WHAT TO WEAR
CYCLING IN
THE WIND

Ask riders what makes a ride miserable and wind comes up more often than cold. It's also the part of the forecast most people skip. A calm 10°C and a windy 10°C need different kit — not because the windy day is much colder on average, but because of what it does to you on the worst stretches of the route.

THE WIND YOU MAKE

Every ride is windy. At 25 km/h on a perfectly still day, you're sitting in a 25 km/h breeze of your own making. That's why cycling feels colder than the thermometer suggests: at a steady pace, 10°C feels closer to 9°C on exposed skin before the weather adds any wind at all.

VeloReady always accounts for this. It estimates your riding speed from the effort you pick — easy, Zone 2 or hard — and works out the temperature your skin actually feels, which is why the kit it recommends is usually warmer than what the number on your weather app would suggest.

THE WIND YOU RIDE INTO

Real wind adds to your own, but unevenly. Riding into a headwind, the air rushing past you is your speed plus the wind. With a tailwind, it can drop to almost nothing. On a typical loop you get both, and averaged over the ride, a strong wind lowers the felt temperature by less than a degree.

That average hides the problem. The headwind stretches are genuinely cold — often exactly when you're working hardest and sweating most — and the tailwind stretches can feel warm. A thicker jersey doesn't solve that: it makes the tailwind sections sweaty, and the sweat then chills you in the next headwind.

What does solve it is a thin windproof layer. Knitted jerseys let moving air straight through; a windproof shell stops it at the surface, and you can unzip it when the wind is behind you.

THE 20 KM/H LINE

VeloReady treats wind above about 20 km/h as a windy day, and that's where the kit changes. Here's what it adds for a steady ride on an overcast day:

Notice what's missing: no heavier jerseys, no thicker base layers. Windy days get windproofing and cover for the small exposed parts — ears, neck, knees — not more insulation.

GILET OR WIND JACKET?

Both block the wind on your chest, where it hurts most. The difference is your arms.

Gilet

Keeps your core protected while your arms stay free to vent heat. It's the better pick when it's windy but sunny, when you're riding hard, or at milder temperatures where full sleeves would be too warm. On a sunny, windy day, VeloReady picks the gilet over the jacket.

Wind jacket

Adds sleeves, which matters once it's grey and below about 12°C felt. Cold wind on bare or thinly covered arms for a few hours is more tiring than it sounds. On an overcast windy day in that range, the jacket becomes essential.

Neither is the same as a rain jacket — for when you need proper waterproofing, see rain jackets vs gilets.

WHAT WIND DOES TO THE SMALL PARTS

Ears

Ears have almost no insulation and sit right in the airflow. In cool weather they're the first thing to ache in a headwind, which is why VeloReady makes an ear-cover headband essential on windy days below about 9°C felt.

Neck

Wind finds the gap between your collar and chin. A neck warmer closes it, and on a windy day VeloReady adds one well into the mild range — up to around 14°C felt.

Knees

At 16°C on a calm day, knee warmers are optional. Add a proper wind and they become essential again: knees bend thousands of times an hour right in the airflow, and wind tips them over the line where cold affects the joint.

QUICK QUESTIONS

What should I wear cycling in the wind?

Keep the layers you'd wear on a calm day and add something windproof on top — a wind jacket when it's grey and below about 12°C, or a gilet when it's sunny or you're riding hard. Above roughly 20 km/h of wind, add an ear-cover headband, a neck warmer, and knee warmers if it's around 16°C or below.

Does wind actually make cycling colder?

On the headwind sections, yes, noticeably. Averaged over a whole ride it matters less than people expect, because the wind you create by riding at 25 km/h already dominates: a 40 km/h wind lowers the felt temperature by under a degree across the ride. The problem is the unevenness, not the average.

Gilet or wind jacket on a windy day?

A gilet protects your chest while your arms vent heat, which suits sunny days, hard efforts and milder temperatures. A wind jacket adds sleeves, and is the better choice once it's overcast and below about 12°C felt.

RIDING SMART ON WINDY DAYS

Start into the wind. Ride the headwind half while you're fresh and dry, and come home with the wind behind you. The worst combination is a sweaty jersey and a headwind in the last hour.

Zip down with the wind behind you. A windproof layer only works if you vent it on the tailwind sections. Open it before you overheat, close it before you turn back into the wind.

Watch the gusts. Exposed roads, gaps between buildings and bridges are where crosswinds catch you. Keep a looser grip, stay relaxed on the bars, and give yourself more room on descents. Deep-section wheels make gusts noticeably harder to handle.

COMMON WIND MISTAKES

Checking the temperature, not the wind

The forecast says 12°C, so a long-sleeve jersey seems plenty. Then a 30 km/h headwind makes the way out miserable. Look at wind speed before you decide on your top layer.

Adding insulation instead of windproofing

A thicker jersey or an extra base layer feels right at the door and wrong ten minutes in. Keep the insulation you'd wear on a calm day and add a windproof layer on top.

Leaving the gilet at home because it's sunny

Sun and wind together are deceptive: warm when you stop, cold as soon as you turn into the wind. A gilet weighs almost nothing and fits in a back pocket.

Wind matters at every temperature, so the complete 0–30°C guide and the individual pages for 8°C, 10°C and 12°C all include what changes on a windy day.