What to wear???

hangsheadinshame

Hi,
I am a cycle club member rqacing cyclist. I used to commute 12-20 miles eachway so I just rode my race bike and wore my club kit: easy!

Now I ride just 4.5 miles eachway to work in an office and I have to carry a laptop and lunch in a box and stuff.

I don't want to wear my work clothes 'cos sometimes it rains, sometimes I want to go fast and it gets sweaty and I carry rucksack (sweaty back).

I don't want to bother getting fully tooled up with lycra either.

Is there a reasonably priced baggy short or 3 quarter out there? What about top? Just a t-shirt? Stuff I coudl wear all week without stinking too bad.

It is up hill all the way home so not too warm. Moon? On a stick? Me?

andyp

I've a colleague who commutes a similar distance to you. He wears merino wool t-shirts (some short sleeved and some long sleeved) that he cycles in then wears around the office all day. He doesn't noticeably smell.

hangsheadinshame

excellent. does he wear anything on the bottom half of his body?

secretsam

hangsheadinshame wrote:

excellent. does he wear anything on the bottom half of his body?

Let's hope so

Teuchter

hangsheadinshame wrote:

excellent. does he wear anything on the bottom half of his body?

Reminds me of the legend in our office of the "naked cyclist". Apparently there was some bloke who in order to spare his colleagues from the smell of his sweaty cycle commute, would strip naked and have a head to toe wash at the sink in the gents toilets. This offended a few of the other patrons and a lot of complaints were made, forcing him to stop this behaviour.

I hasten to add that this wasn't me!


Back on topic, I wear a polaris long sleeved cycling jersey that I got brand new off ebay for a tenner and an old, non cycling specific pair of 3/4 shorts that seem to do the job fine. I ride 10 miles each way.

andyp

hangsheadinshame wrote:

excellent. does he wear anything on the bottom half of his body?

Nope. :shock:

Kidding. He wears jeans with the legs rolled up. Which strikes me as odd as they are damn uncomfortable to cycle in if you ask me. He claims it's fine.

hangsheadinshame

Hmm. I couldn't do that. The merino tops sound good. I'm doing some mild googling whilst working for same, but I need something a bit technical on the bottom half 'cos I sweat a lot.

Plax

Most of the lads here that cycle in tend to just wear jeans and a t-shirt. I tend to wear tracksuit bottoms and one of my running tops - the type that wick sweat away. Then I'll usually wear a cycling jersey and windstopper/waterproof depending on the weather. I used to wear my running shoes, but they have that breathable mesh so this time of year your feet get cold and if it rains they are like little mini swimming pools. I got a pair of shimano SH-M020's off ebay. These are good, but haven't been tested in the rain yet as I've been incapacitated with a chest infection since having them and my partner has banned me from cycling until it clears

daniel_b

I only cycle 2 miles each way, and wear regular gear, with a cycling jacket and mitts on top, waterproof trousers and overshoes as required.

My regular clothes are just jeans and a polo shirt.

If your looking for decent baggie shorts, wiggle certainly had a whole range of decent clobber in the clearout sale, bagged a pair of sombrio's for £19.99, and I'm sure there were others on there.

Dan

Rykard

I commute 3 miles e/w. I wear cycling gear with a pair of cut off tracksuit bottoms to cover my knees and whatever top to suit the weather...

alan_sherman

I do a 6 mile commute (each way) and also carry a laptop. My approach is to avoid getting too sweaty and changing at work. By not getting too sweaty on the ride I can change at work and be fresher than if I'd used the train / tube.


I'd really recommend getting a pair of panniers, laptops are heavy so carrying that and a change of clothes on your back is going to make you sweat. I have a hybrid to lump the panniers on - one side is the work bag (laptop and papers) the other is the change of clothes and shoes. I have to walk through the lift area at work and don't want to be fully lycra gimped up, so I use non-cycling shorts and t shirt in the summer, whilst in the winter it is plain, descrete tracksuit trousers with trainers, t shirt, and roll neck jumper as appropriate. When the temp is below about 8 degrees I use a gore tool windstopper jacket which looks smart / casual.

Using std cotton t-shirts I find that they need to be washed every couple of days. the biggest problem is that they are kept in the panier during the day.

A - W

For my 5 mile I just wear tracksuit bottoms/shorts depending on the chill factor, t-shirt, training top and cycling jacket if needed. Basically everything I have that is stuck in the wardrobe that was once used for football and rugby training. Only things I've bought for the commute are gloves (fingerless & winter) and a proper cycling jacket.

RufusA

To add to this list.

I used to wear work clothes for a few mile commute, but found that I got too sweaty particularly if I wore a windproof jacket, AND my trousers always seem to manage to get covered in dirt grime oil etc.

Now wear Edura Zyme 3/4s (lots of pockets, feels like cotton, very comfy and can sit in a train without feels [too] stupid), and a merino wool mix cycling top from ground effect. Comfy, non-smelling and understated, with not a spec of cotton in sight!

Have a clever Eagle Creeks 15" Pack-It foldy packy thing which keeps my work clothes neat and manage to get laptop, chargers and cables, clothes and jacket in an Altura Urban 15" laptop pannier.

HTH - Rufus.

spasypaddy

i commute a similar distance and i take all my clothes (shirts, trousers and tie in on a monday in a rucksack). I wear every day a pair of normal shorts, and a football shirt (i have about 20!) with a nike pro underneath, and as of today some arm warmers for when its cold.

i find this works well as if i get sweaty its all dry by the time i want to go home and its warm enough to keep me from getting cold when out

fossyant

I commute about 8 miles - still use all the cycling kit, except bib tights - I just use trackie bottoms as I have a bit of a walk to the bike/don't want to frighten new work colleagues..

