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Old April 23rd 17, 03:14 AM posted to rec.bicycles.misc
Joy Beeson
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Posts: 1,638
Default AG: Windbreaker sock


Most people can buy walking shoes that fit, so a tip on how to keep
your feet warm while wearing sandals isn't of general interest, but
the buffer is bare, and the drafts folder is down to topics I've given
up on.

(My cycling shoes don't fit either, but they lace to the toe, so they
don't make corns.)

When putting windbreakers on your feet, the usual procedure is to put
them on over your shoes. This converts the otherwise-conductive
leather into insulation, and stops up the ventilation holes.

I tried booties, and found that I had to leave them unzipped because
the ankles were too narrow to fit over my bare legs; I felt indignant
that so-called cold weather gear didn't allow for socks and tights,
and so-called athletic clothing didn't allow for muscle. They weren't
too well designed in other ways, so when I got fed up with them, I
reverted to bread bags and never looked at booties again. Well, I
probably would have looked at them if I'd ever seen any for sale.

I pulled bread bags on over my cycling shoes and held them in place
with hand-knit ankle warmers; it converted well-ventilated shoes into
sauna-warm footgear. My slot cleats snipped a hole in exactly the
right place.

The first time I tried the bread-bag trick after giving up on shoes, I
discovered that sandals are wider than cycling shoes, and newspaper
sleeves are significantly narrower than bread bags. Duh! I wear the
plastic directly over the socks when I wade in snow; that's the best
way to wear it for cycling too: no changing bags after every stop. (I
stop a lot more often than I used to.) With sandals, there isn't any
spacer to convert into insulation anyway.

Enough yammer: on to the tip:

---------------------------------------------------------------------

You need: two or more pairs of wool socks, two newspaper sleeves, and
a pair of black knee hose.

"Black" is important. The first time I used this trick, I grabbed a
sleazy pair of sheer beige hose that I wished would wear out quickly.
The wrinkles in the bags showed through the hose as variable
dark-orange streaks on an orange ground slightly toned toward flesh
color by the beige socks. This looked so unhealthy and cold that a
perfect stranger attempted to buy me a pair of socks.

So go to a discount shoe store and buy the cheapest black knee hose
they have -- the sleazier the better, since thin and not-absorbent are
good in socks that might get wet. When you get them home, put your
hand inside to straighten them out (they are often twisted in the
package), lay them flat, and put a mark in the middle of one side of
the cuff, near the edge. From now on, this is the back of the
stocking.

I put my tights on after putting on my socks because it's difficult to
remove my tights when they are inside my socks, and because I like to
keep my socks on when I change into house clothes. But at least one
pair of tights should go on before the knee hose, so that the nylon
and elastic don't irritate your skin. (And if you plan to remove a
pair of socks en route, that pair should go outside the tights.)

Layer on your socks, thinner and tighter first, then slide your foot
into a newspaper sleeve (or whatever long, narrow thin-plastic bag
comes to hand), pull it up as far as you can, smooth it as best you
can over the foot, and allow any surplus bag to bunch up around the
ankle or shin.

Knee hose are "fits all", so you have to make them fit as you put them
on.

First gather a stocking onto your thumbs, taking care that the toe
seam is horizontal and the mark is in the back. (The heel gets
permanently stretched, so it's important that it always be in the same
place.) Stick your plastic-covered foot into the stocking and arrange
the seam underneath your toe-tips. This allows a little more stocking
for your heel, it leaves a little less stocking to rumple on top, and
it puts the untidy seam where it doesn't show. Plant your toes and
the ball of your foot firmly on the floor so that you can stretch hard
while pulling up the stocking without squashing your toes. Stretch
the stocking while pulling up, releasing the gathers on your thumbs as
required. If the elastic at the top doesn't reach the notch below
your knee, re-gather it and stretch harder.

Now plant your whole foot firmly on the floor and pinch the stocking
at the end of your big toe. Pull the stocking out and let it spring
back. This makes it more toe-shaped over your toe

Put your sandals on -- unless you have some tights to pull on first.

When you are home for the day and take off your outer layers, don't
forget to remove the knee hose and plastic bag. The tight band of the
knee hose interferes with circulation if worn while not exercising,
and the plastic bag will make your feet sweat.


--
joy beeson at comcast dot net
http://wlweather.net/PAGEJOY/
The above message is a Usenet post.
I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site.
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