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A few years ago I was bit by the Single Speed bug. I loved it for the time being, but I gradually moved away from it and back into multi-geared bikes. I have to admit, when I was riding SS, I had so much fun and felt like I was in some great climbing shape.

With the Winter Series coming up in 2012, I need to get into some sort of shape other than round. So I took my Soma Double Cross DC and reconfigured it from a 27 speed, flat bar CX to a single speed with drop bars. One of the concerns I had was figuring out what gearing to use since my single speeds of the past were 26″ bikes. With the Soma having 700c the gearing would be different because of them larger diameter wheels. So I called on some of the 29er SS riders I knew and asked them what set up I should go with on the bike.

I placed an order for some parts and gathered up some of the my older stuff from my old SS bike and configured the Soma to what you see it today. 32t in the front and 20t in the back with a Yess Pro tensioner.

The biggest change for me was the drop bars. It’s going to take some time getting used to since my time on drop bars is pretty scarce. Check out the new bar tape I used, its from Fyxation and its called the EVA Foam Bar Tape.

I went out for a ride this morning and I gotta say the 20t in the rear makes climbing easy, but the flats is where I spin out.

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As some of you may know, cycling specific wind breakers or winter clothing can cost as much as a $100. The reason being is because for the most part, they do work. But wouldn’t be great if you could get your cold weather riding done with stuff you may already have? If you don’t have it, then I’ll show you what items you can use when the temperature drops.

Mind you for us Southern California riders, anything below 60 degrees is considered cold and when it drops down to 40 degrees, we typically will stay indoors. However, for those of you acclimated to much colder temperatures, this should work for you too!

First up is this Army BDU. It’s 100% cotton so it does a great job in allowing your body to breath while preventing the cold air from hitting your skin. I got this BDU from my brother who is in the Army. But you can get BDUs on the cheap from your local thrift store. What I typically do, is wear some sort of dry fit jersey as a base layer and the coat as an outer. This combination allows me to sweat and but because of the coat, I don’t get the chills. If I feel like I’m starting to heat up, then I’ll just unbutton to allow some air to flow.

Fleece is a great way to keep warm. Here is an example of an affordable fleece sweatshirt. Something like this cost around $20-$30 from Old Navy. Again I’ll wear a polyester base layer to manage my perspiration. My only complaint for this set up is the cold air that can come up the sleeves. This type of fleece isn’t cuffed, so you can either tuck it into your gloves or cuff it before you ride by folding it over.

Finally we have some flannel shirts. I like this set up because for one, they are super cheap. You can get one from Walmart for as cheap as $12! This works the same as the BDU, the cotton fabric allows some breath-ability without letting too much cold air in. This works best with a jersey as your base layer. The best part about this is you don’t have to be so careful with it since it’s cheap and pretty durable.

So there you have it, a few tips on keeping warm in the winter while on a budget. If you have some suggestions on what has worked for you, leave a comment below.

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