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In Depth Product Reviews
You probably stumbled upon here looking for a review of a sports gadget. If you’re trying to decide which unit to buy – check out my in-depth reviews section. Some reviews are over 60 pages long when printed out, with hundreds of photos! I aim to leave no stone unturned.
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Read My Sports Gadget Recommendations.
Here’s my most recent GPS watch guide here, and cycling GPS computers here. Plus there are smart trainers here, all in these guides cover almost every category of sports gadgets out there. Looking for the equipment I use day-to-day? I also just put together my complete ‘Gear I Use’ equipment list, from swim to bike to run and everything in between (plus a few extra things). And to compliment that, here’s The Girl’s (my wife’s) list. Enjoy, and thanks for stopping by!
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Have some fun in the travel section.
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My Photography Gear: The Cameras/Drones/Action Cams I Use Daily
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The Swim/Bike/Run Gear I Use List
Many readers stumble into my website in search of information on the latest and greatest sports tech products. But at the end of the day, you might just be wondering “What does Ray use when not testing new products?”. So here is the most up to date list of products I like and fit the bill for me and my training needs best! DC Rainmaker 2024 swim, bike, run, and general gear list. But wait, are you a female and feel like these things might not apply to you? If that’s the case (but certainly not saying my choices aren’t good for women), and you just want to see a different gear junkies “picks”, check out The Girl’s Gear Guide too.
There are lots of cold runs here in Boston, especially this pat week!
15F with a windchill of about 0. Waterbottle froze. Face froze. It was miserable.
Not very cold where i live in Spain, coldest 0ºC but really windy.
I recently moved from Denmark to Tokyo, so I know cold Scandinavia can be :) Tokyo is somewhat a different story, however a few weeks ago we suddenly got app. 20 cm of
snow. I convinced my wife that this was the perfect weather for running and she agreed to join. Unfortunately the run was extremely cold and she was not that happy about running around outside freezing. Anyway, I still think it was a nice run. I brought my video camera so you can see the run at link to vimeo.com I already have a 910XT and in case I will win this one I think it needs to go to me wife as an apology for convincing her to join :)
Cheers.
Living in Nice, south france, i barely have problem running during winter, as in the evening the weather is rather cool, 7 8 C can’t complain.
But last weeks i was in center of france near puy en velay and weather was a lot more tough, 0 1 C on a good day and up to -7C, i must say i missed Nice after a few kilometers and i agry with previous post, cold well you can get used to it, but slippery snow is a threat :)
When ice starts forming on my hat I know it is getting cold.
Hello from Ukraine, the coldest run I can remember was a couple of weeks ago, it was -11. The biggest problem in Ukraine is that if it is cold, it is probably a lot of snow so cycling is almost impossible. Running though, can be quite fun here!
-20* no swimming no biking no running just skiing….
My coldest race was Pocono Mountains 70.3 in 2011. I was cold, wet, and couldn’t stop shivering after the race.
My first entry!!!
In Belgium winters don’t get as cold as in northern european countries but running in -8 degrees celcius is less fun then it actualyl sounds..
My coldest was in Montreal. It’s not very pleasant.
Went to Utah for a job interview recently. Used to live there 3 or 4 years ago when I moved down south to Louisiana. Brought my “heavy” winter gear: Pearl Izumi Elite winter jacket (it’s for cycling, I know, but it work anyway), a compression shirt, running shorts, compression shorts, leg warmers, shoes (of course), but forgot to bring thick socks. I think I ran maybe like 2 miles (I have raced half and my usual runs are no shorter than 5 miles). 1) it sucked, 2) running in a grid-like pattern downtown area sucks, 3) I got mildly hyporthermia, 4) running at a gazillion feet over sea level isn’t a good idea. Truly demoralizing. I gave myself a consolation prize too: Cake. Lol!
I rode my bike to work this past Thursday, my wife needed the car. It was -25C when I left the house. Thankfully there was no wind to speak of that day. That is the coldest day I’ve ever ridden a bike.
Running in the cold is much more enjoyable than running in the heat! The calm and tranquility of the cold morning run is a great preparation for a busy work day.
