Why male cyclists shave their legs

greasedscotsman

I can remember during Channel 4's coverage of the Tour years ago, they asked several riders in the start village the same question. One Australian rider, I think it might have been Stephen Hodge said "because everyone else does..."

always_tyred

lost_in_thought wrote:

Always Tyred wrote:

lost_in_thought wrote:

When I used to swim, a lot of shaving/waxing went on, but that was actually for aerodynamic gain. We all thought we were fast enough that it would make a difference... :oops:

...... or did you mean hydrodynamic?

In fact, I think you have got quite close to the mark with the "we all thought we were fast enough...." comment, as regards cyclists.

Alright, alright, hydrodynamic. Fair play!

But on a bike, according to Mr Fry, it makes no difference aerodynamically whatsoever...

I might be wrong, but I suspect that Mr. Fry, great intellect though he is, reads from cards provided to him by BBC researchers. Some BBC researchers may not be as flawlessly knowledgeable as Mr. Fry appears to be.

For example, the show (which I saw as well) suggests that there is a significant advantage in water, but "no advantage in air". They are both fluids and therefore the two statements cannot both lilterally be true.

NaB

Because it looks better than hairy legs and as far as I know cyclists have always shaved their legs....

kieronymous

@ AT: water is denser and more viscous than air, so small changes to the friction interface (e.g. your skin) will make a bigger difference.

'Course, it all gets a bit complicated when you start discussing the boundary layer. That's the reason you have dimples on skin suits, golf balls, speed skiing helmets, etc. The surface imperfections are there to encourage micro-eddies (vortices, whirlpools, call 'em what you want) to break away from the surface sooner, leaving behind pseudo-laminar flow conditions - until the next eddy builds up that is. The theory is that the imperfections allow pseudo-laminar conditions to exist for a greater percentage of the time, hence reducing drag.

...I think!

Any paddlers here? It's also the reason why artificial (smooth concrete) kayak courses eg Holme Pierrepoint exhibit much 'surgier' flow than natural (rocky) channels. Same principle, on a larger and slower scale. The smooth surface gives the eddies time to build up.

.. I think!

BTW I do have a degree in engineering and several years exp. in hydraulics so I sort of know what I'm talking about. Ish.

sarajoy

In laymans terms I see the "boundary layer" as a small covering of water/air that "sticks" to the slightly uneven surface - meaning that it moves along with the body it's sort of adhered to. Then what you've got is water/air slipping past more water/air which is easier than trying to make something super-slippy, which will of course have the odd imperfection anyway, which in some cases may end up with similar drag...

...it was a few years ago I did fluid dynamics myself so that may all be toss, of course!

always_tyred

kieronymous wrote:

@ AT: water is denser and more viscous than air, so small changes to the friction interface (e.g. your skin) will make a bigger difference.

Gosh, really? I literally hadn't spotted that and I'm literally amazed at this revelation.

greg66_tri_v2.0

It's because the morlock look is very un-cool.



See?

itboffin

Greg66 wrote:

It's because the morlock look is very un-cool.



See?

FFS don't tell them where else you shave :? :shock: :?

don_don

DragQueen wrote:

ednino wrote:

Sewinman wrote:

Where abouts does the shaving/waxing stop?

about weist height

Err, not really. There's the chest, armpits and, of course, ones face. All above the waist.

At the eyebrows....

FWIW, I do it (occasionally) because its slightly kinky and feels great between freshly laundered cotton sheets 8)

DragQueen

don_don wrote:

DragQueen wrote:

ednino wrote:

Sewinman wrote:

Where abouts does the shaving/waxing stop?

about weist height

Err, not really. There's the chest, armpits and, of course, ones face. All above the waist.

At the eyebrows....

FWIW, I do it (occasionally) because its slightly kinky and feels great between freshly laundered cotton sheets 8)

Hmmm, I'd left the eyebrows out of the 'waxing' and 'shaving' categories. Plucking is a whole new subject.

ednino

Sewinman wrote:

ednino wrote:

Sewinman wrote:

Where abouts does the shaving/waxing stop?

about weist height

So does it include the naughty bits!?

They should always be hair free, even if i wasn't a cyclist

lost_in_thought

Lalalaaaaaa *fingers in ears*....

TMI... I'm only interested in why/whether you shave your legs.

hisoka

lost_in_thought wrote:

Lalalaaaaaa *fingers in ears*....

TMI... I'm only interested in why/whether you shave your legs.

