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Warm gloves
I'm doing the Fellsman this year, and while I've got most of my kit sorted I can't work out the best option for gloves.
I normally run in a pair of fairly lightweight Hilly gloves, which whilst fine for most of my running, would not cut the mustard up a mountain in heavy wind and rain. I would like to invest in a warm and probably waterproof pair, but not sure where to start. I have found plenty of mountaineering/hill walking type gloves (and could just use my ski gloves), but to get the warmth most of them are very bulky.
I was just wondering what options/combinations people use to give enough protection without taking up masses of space/adding lots of weight?
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It depends what the weather's like. I've done Fellsman twice and got a case of mild frostnip in 2012...! It took nearly a year before my fingers were back to normal, and I still have issues with them in the cold now.
Since then, I've used mittens with silk liner gloves underneath if it's really cold. I've never had any luck with waterproof gloves - they always seem to get wet through eventually. I have a variety of mittens, from thin ones to full-on snowboarding gauntlets
The biggest revelation was wearing fleecy/thermal arm-warmers. Keeping the blood warm on the way to your hands, (especially at the wrist area) helps keep the fingers warm too.
montane prism gloves or mitts at below £30 are pretty good for keeping the fingers warm and keep off a bit of rain, they are also very lightweight. Can also keep a bit of dexterity as they aren't to thick. They say they can be used in polar expeditions.
In cold & wet weather I usually wear merino wool liner gloves plus one of
i) Mountain hardwear epic gloves My first pair were waterproof until I washed them...
ii) Montane prism gloves plus waterproof over mitts (such as Montane minimus). Light and low volume, but not cheap...
iii) Buffalo mitts. The cheap but bulky option. Not waterproof but still warm.
Thanks for the information, that is very helpful. I had wondered about mittens - I know I don't need dexterity for running, but I do need to be able to use map and compass, eat a bit of food, etc and was concerned that I wouldn't be able to do this without taking the mittens off.
I'll have a look at the various brands suggested.
Aah, the Fellsman! I'd second windproof gloves and overmitts combo. Hopefully the weather at the back of April will be kind, but it isn't always and it's good to be prepared.
Also, remember that if for any reason you have to give up, you could be sat around in the middle of the night for quite a while, so a properly warm, lightweight jacket is a good idea, even if (hopefully!) you won't need it.
I'd definitely 2nd the warm, lightweight jacket recommendation. In the 2012 Fellsman I was fine (modulo blurry eye-sight...) up until they called the race off. But then got very cold sat waiting in a tent to be taken to the finish. Which made me realise I'd have been in big trouble if I'd had an issue out on the course. Since then I've always carried an extra layer (and reactive sunglasses) for long events in the hills in anything but good, stable weather conditions.
I'm planning to take a pair of clear lens glasses an, having read some of the blogs from 2012!
An - Is that the Photochromic glasses I read about?
TMW: Yup. I think a lot of sports sunglasses are photocromatic these days, the trickier thing is finding a pair which are clear in dim light. I've got a pair of UVEX active vario. I'm happy with them, but there might well be better alternatives out there.
I suffered from Fellsman wind-blindness in 2012 too! You just need something to keep the wind from drying out your eyes.
Wrap-around sports sunglasses with interchangeable lenses work well - like these http://www.sportsshoes.com/product/sun33/sunwise-equinox-interchangeable-sunglasses/
A couple of years ago at a Might Contain Nuts event I used a pair of ski goggles and lent my clear-lens sunglasses to a mate! Now that was an event to remember
I've got the equinox glasses, pretty easy to change the lenses once you are sure you aren't going to just break them
That's useful to know an, I get very bad watering eyes in wind, and then there's dust, sunglare, bugs as well to consider, might be better than ordinary running sunglasses which only serve sunny conditions.
I'd go for a cheap pair of fleece gloves e.g. Decathlon £1 and another larger pair of the same to go over the top if needed. Then I'd spend money on a pair of Extremities Tuff Bag Mitts to go over the top if it rains.
I've tried loads of different combinations and found that mid price range gloves (e.g £10 - £20) are no better than cheap ones.
If you want hot hands then Buffalo Mitts are the way to go but you might find them too warm!
http://marmot.com/products/details/windstopper-convertible-glove
these keep hands warm in very cold windy conditions and you can just flip the mitt end back if you need finger dexterity or just to cool the hands a bit. Only downside with these I guess is not waterproof, but I'm sure you could get some kind of waterproof over cover as needed (I've never been in conditions bad enough to saturate these though).
Thank you so much everyone - lots of great options there to have a look at.
Love the goggles picture GeeeM, that really made me chuckle!
Thank you for the lightweight jacket recommendation an and Mick W. Has anyone used either the Ivov8 Race Elite 180 Thermoshell http://www.sportsshoes.com/product/ino293/inov8-race-elite-180-thermoshell-women's-running-smock/ or the OMM Contour Fleece http://www.wiggle.co.uk/omm-womens-contour-fleece/ ?
Or any other similar priced warm options?
I haven't tried either of those.
The Inov8 themoshell looks interesting, but I'm not sure I buy the `10% warmer' claims (I'm not sure how they define/demonstrate that, or if I'd notice a difference that small).
I've got an old Raidlight fleece which looks similar to the OMM one and works well for 'moving slowly overnight in coldish conditions'.
I've recently got an OMM Rotor smock which does the same job but is a bit warmer and more compressible. The RRP is more, but you can sometimes pick them up cheaper. The men's/unisex fit is OK on me, but I've got fairly broad shoulders.
Yes, the 10% warmer thing seems a bit gimmicky! I imagine that if I had it on, it would always be on the warmer side. Still seems a good top for the price though - on the surface of it at least!
I've also got the OMM Rotor Smock. Fantastic warmth to weight ratio.
The Rotor looks a bit warm to run in? I notice there's a gilet version 'Finch Vest' which looks interesting.
I have to admit though I've never been cold whilst running with relatively low-tech gear. I'm obviously not entering the right sorts of events!
I'd like to have a go at the Fellsman at some point.
An important thing is to have a windproof beanie. I've just got a Nike one and like the feeling of invincibility when you go out in bad conditions with that on.
I also have OMM Kamleika top and bottom which are excellent.
One item I can't recommend is OMM Cypher jacket. In the hood/shoulder area it went dark on the inside and bubbly on the outside meaning water now comes through the fabric in those areas. Not sure what is going on there - none of the rest of the jacket is affected and I washed it properly. It's also too short at the front and the 'welded' pockets soon came unwelded (and I'm not sure how to re-weld them). Waste of £215, that was.
T Rex: A lot of people don't do much running overnight on Fellsman (and it's not unusual for the temperatures to be below zero). Plus you want/need something warm in your rucksack to avoid hypothermia if you have to stop.
booktrunk and an (or anyone else who has them!) - how do you find the sizing on the Montane Prism gloves? I can't decide if I should go for small or medium!
I'll double check when I get home tomorrow, but I think mine are small and they fit fine (possibly slightly bigger than ideal). I'd say my hands are average size for a woman, but unisex small is often too big for me.
Thanks an. On their measurements I come up right on the line between small and medium, but like you have fairly average sized hands and unisex small often comes up too big!