Gloves or Mittens

[Gloria]

Silly question but people really do have strong preferences. ihave always been a glove wearer. For no other reason than I like to be able to zip,unzip, or make any other adjustments to gear etc without having to take my glove off. ( I am simply not coordinated enough to do any of the above with mittens on ) Most of my friends prefer mittens, as they are supposedly warmer. I do notice they take them off alot more for simple tasks though. Which do you prefer and why?

 

[Marigee]

I wear Swany Toaster mittens that have a glove liner inside. They have a zipper on the side next to the forefinger. When you unzip the mitten you can pull out your fingers and use them without having to pull off the mitten. They are very warm - and functional too.

 

[ski diva]

I prefer mittens myself. My hands are always cold (feet, too) and they seem to do the job better than gloves. When it's really really cold I wear glove liners, too, which are easier to fit in mittens than in gloves. I have some kind of leather Grandoe mitten (can't think of the model name), and they're really warm.

I do have gloves, too (Marmot ones). I wear them when it isn't awfully cold -- mostly early and late season. You're right -- they're easier to maneuver, but not as warm.

 

[Little Lightning]

Mittens, they're warmer and my hands are really small so most gloves don't fit me anyway.

I have the Marmot Randonee mittens that I wear on really cold days. I usually don't have cold hands. On warmer days I like the Cloudveil Snaz mittens.

For cold feet I'm addicted to my Hotronic Boot warmers.

Kathi

 

[cloudpeak]

I prefer mittens. I just can't seem to find a pair of gloves that keep my hands warm enough. I'm in the market for a new pair since my Marmot Randonnees have a bit hole in them. What mittens do people like that are warm, waterproof, and have Pitaard leather palms besides the Randonnees?

 

[Gloria]

What I find weird

The unusual thing that drove me to ask this question is, in all my years of skiing I have skied with only one other woman whom prefers gloves. What is even more strange, is both of our daughters insist on wearing gloves too. Mine for instance started insiting on gloves when she was really young. I swear it's hereditary. My hands don't get cold very often, in fact most of the time the opposite, even when it's below zero. My daughter on the other hand, gets cold hands alot, yet still refuses to wear mittens. It has to be something in the way we are wired. I am convinced of it.

 

[Jilly]

I'm a glove person for the same reasons as Gloria. Plus when I'm teaching its sometimes necessary to demostrate with your hands. I've got to have at least 4 pairs of gloves. The CSIA has gloves that we can buy at a great price - all leather. I've also got a pair last year at MEC that are a fleece liner and outer gore-tex. They are really warm and can be dried quickly. I use the CSIA gloves for 2 years then they get moved to the spring weather pile as that seems to be about how long they are good for. Hubby uses mitts as he has a "cut off" index finger that gets cold fast. He needs the warmth of the other digits to keep it warm.

 

[IntheClouds]

Nothing beats mittens for scooping snow into a snowball. Grew up wearing mittens once the snow hit. But I wear gloves all the time. Work gloves, riding gloves, skiing gloves. Seems like there are gloves in almost every room in the house, every vehicle & the barn. It may very well be a sensory thing as you suggest. And obviously with me it's become a security thing like a blankie. But I'm going to try a pair of mittens for a 2nd ski glove this year. Just for a switch.

 

[altagirl]

Mittens here too, unless it's really warm (like spring skiing warm).

I think I have mild Reynaud's syndrome. I've found that even if the rest of my body is so warm I'm sweating, my hands can still get freezing (and painfully) cold. And I always wear a helmet with a liner underneath, so it's not like my head is cold. This is especially true if we're hiking or out touring, which is extra weird. Like the more my blood is going to my legs and lungs to exercise, the less goes to my hands and toes. And then, like the switch gets flipped, sometimes they warm up all of the sudden and are hot. But some days they never warm up, even with disposable heaters in my mittens.

I understand the logic that gloves are nice for more articulation, but I've just never found a pair warm enough, and I can't think of many things that require more than a thumb and finger to do. I usually wear a liner glove under my mittens, so if they have to come off, I have something on that lets me do what I need to do and then put the mittens back on.

I've also gone to mittens with the longest gauntlet I can find (about halfway to my elbows) to keep the drafts out from my wrists. I think that helps a bunch. And I use disposable heater packs in there on the colder days. (I usually buy a case or so when I can find them on sale). That way, I figure that even if my circulation cuts itself off to my hands it's NOT freezing in my mittens and hopefully I won't get frostbite even when I can't feel my fingers - which is most of the time. Half of the time in winter I can sit on the sofa with big wool socks and comforters and stuff and have feet and hands that are like ice.

