My toes get cold. What should I do?

[F14CRAZY]

I'm starting to think it's more of a medical condition but I'm guessing that due to limited circulation my toes tend to get cold when it wouldn't seem like they would. This isn't good considering I ride in the cold (it was 14f when I left home this morning). I brought it up to my doctor before and he didn't think I have a condition or anything.

When I got home earlier, for fun I put my toes together along a meat thermometer and it was showing about 62f. If I went for a few hours they'd probably start turning blue, then frost bite, etc etc.

I wear/was wearing 200 gram Columbia winter boots (not specially made for motorcycling), with athletic ankle socks and basic knee high wool socks on top of those. My legs and rest of my body was warm in my Fieldsheer Highland suit w/ liners in.

What should I try?

Good cold weather socks? I was thinking of stopping at Cabela's and picking up some of their cold weather hunting socks to try. Cheapest solution though I'd have to get multiple pairs of socks.

Heated socks? Expensive though. I know Gerbings makes some that are legit. I've come across cheaper heated socks (use a D battery, under $15) but I don't think they're good enough for what I'm doing.

Heated insoles? Tour Master Synergy insoles aren't that expensive and I trust their products

Different boots?

Cut my toes off? Walking and standing would be hard due to balance

[Martin]

I can think of three better options move to Florida, California or Queensland. I hate the cold.
Regards Martin.

[F14CRAZY]

I can think of three better options move to Florida, California or Queensland. I hate the cold.
Regards Martin.

I'm going to school to be a teacher...could be a snowbird without retiring...though with this mild winter I rode through December without getting too cold and only skipped January

[The Mighty Gryphon]

Have you tried those chemical warmer packets?  They sell them everywhere around here in the winter.  I think there are some that are sold for boots.  I haven't used them for years, now, but I think they cost about a buck for a couple and they last a couple hours.  Should be able to find them where they sell snowmobile stuff.

[F14CRAZY]

Have you tried those chemical warmer packets?  They sell them everywhere around here in the winter.  I think there are some that are sold for boots.  I haven't used them for years, now, but I think they cost about a buck for a couple and they last a couple hours.  Should be able to find them where they sell snowmobile stuff.

crap I forgot about those. That's a fairly cheap solution

[Elipten]

Heated insoles

[Chaos]

I ride the Ural all winter, down to 5F or so.  When my feet get cold I think of all the combustion and fire in those jugs inches from my toes, warms them right up  :yes

[TrueAce]

Any sporting goods store that carries hunting items , or even Walmart come to think of it, should have those pocket warmer pacs which give several hours of chemical heat. I put one in each boot under my toes and they stay toasty. What you're are experiencing is peripheral neuropathy, poor blood circulation in the lower extremities. Very common with diabetes and some circulatory problems. Ask your doctor to order a lower leg ultra sound, you could have blockages in leg arteries.

[Laitch]

I think it's time to fall back to a modification of the Scriptural edict found in the Book of Matthew.
If thine eyes offend thee, pluck them out and cast them from thee. . .

[TrueAce]

Damn, please don't tell me Ted Cruz rides a K-bike! Was that him just posted?

[Laitch]

Damn, please don't tell me Ted Cruz rides a K-bike! Was that him just posted?

I'm channeling him, Ace. I've tried aluminum foil to reduce it but have moved on to Tyvek.

[Laitch]

I brought it up to my doctor before and he didn't think I have a condition or anything.

I'm surprised he didn't recommend Seafoam.

[Laitch]

My legs and rest of my body was warm in my Fieldsheer Highland suit w/ liners in.

If those aren't heated liners, try a heated jacket from WarmNSafe. You need to add heat to your core to have a chance at keeping the warmth stable in your extremities because without adding heat, your body is closing down circulation to extremities to preserve your core temperature. The additional thickness of layers can sometimes restrict lower circulation when bunching up behind the knees and near the hip joints. Tight socks won't help either but your sock layering is a good strategy.

If you do wear a heated liner and this cold-tenderness is a new issue, consult with a different physician.

[mw074]

F14, I have a brand new pair of Gerbings heated socks in large. I'll cut you a great deal ( student discount.) Email me.

[The Mighty Gryphon]

I don't know if this will work with the Pichler fairing, but this is what someone did with an RT fairing.

http://www.ibmwr.org/ktech/foot-warmer.shtml

[johnny]

greetings...

mandatory electric gear for cold weather riding... im not talking the short commute... im talking all day riding in the cold...

1... heated grips... good the 30s...
i gotts moose racing in there now... have had other brands... all good...

2... electric gloves or electric glove liners... good to the teens...
micki uses warm n safe electric gloves... i use warm n safe electric glove liners inside an old wallered out pair of my favorite racing gloves...
 
3... electric jacket liner... good to the teens...
warm n safe gen 4 with dual heattrollers... you want the best... getts warm n safe...

4... balaclava and neck gaiter and chin guard...  good to the 20s...
i gotts the turtle fur and some others... my helmet has the oem chin guard...


5... knee high soccer socks with electric insoles... or electric socks...
underarmour has these soccor socks that go above my knees... i gotts gerbings insoles... micki gotts warm n safe socks... i would go socks if i was gonna to do it again...

