Anyone bike to work?

On a bicycle that is. I'm seriously considering rocking my 7 mile one way commute on my bike. Problem is, this is Ohio and it gets mighty warm in the summer. Anyone have a good way to combat the sweats or am I doomed to arrive at work sweaty and gross and just change clothes once I arrive.

Pretty much everybody I knew in the UK who was biking to work would have a change of clothes at work. Several of the larger places had a gym on-site so they would come in a little early, jump in the shower and change at the gym.

Ride real slow, or accept the sweat. I have a 12.5 mile one way commute that I do every day, and sweat profusely year-round. I solved this problem with an available gym at work, and this bicycle garment bag: http://www.performancebike.com/bikes/Product_10052_10551_1023692_-1___

Depending on how fresh you need to look at work, the garment bag could potentially be optional, but a bike rack-mounted bag of some sort in place of a backpack will go a long way to help solve your sweat issue.

go to work early before its too hot out, then dont sweat it on the way home. HAH!

Hmmm... sweating is my super power. Combating it is difficult.

When I run or bike at the office I use the new shower. Before we had a shower I would bring a duffle with a change of clothes, towel, face cloth soap, deodorant and talc and make the best of the bathroom sink. It was a small, tolerant office though - not sure I'd wander thru a "normal" office in bike shorts dripping wet waiting for my body to turn off the sprinklers.

I ride (trek soho single speed) but my commute is only 3 miles, I sweat a little but not bad so I just show up in my work clothes.

My building doesn't have a shower, this is the first place I have worked that doesn't though.

If you lived in Oregon, you could bike to work in the buff, then just towel off and get dressed at work. No smelly clothes!

Proper clothes to cycle in helps, as does having a rack for whatever you need to carry (keeps you from having to have a backpack on, which just creates a big sweaty mess where it's up against you).

Airflow is your friend. I found a paintball jersey to work really well - wind flows right through it, so when you're moving it keeps you cool, but when you're stopped you don't lose all your heat.

I sweat like a pig (if pigs could sweat). Personally I never bother with a shower, since my sweat isn't particularly rank and I'd still be sweating after the shower anyhow. Dunno if that's true for everyone, or if it's 'cause I'm just particularly well hydrated or gifted or whatever.

The worst part of BO is bacteria and merely sweating doesn't really make that any better or worse for me. I always use something that kills bacteria rather than just smells nice (that hippie crystal E36 M3 works for me) and wipe the oily crap off my face so I don't look like I'm covered in vaseline. In the worst part of summer I'll bring a spare set of clothes for vanity's sake, though.

Any Hotels near work with a swimming pool?

I used to, when I lived in Kingston. My employer was nice enough to have renovated and put in a washroom with a showers and a small locker room.

I rode to work and showered there before changing for work.

I have never had so much energy at work in my life! The ride there gets you going better than 5 gal. of coffee!

i used to ride to work, 10 miles in 40 minutes, whenever it was warm enough to do so. soft-side panniers that folded down from a "trunk bag" by Topeak carried my business-casual attire, shoes, lunch, towel, shower sandals, and soap. we had a locker room with showers at work.

If your job doesn't have a shower, it's tough in the dead of summer. Or if you have a job like mine where you sweat like a pig anyway (105* and 100% humidity in the brewery from mid-June to early September), it doesn't matter.

I used to ride quite a bit in the warm months...but now my schedule is a little crazy, and the ignorance toward cyclists shown to me by the locals is unbelievable. I used to ride all the time back home without issue...now, every time I ride, even if for leisure on a nice weekday night, I get harassed at least once.

I would ride to work if part of my commute did not include 5 miles if state highway (non-restricted) that is 50mph but everyone does 70+. I do not want to be a statistic.

Hopefully I will be moving in a few months to someplace closer without the high speeds to worry about

I ride to work during the summer 3-4 times a week. Showing up to the body shop sweaty isn't a big deal, and I can't afford to feed premium to a thirsty e30 every day.

The best commuter I've found has been my fixie (single speed with no freewheel). Maintenance is almost non-existant, I don't have to worry about the bums stealing it, and braking with your legs is fun! I do the 12 mile ride to and from work in about 40 minutes. I just use a messenger bag when I need to carry stuff. As much as I hate being called a hipster, it's the most comfortable kind of bag on a bicycle.