It was 23*F this week with 20mph winds. Not pleasant
Being in the southern US (Tennessee) with mild winters the last few years, my coldest run was last January @ 18’F.
I actually don’t mind the cold, the air is crisper and it seems so fresh and clean. Snow is just an added bonus to the fun and it gives me a reason to slow the pace and run easy. I’ve run in temps with a negative wind chill and usually the only thing that gets cold is my hands, they usually warm up after a few miles. Thanks for having the giveaway, you are going to make somebody real happy, hopefully ME!
Did a bike ride in 32 degree weather with 25 degree wind chill. Overcast skies did not help. My hands and feet were frozen. All I could think about was getting somewhere warm and hoping I didn’t get a flat.
Did a 2 hour ride last February, it was 16 degrees. My water bottles froze solid and by the end of the ride I had trouble blinking. But still infinitely more fun than the trainer!
Boston, February, a few years ago–crossing the Charles River on the Harvard Bridge, nothing to stop the 25mph wind whipping across the ice, and it’s 15 F. So not fun. (Last February, cross-country skiing in Quebec, -5 F, WAS fun.)
Ran my 4-mile loop last January when it was 26 degrees. The cold air hitting my lungs made the hills that much harder.
My coldest ride was probably commuting to college in below freezing temperatures on snow and ice. Not sure if it was the coldest ride or not, but one time I hit a patch of ice as I was leaving my neighborhood and my wheels went right out from under me. It bruised my butt, and took a chunk out of the corner of my laptop that was in a padded case in my backpack.
Running in our local forest and trying on my new tights… must have been single digit celsius but MAN, those pants were NOT the right ones for that kind of weather… showering afterwards i saw my legs were like reddish frozen :)
My coldest run (-16C) was actually the time that I set my PR for a 10K. Double layers of everything and a nice bright cold clear day as I ran around the lake.
Coldest run ever was my orienteering training one winter, when I fell to a ditch when ice broke under me… But even when totally wet, you can stay warm when running hard enough. After getting wet I run some 45 minutes, It was -10 degrees C. After training I rode bike 15 km back home.
It wasnt that bad because I changed dry clothes after running. Biking + freeze + wet clothes is a nasty combination though.
My coldest run was this year in Switzerland: -4. I had to protect my best part with an extra plastic bag :-).
New Years Day. It was -10c, so very cold. But wanted to start the new year off right.
Not running, biking or x-country skiing but ice climbing. The high of the day was -28C and windy and being a 1000ft above that in the shade all day with spindrift avalanches it felt a lot colder, never been so cold. The ice tools did not like it either snapped 2 picks.
Coming from a country which is relatively hot and humid throughout the year. My first/last coldest run was in UK sometime around 2006. It was about 10-15C that day but my lung couldn’t take the cold air and I barely ran for more than 2km.
Don’t know if this will count but I remember waking up one morning only to discover the boiler had broken and the glass of water at my bedside had frozen. So depressing. I remained under duvet and never did get out for a run that day, (but I was thinking about it.)
Just last week I geared up expecting it (per weatherbug) to be ~ 30*F got outside and went off on my merry way. I turned onto the main road only to realize I had forgotten its the midwest and its ALWAYS windy and I neglected wind chill. Needless to say I was numb, bright red, and my lungs were in full rebellion when I got home. As a side note I must have the web just before a refresh or had particularly poor timing because when I checked it was 22* wind chill to 10*F when I got home (and it was just a 5k… not hours and hours).
Was doing a trail run around the Diez Vistas trail in BC. We hit some unexpected snow and discovered that a wind storm had blown down trees obscuring some trail markers. We soldiered on and climbing over and under downed trees. After 1.5 hrs we had covered only 3km out of the planned 18 so we turned back. Which turned out to be a good idea because my friend ended up getting frost bite on two toes.
Coldest was a 1/2 marathon. Temps below 20F with 35mph wind and bigger gusts. But that wasn’t the worst part. The worst was the two 4 mile sections dead into the North Wind.
Every winter there is always a week or two of heavy snow, I strap on the yaks and hope I don’t freeze or break and ankle. Wearing 5 layers is still not enough!
