Johnr, I've heard waterproof socks are a bit....not. Any particular brands to recommend??
First off, questioning the works of god can lead to retribution... s/he has been known to send out large lorries to wet the arses of the unbelievers (I think you know of whom I speak
). But I know what you mean.
I've got a pair of Sealskinz winter weight (I think they have a merino layer) and I bought some Sealskinz lightweight (reduced on wiggle recently). You've got to wear them underneath your leggings so that water doesn't run/drip into them from your legs. If it's raining so hard that you get soaked from the knees down, water is going to get into them, but as mentioned above, in those conditions your feet stll stay warm. The sternest test I've had was the pre-flood deluge up here this summer. When the water in one puddle went up to mid-calf, my socks filled up, but I was well warmed up by that time and it was only when I took them off I realised how much had got in. I have got some overshoes as well (I wore them the next day), but I find them really hot even at this time of year. I'm waiting for it to get cold before I use them again.
When I know I'm going to get wet on my way to work, I take a spare pair of socks wrapped in 2 carrier bags for the way home. There's nothing worse than putting on damp, cold socks after a hard day.
I've been giving a bit more thought to riding in the rain. I originally came on line 'cos I'm at home waiting for a delivery. I was (shame on me) going to take the p!ss mildly with mock sympathy for those of you out in the wet
.
I've spent an hour or two staring out of the window and wondering whether I really do enjoy commuting on days like today. Some thoughts...
One thing is, you know almost exactly how long you're going to be out in it. And that when you get to work you're going to dry off and put on fresh clothes and feel great. No traffic jams/engine trouble/late public transport or the penetrating damp in clothes you're going to have to sit in all day after walking/waiting.
It's only for the first few minutes that you doubt your own sanity. After that, you start to warm up, feel better and can look around for whatever fun is to be had (singing 'the sun has got his hat on' as you whizz past lines of stationary traffic will leave a subliminal trail of joy among car drivers wrestling with with their self-imposed misery, for instance, and make them feel much worse
).
Generous colleagues admire your tenacity/eccentricity and view the four foot hair as quirky, another manifestation of your devil-may-care approach to all that comes your way; the rest don't like you already
.
When all is said and done, however miserable your ride, at least you're suffering alone and for a fixed time: humid, unhealthy, crowded public transport on a rainy day is endless purgatory and should be suffered only by those who doubt the efficacy of waterproof socks.
PS. My hairstyle would best be described as sparse. I chart the progress of my baldness through the degree of cold I feel when the rain starts getting through my headgear. Four foot hair mmmm
.
