy duty gloves, and they’re either comfortingly thick, or stiflingly thick, depending upon your preferences – but if you’re after warm, you’ll get it here.
The waterproof and windproof outershell is made from nylon, spandex, and a mico-porous membrane – equaling warmth, stretch and breathability – the inside is 100% polyester.
If you suffer from discomfort from gripping the handlebars, as many people do, these have gel pressure point padding in the areas that often cause niggles, and the palm is made from a synthetic material that promises grip and durability.
Don’t forget – liner gloves
If you’re gloves aren’t doing the job, and you don’t want to invest in a pricey new pair, or perhaps you’ve already got some heavy duty gloves but still feel the chill, it’s time for liners.
Liner gloves are thin, lightweight layers that you wear underneath full gloves. They don’t need to be super swanky, and they certainly don’t need to be expensive.
The best offer we can find at the moment is the Louis Garneau Smart Glove – now at £3.99. Made from an acrylic/spandex mix, the material offers excellent wicking, and silicone grippers promise a firm hand on the bar. An alternative is the EDZ Merino which we’ve had great results with and the reviews by happy glove wearers speak for themselves.
Keeping warm is not a problem for me, but weight and size are. What I’d like is super lightweight but waterproof gloves – any suggestions? Preferably touchscreen-compatible too.
Alan, can’t help with waterproof but I got some lightweight grippy gloves with touchscreen fingers and thumbs from tk maxx last year (cost about £15 I think). When it gets really cold I just wear a pair of thin “magic” gloves underneath them which I got in Primark (2 pairs for £1) to keep my fingertips warm.
Worth a look if there’s a store near you.
Alternatively you can always sew conductive thread into the fingertips of another pair of gloves so you can use your smartphone.
I can’t help Alan- as soon as the weather becomes consistently inclement, I use Army surplus mittens- pile inner, Goretex lined outer. They have kept my hands toasty at -18 and never let the weather in in eight years, not bad for £7. They aren’t great for dexterity, but I only have one gear changer to operate and most of the time my fingers are over the brake levers anyway.
I have sealskinz. Really warm even in the rain. And good dexterity to handle the brakes and gears on a road bike
Second the lobster gloves – I have a pair from Sugoi & they’re great. Take a bit of getting used to but never had cold hands with them on.
Extremities Velo Glove, light weight and not buky, good to about -9c, had mine about three winters and a bit worn out.
NOT waterproof. Wind proof is a must, waterproof does not work for cyclists you end up wetter on the inside than on the outside even in a down pour, yes I have tried goretex, I have some very expensive kit that was a waste of money for cycling.
TIP: For cold weather gloves to work the have to be a loose fit to trap the air.
For touch screen put a few stitches of metallic tread into the finger tip.
Sounds good, thanks Fern!
Always seems strange to me the majority of gloves are black or dark colours, Would be nice to see some reflective bits to make hand signals clearer everyone.
Caratti do a lobster glove which is really good. Only £15 in the sale. I find this design – 2 figers in each claw – works relly well. But it has been hard to find.
Aldi do a lobster glove very cheap at around £8.00 and they are very effective in keeping hands warm.Takes a bit of getting use.
The Gore one looks so great.