Not exactly cold, but a poorly-dressed 75km cycling. Temp was about 0°C . I didn’t have wind stopping gear and at the end my lips were blue and I had trouble applying force on my brakes… Next day, first thing I did was to buy proper equipement
Coldest run to date has been -49F here in Fairbanks, Alaska, last year. It was during Running Club North’s annual Chilly Buns Mid-Winter Run. For some reason, only six of us showed up that day, even though such events usually get 20 or 30 people! Got minor frostbite on my nose and a couple toes, but otherwise it was way fun. Ironically, this year’s Chilly Buns is today, but it’s only -42F as I write this, and will likely warm up to the -30s by race time.
I find running in the cold can be managed with the right clothing. But I had to learn the hard way that, just because it’s kind of mild down in the city, it can still be freezing on the top of the mountain, which really becomes a problem, when you’ve cycled all the way up and then have to go downhill, but your hands are so cold that you can hardly pull the brakes…
Growing up in the desert I don’t have too many. But my best memory of the cold was running while it snowed at a cabin in the mountains. There were zero cars on the windy beautiful mountain highway and I had it all to myself.
This winter coldest run was today -16 celsius. Coldest ever was a trail run with some 1000 metres elevation on 8 km in -25 celsius, took almost hour to get up the hill. Thanks God for merino clothes :-)
I’m afraid I’m not that brave…
When the temperture drops below two-digits (celsius), I’m off to the gym treadmill.
Almost lost my toes in a run last year;)
cycling, Logan UT to Jackson Hole WY, we had a cold front move into the area the week prior to the event, fortunately I invested in booties, insulated legging, jacket, gloves, insulated helmet beanie. We started the ride at 7:04 am at a tropical 32 degrees f riding through the country temps dropped well below freezing. There were other riders not prepared for riding in such temps and one in specific was so cold her lips were blue, she couldn’t even chatter out a word. So grateful I went in prepared, while chilled at points overall I fared well. However, this ride was not as bad as 2005 when they started out in a light drizzle and ended up climbing the canyon in snow! Officials called out the school buses to rescue riders in the canyon and there were multiple reports of hypothermia. I didn’t ride that year but ran support crew for two riders. It was one miserable ride for all involved.
ho-ho
At us all week-16…-25*C and I run every day.
Tomorrow 15 km F participate in cross country skiing
Forecast -22…-16*C
Stubai Alps in Austria, a couple of weeks ago – mountains, lots of snow, got lost and didn’t care. Best run ever!
It doesn’t get cold in south florida, so 55 is probably my coldest run.
Coldest run was right after “snowmaggedon” a few years ago here in the DC area. I was training (using the term loosely because of the weather that year) for the Cherry Blossom 10-miler and felt that I HAD to run even though there was still a lot of snow on the group. I was slip-sliding through my neighborhood when a friend with a treadmill took pity on me and offered me her key so that I could run in her warm house!
snow on the GROUND!
Well, the coldest run so far is the two weeks before when it is -19C, luckily not so much wind. I run almost half of the year in minus degrees as I live in North Finland. (Tornio).
I had my coldest run a year ago. It was -17′. It was quite freezy weather with lots of wet, sticky snow. Although there were no polar bears & penguins around, I felt like i was running at a North Pole. Also a very frezzy wind made my run quite painfull. In the end it wasn’t that bad after all – I had my one and only run behind the snowblower.
From my coldest run I was not able to feel my fingers for another two hours but the scenery with fresh snow was worth it….Austria ;-))
While the vast majority of my running is done right here in sunny Southern California (yes, the S in Southern is capitalized – we are our own state separate and very different from everyone in the Sacramento and San Francisco areas), I have had a few runs in the Mount Shasta area. My coldest run was probably right after Christmas. With the wind chill, I think my teeth were actually chattering a bit. Maybe I should have not worn that singlet and those shorts? Digressing- it must have been, I dunno, about 55 degrees F. I get shivers just thinking about it.
Just this past week… a post-call 6 miler @ 0730 with a windchill of 4F. I’m just now thawing out.
