no shower @ work

dhope

Headhuunter wrote:

I'm usually on a blue Ribble 7005, the basic "horizonatal" frame they do, with full Tiagra group. I've got a 50 litre "Forclaz" Decathlon rucksack and wear baggies over lycra (full length or shorts depending on the weather) with either a sleeveless cotton top or some kind of jacket (again depending on the weather. I wear a white Giro Monza helmet with a cap underneath. DHB SPD clip on shoes.... Look out for me! What do you look like? I join your route where Deptford Church St hits Creek Rd....

Boardman Team Carbon.
Black baggies (over leggings if cold), Specialized SPD shoes, white lid (think Giro), SS red Btwin or LS Black/Red Lidl t-shirt. Light on the back of a saddlebag

lost_in_thought

I pay £350 a year for membership here, which includes gym, swimming, very cheap hotel rooms, cheap bars, restaurants, and the same in worldwide clubs of a similar nature.

Pretty darn good value I reckon.

d.mart

lost_in_thought wrote:

I pay £350 a year for membership here, which includes gym, swimming, very cheap hotel rooms, cheap bars, restaurants, and the same in worldwide clubs of a similar nature.

Pretty darn good value I reckon.

Bit of an extra schlep to get from Monument there and back again before 0730...looks very swanky though, the kind of place you have to wear a tie and jacket to use the gym

dhope

d.mart wrote:

lost_in_thought wrote:

I pay £350 a year for membership here, which includes gym, swimming, very cheap hotel rooms, cheap bars, restaurants, and the same in worldwide clubs of a similar nature.

Pretty darn good value I reckon.

Bit of an extra schlep to get from Monument there and back again before 0730...looks very swanky though, the kind of place you have to wear a tie and jacket to use the gym

Love the bellyflop competitions too

mybreakfastconsisted

In London you get just as hot on the tube as on a bike. In fact if you took a cat on the tube on a hot summer's day the RSPCA would prosecute you. My commute's 7.5 miles and I'd just splash my face with water when I got there. later, when we moved offices we had fab multi-jet showers with 5 sprays, I'd turn them all on and pretend I was in a submarine that had been hit by a torpedo.

lost_in_thought

dhope wrote:

d.mart wrote:

lost_in_thought wrote:

I pay £350 a year for membership here, which includes gym, swimming, very cheap hotel rooms, cheap bars, restaurants, and the same in worldwide clubs of a similar nature.

Pretty darn good value I reckon.

Bit of an extra schlep to get from Monument there and back again before 0730...looks very swanky though, the kind of place you have to wear a tie and jacket to use the gym

Love the bellyflop competitions too

The guy nearest the camera is so winning. I keep meaning to go down to their 'swimming team sessions'.

rick_chasey

http://www.ski-epic.com/amsterdam_bicycles/

The solution is simple.

Get a Dutch bike and stop the ADP.

Stevo_666

@LIT. I used to work on Berekeley Square a few years back. Unfortunately I think gyms are not that thick on the ground round there but we had use of a gym in a building on the East side of Berkeley Square (just down the hill from the unfeasibly expensive car dealership). Can't even recall the name of it now but worth asking around.

Headhuunter

lost_in_thought wrote:

I pay £350 a year for membership here, which includes gym, swimming, very cheap hotel rooms, cheap bars, restaurants, and the same in worldwide clubs of a similar nature.

Pretty darn good value I reckon.

That looks good but it's a bit of a schlep from work and definitely a schlep from home. I kinda need a gym system with 1 near home for weekends and 1 near work for lunchtimes and after work...

Headhuunter

dhope wrote:

Headhuunter wrote:

I'm usually on a blue Ribble 7005, the basic "horizonatal" frame they do, with full Tiagra group. I've got a 50 litre "Forclaz" Decathlon rucksack and wear baggies over lycra (full length or shorts depending on the weather) with either a sleeveless cotton top or some kind of jacket (again depending on the weather. I wear a white Giro Monza helmet with a cap underneath. DHB SPD clip on shoes.... Look out for me! What do you look like? I join your route where Deptford Church St hits Creek Rd....

