Pearl Izumi GAVIA Cold Weather Cycling Gloves

I still haven't found my winter cycling gloves since the move from Italy so I had to go buy a pair. After looking at several I settled on a pair of Pearl Izumi GAVIA cold weather gloves.

The only thing Italian about these gloves is the name GAVIA, they are made in China. Nevertheless, the Gavia Pass in Italy has its place in Giro d'Italia history, especially 1988. Andy Hampsten went on to win the Giro that year and said of the conditions that day on the Gavia, "As I climbed higher and higher, my mind started wandering and the psychological aspects of what was happening started to creep into my mind. I felt that I had achieved my results, to date, without taking any shortcuts, but when it started getting bad, I thought about what I could do to make things better. I gave up on asking God for any help, I was blessed already having the privilege of racing, instead I speculated on what I would bargain for if the devil showed up...."

Back to the gloves: They use AmFIB material (whatever that means) for water and wind protection. Pearl Izumi uses a scale of 1 (low) to 10 (high) to indicate the degree of water protection and these are rated a 9 on that scale. Oddly, they don't refer to any degree of cold protection.

Things I liked about the cloves: great fit, a fleece section on the top that you can use to wipe your forehead/nose,etc., little knobbies to improve grip, and a zipper to keep the gloves snug.

I used them Sunday the Covered Bridges Ride and they kept me toasty all day.

Photos: Pearl Izumi Gavia gloves; Pedro Delgado on the Gavia, 1988 (short fingered gloves!); a collage of the conditions in 1988; the Gavia on a nice day (Graham Watson photo); Andy Hampsten (poster)