6... fog shield... pin lock or similar...

i know a guy who rode his ninja up the coast from la to san fran... young strong man... on the rebound the temp dropped to the 40s... he didnt have any electrics at all... hypothermia dang near killed him... he stopped a couple times and couldnt articulate his hand and fingers and such... butts being young and strong he continued on... the colder he got the more desperate affliction of gethomeitus he experienced... thats get home itus...

when the popo woke him hp he was laying beside the road with his ninja beside him on the kick stand... he was unconscious and out of gas... if he would not have run out of gas he proally woulda scummed to hypothermia...

the cold... dont mess with it on a moto unless you know whats you are doing...

j o

[F14CRAZY]

In the meantime I visited Cabela's and picked up a pair of these, based on my research and the suggestions of a salescritter

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Cabelas-Mens-Ultimate-Heavyweight-Crew-Wool-Socks/721730.uts

I also mentioned how my boots are 200 gram...he said that's as low as insulation gets...they haveboots up to 2k gram, which he said would probably be too hot...though I was thinking like that's exactly what I want.

I'm gonna do my hour commute tomorrow with the socks and toasti-toes foot warmers and see how that works out.

I like the idea of coming up with fairing shields for my feet, as long as johnny doesn't consider those a form of knee fairings. The write up on RT fairings is interesting though my Pichler doesn't have any baffles like that. It'd be nice if all that damn motobrick heat that's awful in the summer could be directed to my toes. K75 has heated grips thanks to Drake. Always turned on high.

Mike: I'll keep your offer in mind. I was looking those up too.



This is me in my usual cold weather garb. The Fieldsheer Highland suit with upper and lower liners. Jeans, T shirt, long sleeved T shirt inside, light fleece jacket inside if it's below freezing. Fleece balaclava tucked into the suit. Collar extension on the suit. Joe Rocket Sub Zero gloves (I count that as more of a name rather than a claim) with Tour Master silk liners. I feel good in my suit, it's really just my toes that are a major issue. My hands get cool...mostly my thumbs, but not the kind of cold like my toes get. I may try the Tour Master fleece liners which are supposed to be warmer than the silk ones. I've been trawling ebay for a used set of legit heated gloves.

I'll report back with how I do tomorrow.

[F14CRAZY]

Next I think I'll look into coming up with something to shield my feet. I like the idea of using truck mud flaps. I mentioned this in my previous post but I was thinking about it and it seems like a better idea after thinking about it

[Bokobob]

I just ordered four pairs of the wool socks you mentioned in your post...$55 shipped to my door in NC.  Total for four pairs...reviews were glowing....

question:  200 grams was mentioned..Is this the weight of thinsulate or whatever?

Thanks

[F14CRAZY]

Commuted to East Lansing...ambient temp around 30 degrees. Mostly cotton ankle athletic socks under the Cabela's socks with toe warmers...I wouldn't say my toes were "warm" after but much, much better, and tolerable when I hopped off the bike.

I think my next step would be boots with better insulation but for these temps and duration I think the socks and the warmers are sufficient. I'll still get some boots if I can find them cheap enough.

I should experiment and see how the socks and the warmers independently work out.

I just ordered four pairs of the wool socks you mentioned in your post...$55 shipped to my door in NC.  Total for four pairs...reviews were glowing....

question:  200 grams was mentioned..Is this the weight of thinsulate or whatever?

Thanks

I'm under the impression that it refers to the density of the Thinsulate or w/e brand in these.

But yeah, the socks are very well reviewed. The nearby Grandville Cabela's is actually the smallest...still seems huge though. You feel the difference when you walk in the Dundee location though

[Bokobob]

thank you.

[Laitch]

Mostly cotton ankle athletic socks under the Cabela's socks with toe warmers.

The adage among those of us who work and play in the mountains is "cotton kills". It retains moisture and cools the body by convection. Any type of cotton clothing is not the thing to wear to stay warm, despite what you may think from reading LL Bean catalogues. Wool, silk or synthetic like nylon, polyester or polypropylene don't retain moisture which what cools down the body.

Use a thin wool or synthetic first layer. Darn Tough makes durable ankle and low-cut wool socks that are guaranteed and replaced with a new pair when they become holey but there are plenty of other high quality brands making natural and synthetic socks.

[F14CRAZY]

Mostly cotton ankle athletic socks under the Cabela's socks with toe warmers.

The adage among those of us who work and play in the mountains is "cotton kills". It retains moisture and cools the body by convection. Any type of cotton clothing is not the thing to wear to stay warm, despite what you may think from reading LL Bean catalogues. Wool, silk or synthetic like nylon, polyester or polypropylene don't retain moisture which what cools down the body.

Use a thin wool or synthetic first layer. Darn Tough makes durable ankle and low-cut wool socks that are guaranteed and replaced with a new pair when they become holey but there are plenty of other high quality brands making natural and synthetic socks.

I've heard that...I'm gonna remove those and just have the Cabela's socks on and see how I do for the rest of the day and my ride back home

[Laitch]

Wearing a thinner layer under the Cabela's will serve to create a thin layer of air which will also retain heat and transfer moisture. That's one of the features of layering. Cotton won't transfer the moisture. Wool and synthetics work much better.

[F14CRAZY]

It's funny but for the past few years I've avoided "plastic" socks like for work because it always felt like my feet were being kept wet and that didn't/doesn't happen with socks with high cotton content.

This is a different case though as I'm not sweating from physical movement.

The moisture wicking action of this merino wool makes sense. If the sweat stays then I'll likely get cold and stay cold as moisture retains temperature much better than anything else. Least that's how I understand it.

I'll report back later...currently with the Cabelas socks with warmers minus the athletic cotton socks. I have the package for those still and I'll check on those later. The warmers are supposed to be good for 8 hours and I activated them around 6:30 am. I may replace them before my commute at around 3:15 pm