Northwave Arctic Lady Long Winter Gloves

Northwave Arctic Lady Long Winter Gloves are designed to keep hands toasty on even the coldest rides. Not only are they waterproof and windproof, but also have a layer of insulation and a fleecy lining.

The palms are silicone decorated for extra grip, while a reflective cursive design on the back helps after dark visibility.

In use, the fit was good, with reasonable length in the fingers and not too much volume across the palms. The fleecy cuff was nice and snug around the wrist, while the fuzzy inside of the glove felt pleasant against the skin and quickly warmed up. The structure of the palms was comfortable, resulting in less numbness than some winter gloves, even on longer duration rides. They were also light and not nearly as bulky as many winter gloves.

Definitely warm, with good levels of insulation for even very cold conditions unless the rider suffers from truly terrifying cold digits, these gloves did have some minor irritations. The fleecy lining was comfortable until I decided to take off a glove at a tea break, or to fettle with the bike. Putting the glove back on when hands were slightly damp from perspiration was tricky and resulted in a less than comfortable fit.

The level of perspiration itself was quite surprising too. The gloves are waterproof, but the waterproof fabric isn't very breathable.

I'd suggest saving these gloves just for the very coldest and least pleasant conditions where you're not likely to take them off anyway and you're less likely to sweat. side from that, the most irksome feature was that once damp inside, the gloves took a long time to dry out - up to 24 hours even when placed above a radiator.

For those with seriously cold hands these offer a pretty good value for money option for winter riding, but the dampness issue and drying time does make them less appealing on the whole.

Verdict

Nicely shaped and designed gloves. Comfortable to wear, but suffer from a lack of breathability and dry out very slowly.