+1

singlespeedexplosif

Where abouts does the shaving/waxing stop?
you need to leave very small furry shorts. Sort of like hotpants. Otherwise stubble and swinging objects interact in a very nasty way.

Feltup

Another theory for you all:-

Shaved legs hold less water and road grit than hairy legs and therefore do not get as cold from evaporation. Also they are easier to clean than trying to get all the gunk out of hairy legs.

always_tyred

Feltup wrote:

Another theory for you all:-

Shaved legs hold less water and road grit than hairy legs and therefore do not get as cold from evaporation. Also they are easier to clean than trying to get all the gunk out of hairy legs.

No, the hair is heavy and it impedes climbing (below the knee in particular, since this is rotating mass).

edhornby

er... there is another (potentially sensible therefore boring) reason...

the Mental preparation in shaving i.e. I'm making this choice to positively improve my performance therefore this is an advantageous mental state - a bit like the Positive mental attitude of taking off the standard helmet and putting the aero one on for the TT...

woodyonthebeach

it would take me to long to shave my legs, first of all they are kind of long and have lots of hair.

in general I dont like shaving at all, get fed up in the morning having to shave my face, so shaving my legs would only add to the pain

don_don

singlespeedexplosif wrote:

you need to leave very small furry shorts. Sort of like hotpants.

Tries unsuccessfully to ignore mental picture of naked man in hairy see-thru hot-pants

lost_in_thought wrote:

Lalalaaaaaa *fingers in ears*....

TMI... I'm only interested in why/whether you shave your legs.

Liar, liar, hairy hot-pants on fire!

roger_merriman

Feltup wrote:

Another theory for you all:-

Shaved legs hold less water and road grit than hairy legs and therefore do not get as cold from evaporation. Also they are easier to clean than trying to get all the gunk out of hairy legs.

nope sorry those of us who can grow beards can testify to the cold one's face feels if one shaves said beard off, as the cold and wet can get at the skin.

the one shaves because the pro's do it is the most likely.

Petromyzon

On a related note, is anyone else surprised by the ability of leg hair to work it's way through the weave of lycra on long rides? I'm not particularly hairy and the hair is not particularly thick, but coming home from a wintery sojourn with glinting fur poking through your legwarmers is bizarre. :?

iain_j

In a word - yes

don_don

I recall that my ex-wife once suggested I only shave the bits under my cycle shorts, meaning I would look like I was wearing a pair of hairy stockings... :roll:

With hindsight, I think that was the beginning of the end of that particular relationship

ednino

Is a shaven arse more comfortable on the saddle in lycra than a hairy one? :?:

linsen

don_don wrote:

I recall that my ex-wife once suggested I only shave the bits under my cycle shorts, meaning I would look like I was wearing a pair of hairy stockings... :roll:

With hindsight, I think that was the beginning of the end of that particular relationship

Certainly sounds like an interesting look......

woodyonthebeach

Im sure there are clubs that you could go to

kieronymous

Always Tyred wrote:

kieronymous wrote:

@ AT: water is denser and more viscous than air, so small changes to the friction interface (e.g. your skin) will make a bigger difference.

Gosh, really? I literally hadn't spotted that and I'm literally amazed at this revelation.

Er, yeah, sorry about that. Point taken..!

Always Tyred wrote:

They are both fluids and therefore the two statements cannot both lilterally be true.

Literally, no. Practically, yes.

..is what, I guess, I should have said.

OK, so another theory: they're all anonymously sponsored by Veet?

@Petromyzon, maybe thinner hair is actually more likely to poke through lycra?

bomberesque

Same reason I file my toenails, so I don't ladder my tights.

don_don

linsen wrote:

don_don wrote:

I recall that my ex-wife once suggested I only shave the bits under my cycle shorts, meaning I would look like I was wearing a pair of hairy stockings... :roll:

With hindsight, I think that was the beginning of the end of that particular relationship

Certainly sounds like an interesting look......

£250 secures shaving and photgraphs under plain brown cover....

ademort

I shave my legs,always have done for 30 years or so.I have very muscular legs and find that a good massage after cycling feels so much better with shaven legs. I f i had hairy legs i,d use 3 or 4 times more massage oil than with shaven legs and showering with shaven legs is also much easier. Try washing massage oil out of your hairy legs, it takes ages.
Of course there are drawbacks, when i take the kids to the swimming pool or beach then i can see people laughing at my legs, but i also hear comments of "'he must be a cyclist'', at the end of the day each to there own, but shaven tanned legs in cycling shorts look cool IMHO. 8) 8) 8)
Ademort