Wakefield Park in Annandale, VA.. January, 2004. It was a trail run and the temperature was around 10 degrees. The worse part was the winds howling at 15-20 mph. Miserable. To top it off, there was still ice on the trail. I must have been mental.
coldest bike ride was actually a few weeks ago. -10 deg. F. Thought it would be fun to ride on some ice. Unfortunately the ice won. Been paying for it gimping around the last few weeks. Can’t wait for summer=)
I Training for NYC Half yesterday at Central park -10c and super windy.
Even if it is -8C and you are dressed for -15C, couple of children in cross country skiing trip will make it for you the coldest day ever ;) You will survive only by taking your skies off and making short runs from time to time.
Ran last 2 weeks in snowy amsterdam. Just fell once ;)
I live in the SF Bay Area so it doesn’t get that cold…never below 35F degrees.
My coldest memory is actually during marathon training and taking a plunge into the frigid waters of the Bay to “ice” my legs after long runs.
Coldest run was 38F. I doesn’t get much colder than that too often in the area I live.
Two years ago I’ve been doing most of my trainings at 4 AM. Temperature during winter dropped to -25C couple of times. But the hardest yet not the coldest run was at -3C on a very windy day with cold rain smashing at my face. My eyelids where completely frozen!!!
Cheers
-17 ° C but with Windchill factor of -23 ° C. Runny nose freezes :)
+ 12c coldest run I’ve had here, live in dubai and that’s about the coldest it ever gets.
lost 34 kg in an effort to be healthy. started with cycling but running is becoming to be my fave!
Winter of ’93, we lived in Lake Placid and seems like almost the whole winter the high each day was about -21degF. After a while we got used to having to bundle up to go out running, snowshoeing or anything else.
Last sunday I ran a half marathon at -5°C. I hope you can see the picture I took afterworths.
I was very slippery and after a few km it started snowing. I had a great time.
-29*C Arvidsjaur, -20 in Halmstad feels colder.
I guess around -15°C few times in Warsaw but I don’t keep track of it.
Coldest swim was an early April Xterra race in 2012. Had an unusually cold spring after a warm winter. Weather the morning of the race was in the mid 30’s. I HATE cold so standing on the beach and gettign my face initially wet was brutal. I think the water was in the low 50’s or high 40’s!
My coldest memory was a Tacx one: in my garage at 6am.It was too cold to ride outside !
Last Sunday I participated in a 10k race. Temperatures well below freezing point and lots of wind. Somehow I managed to beat my PR by half a minute, which was very unexpected!
Hi, Ray.
Last year me and my husband was running in -15° here in Sweden. There are no bad weather only bad cloths (or wrong attitude) as we say here :-)
/Valentina
I paddled on a dragon boat team that trained during off season until the water in the boat club nearly froze over. Every time the paddle would go into the water and splash water, the water droplets would turn into snow. The paddle actually get heavier and heavier as water froze along the blade…… Ah…. good times.
-15°C, it was my coldest run in the center of France and it was great.
My coldest run was at 8 degrees Fahrenheit. By the end of the run, my glasses had little icicles hanging off them.
This past week was my coldest run. It was 7 degrees with a sub-zero windchill at 6 in the morning. Dressed appropriately and had good run! The non-runners driving by on their way to work probably thought I was nuts though!
Last December, thought it was seven degrees but turned out it was minus seven. Made for a very cold run and I don’t think my dog has forgiven me for it to this day.
Coldest swim was when I was eighteen. Was with a group canoeing down the Colorado river. We started less than a half mile down from Hoover dam (park rangers let us in and showed us where to go, I’m sure these days you couldn’t get anywhere near as close as we were). We got everything unpacked and the canoes ready but had to wait while they went to park the vehicles. It was hot out, so a few of us jumped into the river to cool off. Cool off we did, the water was coming right from the damn, which took its water from 400′ down in Lake Mead. It was very, very cold, but, not wanting to admit we’d been idiots, a couple of us swam across the river and back. We were all Popsicles by the time we finally got out of the water.
Tengo la suerte de vivir en Barcelona que está a nivel del mar y la temperatura no suele bajar mucho, el día que nieva lo bonito es subir al tibidabo a correr entre los bosques nevados.
