Riding in heavy rain is something that almost all of us have got to do at some point. But
there are a few quick tips you can use to make the whole experience a lot less unpleasant.
Most of this starts before you even get on your bike. Preparation is the key - for your
clothing, your bike and also where you ride. Now I think it's almost impossible to stay
completely dry when riding in the rain, but there a are a few key pieces that I use every
time I go out in the wet, whether it's warm rain or cold rain. First of all, a jacket.
You have to weigh up the pros and cons of whether the sweat buildup inside a jacket
is actually worth it from staying dry from the outside. In a lot of situations, a soft-shell
might be better. This is less water-resistant, but a lot more breathable. For me personally,
I think that it is, and I think that one look at the pro peloton on wet days also suggests
that this is the case as well.
Secondly, waterproof overshoes. You can get really thin ones, so you don't always have to
use chunky neoprene ones all the time. But my pro tip is to get thin waterproof overshoes
and then also thin neoprene ones as well so you can layer these almost as if you would
on any other part of your body.
Thirdly: the roadie cap. In this age of helmets, it only really comes into its own on wet days
where it serves a dual role. Firstly keeping some of the water out of your eyes and then
also providing a little extra insulation for your head, keeping you warm.
Finally, with wet weather often comes poor visibility. So although black cycling kit
is pretty trendy, so too is fluoro kit nowadays, so it's worth really thinking about this so
that you really stand out when you're riding your bike.
Your clothing's sorted, what about your bike? The first thing to contend with with wet weather
is the reduced grip on the roads. To combat this you can reduce your tyre pressures by
10-20psi, which increases the contact patch of the tyre and should give you more grip.
You also need to think about the lubricant that you're going to put on your chain. A
thick, wet weather lubricant is much more resistant to moisture and is going to last
longer. There's nothing worse than a dry chain after a heavy downpour, it's potentially one of the most
soul-sapping experiences on a bike.
If you're going to be riding in wet weather a lot, it's actually worth considering buying
some mudguards. Our favourites are the Crud Roadracer Mk2s. They can fit on just about
any bike, so you don't need a specific frame with extra bosses. They actually don't look
that bad either, but most of all they give you amazing protection from wet weather. If
you've never tried a set of mudguards before, I suggest you do.
You can actually help yourself a great deal by thinking more about where you ride. As
one of the biggest problems with wet weather is getting cold, I tend to avoid big climbs
because big climbs also mean big descents. At this point, where you're not really producing much
effort, but the windchill is higher, you can really freeze. Some of my darkest moments
on road bikes have come in precisely these situations.
If time on the bike is important to you, for example if you're training for something specific
and you need to do a certain amount of hours, I've often found that doing loops closer to
home really helps me to stay out on the bike longer in foul conditions. I don't know
quite why this is, but knowing that I can get home quickly if the weather turns bad
often makes me stay out and hold out for longer.
The final bit of preparation is chamois cream. Most of us probably don't need to use this
much, if at all, but on wet days when you're going to be spending a long time in the saddle,
it's worth considering. This is because your skin gets much more susceptible to chafing
when it's wet, so spending a long time on the bike could lead to some pretty painful
experiences. The best thing to do is put it on before you set off before any kind of chafing
sets in.
Finally, now we're out on our bikes, bear in mind that wet bikes and wet roads make
braking and cornering more hazardous. This is partly due to less grip and partly due
to the inefficiencies of wet rim brakes. We've covered both of these topics at length in
their own videos, so you can click on these to see all our pro tips.