Article of clothing for cycling

Abstract

The present invention generally relates to an article of clothing for protecting the foot, ankle and lower leg of a cyclist from cold or inclement weather when riding a bicycle. The article of clothing, sometimes referred to as a ‘bootie’ or ‘leg warmer’, covers the shoe yet has openings therethrough to permit the cleat of the shoe and the heel of the shoe to extend therethrough. The article of clothing extends up the leg to a height that is sufficient to permit the top of the article of clothing to be tucked under the bottommost portion of the cyclist's shorts to prevent the article of clothing from falling down. A fastening mechanism is present along the back of the article of clothing to permit the cyclist to easily slip their shoe through the article of clothing when not fastened, and then fasten the article of clothing to provide a snug fit.

1 . An article of clothing, comprising:
 a foot portion, the foot portion having a shape to approximate the shape of a shoe, the foot portion having a first opening therethrough sized to permit a cleat attached to the shoe to pass therethrough, the foot portion also having a second opening therethrough sized to permit a heel of the shoe to be exposed;   a leg portion having a first end coupled to the foot portion and a second end opposite the first end, the second end sized to receive a user's leg therethrough; and   a fastening mechanism coupled to both the foot portion and the leg portion for opening and closing part of the foot portion and part of the leg portion to permit a shoe to pass therethrough.   
     
     
         2 . The article of clothing of  claim 1 , wherein the fastening mechanism comprises Velcro. 
     
     
         3 . The article of clothing of  claim 1 , wherein the foot portion comprises a first material and the leg portion comprises a second material different than the first material. 
     
     
         4 . The article of clothing of  claim 3 , wherein the first material comprises polychloroprene. 
     
     
         5 . The article of clothing of  claim 4 , wherein the second material comprises nylon. 
     
     
         6 . The article of clothing of  claim 1 , further comprising an elastic band coupled to the second end to provide a snug fit around a leg. 
     
     
         7 . The article of clothing of  claim 1 , further comprising a reflective material coupled to one or more of the foot portion and the leg portion. 
     
     
         8 . An article of clothing, comprising:
 a first portion having a top surface coupled to a bottom surface to approximate the shape of a shoe, the top surface having a first end and a second end, the bottom surface extending for a distance that is less than a length of a hypothetical shoe received in the first portion, the bottom surface also having a first opening therethrough at a first location;   a second portion having a body comprising a third end that is coupled to the first portion, the third end having a first circumference, the body also comprising a fourth end that has a second circumference that is greater than the first circumference, the body additionally having a slot therein that extends from the third end to a location that is spaced from the fourth end; and   a fastening mechanism coupled to both the second portion and the first portion for opening and closing part of the first portion and part of the second portion to permit a shoe to pass therethrough.   
     
     
         9 . The article of clothing of  claim 8 , wherein the fastening mechanism comprises Velcro. 
     
     
         10 . The article of clothing of  claim 8 , wherein the first portion comprises a first material and the second portion comprises a second material different than the first material. 
     
     
         11 . The article of clothing of  claim 10 , wherein the first material comprises polychloroprene. 
     
     
         12 . The article of clothing of  claim 11 , wherein the second material comprises nylon. 
     
     
         13 . The article of clothing of  claim 8 , further comprising an elastic band coupled to the fourth end to provide a snug fit around a leg. 
     
     
         14 . The article of clothing of  claim 8 , further comprising a reflective material coupled to one or more of the first portion and the second portion. 
     
     
         15 . An article of clothing, comprising:
 a body shaped to receive a leg and a foot having a shoe thereon, the body having a first opening therethrough to permit exposure of a first portion of the shoe and having a second opening therethrough to permit exposure of a second portion of the shoe, the body having a first flange extending from the second opening and a second flange extending from the second opening; and   a fastening mechanism coupled to the first flange and the second flange and functioning to couple the first flange to the second flange.   
     
     
         16 . The article of clothing of  claim 15 , wherein the fastening mechanism comprises Velcro. 
     
     
         17 . The article of clothing of  claim 15 , wherein the body comprises two different materials. 
     
     
         18 . The article of clothing of  claim 17 , wherein a first material of the two different materials comprises polychloroprene. 
     
     
         19 . The article of clothing of  claim 18 , wherein a second material of the two different materials comprises nylon. 
     
     
         20 . The article of clothing of  claim 15 , further comprising:
 an elastic band coupled to the second end to provide a snug fit around a leg; and   a reflective material coupled thereto.