Living in Ireland its always wet and cold, even in “Summer” if we get one!
As my mother says (she’s from Norway), there’s no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothes!
1st duathlon of the season a couple of years ago. 40F and raining. I *thought* I was so smart to have a 2nd pair of shoes in a plastic bag. Took the time to change to dry socks and shoes before the 2nd run. Which was a trail run. Through a swollen creek, calf deep. Sigh.
Here in Costa Rica we never have cold runs :)
It was -4 here last week when I went running in the morning. Not shocking for many places, but we don’t expect it in SoCal.
The morning of my first 13 mile run. I was 6 miles from home when it started snowing hard. Wasn’t that cold, but ended up being one of the best.
It was for sure in Denmark, last year. The weather was crappy (as usual…) and temp was around 2C. It was a rewarding run, even though I started to feel my throat after some minutes.
Last weekend I did an early morning run in -9 degrees C.
My coldest run was not a run but a croos country skiing ride, i love running but during winter my prefer sport is cross country skiing. Today i went at 1500 mt in the alps in Italy (50 km far from my home) and temperature was -20 degree ! My garmin Fr210 had some problem (foggy on display), old fr305 is better and stronger in this condition. I used a camelbak for my water but i didn’t consider the pipe for drink….and water became ice inside it! Ok, guys… not a lovely day but surely a sunny day!
Today in the snow at the Northern Cross Country Championships
I think my coldest ride was just about 2 weeks ago. I had cabin fever and decided to ride to work, given the rule “I’ll ride if its above freezing”. And it was. By about a degree. By the time I made it to work, I was finally comfortable because my legs had heated my upped body and my feet had finished going numb (don’t have booties yet :(). I’ve now raised the rule to 40 degrees…
I think my coldest ride was just about 2 weeks ago. I had cabin fever and decided to ride to work, given the rule “I’ll ride if its above freezing”. And it was. By about a degree. By the time I made it to work, I was finally comfortable because my feet had finished going numb. I’ve now raised the rule to 40 degrees…
Oof… I tried doing this on my phone and kept getting errors, so I thought it didn’t post. Just ignore this one..
Zero deg F. Running in the hills near Punxsutawney, PA on a sunny Saturday morning. No groundhogs in sight. Just a dog that wanted my leg despite the electric fence he had to run through.
My coldest run was also my wettest run; the Aramco Houston Half Marathon two weeks ago.
It doesn’t get too, too cold in Sydney, Australia… but singlet + shorts for races in the middle of winter gets pretty chilly. One in particular, I forgot to wear my gloves and was “this close” from pulling out half way on the basis that I thought my fingers would freeze. Thanks for a great site, Ray.
Coldest run was a NYRR 4 mile race 2 years ago. It snowed the night before but needed to get the race in for Marathon qualification. Couldn’t feel my hands or lips but did it, completed it, and happy
I just finished a run… it was cold outside and I am just regaining feeling in my hands. It was awesome, but could have been better with a 910XT.
Tried a january run at 17 degrees F. Haven’t been able to run in less than 34degrees since. Ugh
The cold is not that true outside whatever the temperature is, but what our body feels because you are sweaty, slightly fatigued from training and puts the mind in a state of stress.
I have had it few time in biking and cross country skiing.
This week on Wednesday evening: -4C with a feel temperature of -10C. This was a bit too cold for me. Also, running on snowy roads is not my thing.
My coldest ever was at 17,500 feet on Mt Kilimanjaro, 24 degrees, wet, after an all day hike, unable to get a fire started because all the wood was soaked, 4 inches of fresh powder, bitter wind lashing the tent… On my 30th birthday!
Inspired by these posts, 13 years later, I went running today in 9 degree weather and set a PR for 1/2 mile. Thanks Ray and crew for inspiring me to run outside instead of on a treadmill or in a spin class today!
This week on Wednesday evening: -10 C and snowy roads. A bit too cold for me.
One of the coldest – Holland 2002ish visiting friends, went for a run in shorts.
At -10C or colder, I suffered badly, and have had injury problems since – coincidence?
This is my first winter running… 2ºC 40 minutes not too bad