Boardman Team Carbon.
Black baggies (over leggings if cold), Specialized SPD shoes, white lid (think Giro), SS red Btwin or LS Black/Red Lidl t-shirt. Light on the back of a saddlebag

I'll try to remember that and look out for you! I pass along that way between 8 and 8.30am

Pufftmw

I have a gym in my garage - its too small for my car, so might as well put the space to good use! Variety of eBay sourced items which were cheap as chips as people's enthusiasm often wains after splashing the cash

No shower @ work though but I do have a change of clothes. Cycling gear into the server room to dry down. I'm soon to bring in an ironing board/iron as I find bringing in clean un-crumpled clothes is not the easiest.

I sweat a lot but I'm not smelly and I'm not saying that cos I'm used to it!

dhope

Pufftmw wrote:

I find bringing in clean un-crumpled clothes is not the easiest.

Eagle creek folders. Godsend

SmellTheGlove

Our shower room is about to be overhauled meaning it'll be out of action for about a month. Kit storage will likely become a feckin' nuisance because 3/4 regulars are in the same dept, and no spare lockers in the factory... At least it's happening during the cooler weather. May join the wet wipers during that time. Or turn the wick down and dawdle? That goes bang against the logic since I'm guaranteed to sweat whatever the activity level and I don't want to take longer than necessary.
Minor dilemma...

itboffin

lost_in_thought wrote:

I pay £350 a year for membership here, which includes gym, swimming, very cheap hotel rooms, cheap bars, restaurants, and the same in worldwide clubs of a similar nature.

Pretty darn good value I reckon.

well well Liv don't know why but I didn't have you as a club girl, interesting.

Norky

SteveEB wrote:

Sorry about resurrecting an old thread but I'm a new commuter and have exactly this problem.

Don't be sorry, glad it's useful.

I've been wearing jeans too and I'm not sure I'm ready for cycling shorts yet! My legs are too pale and skinny at the moment and I think I'd be too self concious walking through the office to get to the toilets! Maybe when I've been there longer!

Shorts need not be lycra, (though many 'baggy' shorts sold for MTBers have smaller lycra inners), they don't have to be specifically sold (at a price premium) for cycling either. There are many styles in many different fabrics. Denim is probably not the best among these, and jeans usually have a lump where seams join right about one's perineum. Fine for a short pootle but I can't imagine wearing a pair for any kind of serious ride at any kind of pace. You can get shorts down to the knee, or down to mid calf ("3/4" or "cut offs") if you're self-conscious about your pins, however I'd recommend dressing for your comfort rather than any colleague's idea of sartorial propriety.

P.S. My God that last sentence came out rather pompous. What I meant was "wear what's comfortable, nuts to comedian work mates".

Canny Jock

I was a member of the Fitness First under the north side of London Bridge, ended up paying £250 for a year up front. I just sat there talking to them for ages, they finally offered me an 'early workout' deal including towels, which let me use it until 11am.

lost_in_thought

itboffin wrote:

lost_in_thought wrote:

I pay £350 a year for membership here, which includes gym, swimming, very cheap hotel rooms, cheap bars, restaurants, and the same in worldwide clubs of a similar nature.

Pretty darn good value I reckon.

well well Liv don't know why but I didn't have you as a club girl, interesting.

Whoosh.

:oops:

greg66_tri_v2.0

lost_in_thought wrote:

itboffin wrote:

lost_in_thought wrote:

I pay £350 a year for membership here, which includes gym, swimming, very cheap hotel rooms, cheap bars, restaurants, and the same in worldwide clubs of a similar nature.

Pretty darn good value I reckon.

well well Liv don't know why but I didn't have you as a club girl, interesting.