I have my own office and raidator - so all gets shoved on there and dry by lunch.

Shoes stay in the offce, as do trousers Mon-Fri - just take undies,socks and shirt in each day in the rucksac with lunch and one of my bike locks - one lock remains on the stand as it weighs 10lbs !

Just use babywipes to clean up and have deo in the office... easy... I couldn't use work clothes - sweat far too much

secretsam

Interesting stuff, this, as currently use 'casual' work clothes but might need to go 'smart' in the future. How creased does stuff get in panniers/backpacks, and how 'smart' are things like Endura trousers (which look OK)???

Teuchter

fossyant wrote:

Shoes stay in the offce, as do trousers Mon-Fri - just take undies,socks and shirt in each day in the rucksac with lunch and one of my bike locks - one lock remains on the stand as it weighs 10lbs !

Just use babywipes to clean up and have deo in the office... easy... I couldn't use work clothes - sweat far too much

Pretty much exactly how I do things too - except the bike gets carried up 6 flights of stairs and left in an unused office / store room.

SecretSam wrote:

How creased does stuff get in panniers/backpacks

I don't have a problem with creased shirts - I just fold them once ironed and when I pack them, roll them up around my spare underwear inside a carrier back in the top of my rucksack. Any slight creases from this will disappear in no time once you're wearing them.

Totalnewbie

My boyfriend irons his shirt the night before with a few sprays of starch that he nicks from me (I got it from one of those cheap shops that sells everything). He then folds it and puts it in a carrier bag inside his pannier. Apparently his cyclist colleague asked him how he kept his shirt so pristine, he thought he was ironing the shirt after he got to work (yes, they have an iron!)

I'm lucky as there's no dress code here so I cycle in running tights and a dri-fit top and just bundle whatever I'm wearing that day into the pannier.

Wooliferkins

Wool tops are great for not being niffy. What about the Polaris Baracus 3/4 about £40? I must admit to wearing cycling kit on my 6 miler but i'm lucky enough to have a shower at work.

blacknosugar

Pretty much exactly how I do things too - except the bike gets carried up 6 flights of stairs and left in an unused office / store room.

Oh the joy of carrying a bike up multiple flights of stairs after your commute.
I think that's the bit where I get sweaty! Seems worse than the cycling, with no wind to cool me down.

The starch is a neat tip, do they sell it in the supermarket, I've never noticed it.

|A|

Totalnewbie

They sell starch in John Lewis in the kitcheny bit. Possibly in the supermarket too but never noticed it.

Cyclegent

Over the two years I've been cycling to work I've built up virtually a second wardrobe of clothes that live in the office - two pairs of shoes, three suits and an overcoat for wearing to meetings. I bring shirts and ties in every day. For the 5 mile commute I wear ordinary trousers, not jeans (cotton in summer, wool in winter) and an ordinary non-dayglo zip up jacket that didn't cost £95 and isn't made by Altura. Keep losing cycle clips so just tuck my trousers into my socks. If I need to cycle somewhere smart I'll wear an old suit close to retirement.

Yellow Cliff

SecretSam wrote:

How creased does stuff get in panniers/backpacks???

I like "easycare" shirts because I don't have to fold them carefully and they still don't really crease. Lazy but effective!

Also, as with previous posters, I have a second set of clothes in work (trousers, ties, jumpers, shoes). The main problem I have is that I never get round to polishing my shoes until they look disgraceful!

I'd really recommend having an emergency set of clothes that you leave in work just in case you forget something one day! I have an old shirt and undies - I'll never forget a post that was on the old C+ forum once titled something along the lines of "Forgot my pants today"

jedster

These are not cheap but I think they are OK value - mine have done 5000km and are not showing any real sign of wear, hide the dirt, water repellant, dry easily in the office

http://www.rapha.cc/index.php?page=169

I wear them with merino wool thermal tops and a windproof when it's really bleak

thedaffodilfish

Do you have shower facilities at work? Showering at work is ideal.

I cycle about 3 miles to work wearing Endura Humvee 3/4 in all weather. They're cool/warm enough when the temprature requires it and they're fast drying. I'll wear them for a week and not notice any smell, but that might just be me
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/ProductDetail.a ... 4%20Shorts

Random wicking T when it's cool or a long sleeve base layer when it's cold:
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/ProductDetail.a ... e%20Jersey

I take my suit and 5 shirts into work either as part of a cycle on Sunday or on Monday morning in the fabled Altura Skye pannier. I don't think they make this any more and I can't find it on google. It's ok but your shirts still get a bit crumpled and using an Eagle Creek pack inside a regular pannier is just as good if you only have to take in shirts.

If your shirts are well ironed then using an Eagle Creek pack will put fold creases in them, whereas using the suit carrier shirts have no creases but lose their "crispness" and may crumple sightly, if you're a bit mental about your shirts a la patrick bateman

Carrying a suit AND 5 shirts does not work.

A Canadian company makes this if you really have to have a suit carrier:
http://www.twowheelgear.com/

Stephen

Aidocp

I cycle around a similar distance to the OP. In the morning I wear my work trousers with over trousers water proof jacket when required, a cycling top and a rolled up shirt in my bag (short sleeve usually, IMO creasing is less of an issue). At night my commute is downhill less effort, therefore to make a quick get away I just keep the work clothes on with waterproofs slipped on as required.

prj45

In this weather I generally wear a long sleeved sweatshirt witha t-shirt over it, endura max shorts, fingered gloves, and if its wet then a cheap kagool (although I don't know why I bother as I get just as wet from the inside when I wear it).

I might go to two pairs of socks if it hits freezing.

I still find myself getting a little too warm after 20 minutes or so.