My husband will wear thin spring gloves all winter and whine about how sweaty his hands are on the lift. It's just not fair.

 

[Pequenita]

Mittens! I ball up my hands into fists on the chairlift to keep the hands warm.

 

[ski now work later]

I use both. Most of the time, when it's not super cold, I use a thin Seirus glove that I love that I picked up in Big Sky during my first year of skiing as my hands tend to be warm. I also have a mid-weight pair of Seirus gloves that I picked up from REI last year, which I also love. Both pair give me good grip and control. When it gets cold, however, I reach for my Marmot Randonee mittens, which were ridiculously expensive but are showing no signs of wear or loss of insulation after 3 seasons, so as long as I don't lose them, they should last at least another 3 seasons.

 

[abc]

So I'm not the only one who can't seem to find ANY gloves that can keep my hands (I actually mean FINGERS) warm! Even when it's so warm I'm only wearing only a fleece jacket, my hands are still cold I had to ball them up inside the mitten while riding the chair just to keep them warm.

As for praticality of doing things with mittens on. It's kind of asking people who wear glasses whether it's bothersome! Of course it is. But frost bitten fingers are, like nearsightedness, something you deal with, not delve on.

 

[Native Vail Gal]

I'm a mittens girl!

 

[Ski Spirit]

Usually gloves for me although I have a pair on Marmot Randonee mittens (not as warm as I had hoped). Always in search for the perfect gloves/mittens. My next set to try will either be Hestra or Swany based on comments from various Divas........

 

[Gloria]

disposable heaters

I bought a case of these at Costco last year on a whim. I sent them with my daughter when she went out and kept some with me in case I got stuck on the chair when it breaks down. ( which unfortunately is often ) I ended up with a ton and gave them out like candy at a parade last year becuase someone told me that they don't work after you store them. So Costco or Sam's Club in some areas, less than 15$ a case I can't remeber exactly how, and now I will go dig some old ones out and let you know if they store after I do some experimentation.

 

[Gloria]

They are working. I didn't think they were going to so put them down and forgot about them for awhile, when I picked them up they were as warm as ever. So if you store them, and I did nothing more than throw them in a closet, keep in mind that you will need some lead time prior to use. So in summary, the case is much much cheaper than the individual, you will have the ability to share or just plain go hog wild and use 2-3 a day if you want, and if you do need to store them, they are good for at least another season. ( Watch them completely expire next month )Given that I still have about 3/4 left I may be able to update you on storability next season as well.

 

[sibhusky]

When I was in menopause, I only used a pair of thin Polartec mittens that you could poke your fingers out of a slit in the palm when needed. I didn't need anything else back in the time of "hot flashes". Now that that's over, I am a mitten girl. For one thing, hot packs work much better in them than in gloves as you can put your whole fist around the pack on the chair and easily manuever it out of the way when it's time to ski. For another, just having fingers next to each other and able to rub each other keeps them from getting cold

One big issue I have had is high tech fabrics making my hands sweat. The sweat is "wicked away" until I take them off at lunch time. Then I put them back on and it's like a swamp! So, for the last few years I've used some 25 year old leather mittens and some Wristies to make up for the fact that the cuff is all stretched out. But the amount I've used them took its toll this year and more and more of the mitten ended up duct-taped. So, I gave in and ordered some Hestra leather mittens from Backcountry. I'll report on them as the season progresses.

 

[volklgirl]

I'm a mitten chick too. I adore my Grandoe mitts (the leather is soooooo soft ), and hubby bought me new Kombi mitts last year. Below 20deg, warmers go in too.

For over 35deg I have Spyder leather gloves and Marker spring gloves, but they don't get much use.

 

[SnowHot]

Gloves most days. Mittens on super cold days.

 

[Pequenita]

They are working. I didn't think they were going to so put them down and forgot about them for awhile, when I picked them up they were as warm as ever. So if you store them, and I did nothing more than throw them in a closet, keep in mind that you will need some lead time prior to use. So in summary, the case is much much cheaper than the individual, you will have the ability to share or just plain go hog wild and use 2-3 a day if you want, and if you do need to store them, they are good for at least another season. ( Watch them completely expire next month )Given that I still have about 3/4 left I may be able to update you on storability next season as well.

I've used some that were a few years old. They took longer to heat up and they didn't stay as warm for as long. So, it goes without saying that if they're a part of your backcountry first-aid kit, you should replace them regularly.