Whoosh.

:oops:

Oh, you know - West End club thing.

I was more struck by how the "cheap hotel rooms" seemed to be a selling point.

Fnar far. Gnurk.

You know.

By the hour.

Hotel rooms

By the hour.

Geddit?

Fnar far. Gnurk


I got it.

I think.

itboffin

Greg66 wrote:

lost_in_thought wrote:

itboffin wrote:

lost_in_thought wrote:

I pay £350 a year for membership here, which includes gym, swimming, very cheap hotel rooms, cheap bars, restaurants, and the same in worldwide clubs of a similar nature.

Pretty darn good value I reckon.

well well Liv don't know why but I didn't have you as a club girl, interesting.

Whoosh.

:oops:

Oh, you know - West End club thing.

I was more struck by how the "cheap hotel rooms" seemed to be a selling point.

Fnar far. Gnurk.

You know.

By the hour.

Hotel rooms

By the hour.

Geddit?

Fnar far. Gnurk


I got it.

I think.

cough! cough! yes +1

bad girl

approves muchly

Headhuunter

Canny Jock wrote:

I was a member of the Fitness First under the north side of London Bridge, ended up paying £250 for a year up front. I just sat there talking to them for ages, they finally offered me an 'early workout' deal including towels, which let me use it until 11am.

that sounds like a good deal but i need to use the gym in the evening as well

lost_in_thought

itboffin wrote:

Greg66 wrote:

lost_in_thought wrote:

itboffin wrote:

lost_in_thought wrote:

I pay £350 a year for membership here, which includes gym, swimming, very cheap hotel rooms, cheap bars, restaurants, and the same in worldwide clubs of a similar nature.

Pretty darn good value I reckon.

well well Liv don't know why but I didn't have you as a club girl, interesting.

Whoosh.

:oops:

Oh, you know - West End club thing.

I was more struck by how the "cheap hotel rooms" seemed to be a selling point.

Fnar far. Gnurk.

You know.

By the hour.

Hotel rooms

By the hour.

Geddit?

Fnar far. Gnurk


I got it.

I think.

cough! cough! yes +1

bad girl

approves muchly

Ah. I see. Well, they are cheap! But not available by the hour.

Sorry to diappoint!

itboffin

Gregs old you see, it take him at least an hour get in the "zone" :shock:

Pass the mind bleach!!!

hatbeard

Headhuunter wrote:

dhope wrote:

Headhuunter wrote:

dhope wrote:

Headhuunter wrote:

How much does everyone else pay for gym membership?

£41 a month for Fitness First Black Label (all their gyms). Seems to be quite cheap for that level.
Work then subsidise it by £250, which is handy, so works out at £20 for me.

I've just realised yuor commute is almost the same as one of the routes I take. I've probably passed you before

I joined UKFN at The Arches in Greenwich which is round the corner from you...

Almost certainly, I live about half a mile from the Arches. I joined FF though as the gym is next to work. What bike should I be looking for, I'll be disappointed if you're doing any less than 35

I'm usually on a blue Ribble 7005, the basic "horizonatal" frame they do, with full Tiagra group. I've got a 50 litre "Forclaz" Decathlon rucksack and wear baggies over lycra (full length or shorts depending on the weather) with either a sleeveless cotton top or some kind of jacket (again depending on the weather. I wear a white Giro Monza helmet with a cap underneath. DHB SPD clip on shoes.... Look out for me! What do you look like? I join your route where Deptford Church St hits Creek Rd....

at the risk of heading further off-topic I got my bike this week and I'm going to be commuting this way too (joining from deptford bridge direction). I'll be on a specialized tricross sport and I'll be distinctly wobbly as I haven't ridden in years. try not to buzz me too much as you whizz past.

attempting to get back on topic I'm planning on using the la fitness near my work. I used to work with cyclists at my last place and if they were a banana they'd be brown given how ripe they were by the afternoon.