Just strap some ice packs to your body and head out No sweat!

Cycling jerseys, much like running jerserys and other athletic apparel, are designed to wick moisture off of your skin. Dry = comfortable, at least in comparison to wearing a cotton shirt.

Definately get a rack and let the bike carry the weight. Not only will you be cooler the bike will handle better with the weight closer to the axles. Plan ahead and take your change of clothes on a day when you will be driving, long with any lunch items that you can store at work. That means less to deal with on your bike-commute days.

Always ride with an ID.

Fenders. Full coverage fenders. Rear rack and bag to attach to it, or a basket. action wipes are supposed to be very useful for when you don't have a shower handy.

Thanks for all the tips. Sadly, all we have at work are bathroom sinks. It's parts counter work though so as long as I make some effort not to stink I don't think anyone will notice.

I think I already own all the required materials to avoid backpack use.

Big difference betwen gently riding to work, and getting a work out. Decide yourself which you'd rather. Look too at the real bicycle commuters, notice many of their bikes have fenders, etc. There is a reason.

Your job dictates a lot about what you can do. If you work in a garage, who cares how sweaty you are when you show up at work an whether or not there is a shower to use. But if you're a suit and tie type, being fresh and dry is much more important. Since you're on the parts counter, you're probably right about basic stench. Though if you're hoping to climb the ladder, look and think.

And of course there is always the nature of the commute itself. Some roads, some commutes, are much more bicycle friendly than others.

One tidbit of advice I can offer is to carry a basic repair kit with you. Spare tube, patches, tyre levers, pump, (and of course knowing what to do with them.) Otherwise a simple flat could really ruin your morning.

foxtrapper wrote: Big difference betwen gently riding to work, and getting a work out. Decide yourself which you'd rather. Look too at the real bicycle commuters, notice many of their bikes have fenders, etc. There is a reason. Your job dictates a lot about what you can do. If you work in a garage, who cares how sweaty you are when you show up at work an whether or not there is a shower to use. But if you're a suit and tie type, being fresh and dry is much more important. Since you're on the parts counter, you're probably right about basic stench. Though if you're hoping to climb the ladder, look and think. And of course there is always the nature of the commute itself. Some roads, some commutes, are much more bicycle friendly than others.

True, and a distance of 7 or so miles means that you can hammer and get there in less than half an hour, or take it real easy and stretch the commute out to an hour or so based on your scheduling. For me, I don't get a choice - I've got to ride pretty hard to make the commute a reasonable length. Do a dry run of your commute on the weekend, and adjust routing as necessary - do you feel comfortable on the bike on your commute route? Are there re-routes possible that you can take if necessary? How hard do you have to ride to make the commute fit your schedule?

I used this to get to classes quickly. No sweating required. 40mph and 85mpg.

szeis4cookie wrote:

foxtrapper wrote: Big difference betwen gently riding to work, and getting a work out. Decide yourself which you'd rather. Look too at the real bicycle commuters, notice many of their bikes have fenders, etc. There is a reason. Your job dictates a lot about what you can do. If you work in a garage, who cares how sweaty you are when you show up at work an whether or not there is a shower to use. But if you're a suit and tie type, being fresh and dry is much more important. Since you're on the parts counter, you're probably right about basic stench. Though if you're hoping to climb the ladder, look and think. And of course there is always the nature of the commute itself. Some roads, some commutes, are much more bicycle friendly than others.

True, and a distance of 7 or so miles means that you can hammer and get there in less than half an hour, or take it real easy and stretch the commute out to an hour or so based on your scheduling. For me, I don't get a choice - I've got to ride pretty hard to make the commute a reasonable length. Do a dry run of your commute on the weekend, and adjust routing as necessary - do you feel comfortable on the bike on your commute route? Are there re-routes possible that you can take if necessary? How hard do you have to ride to make the commute fit your schedule?

About half of the route will be on a legitimate bike path and through a park so no traffic there. The other half will be on two pretty busy main roads with speed limits 35-45mph. It's a reasonably bike friendly area though so i'm not too worried.

I can really tailor the ride to fit my schedule so that shouldn't present a problem.

Good, and glad to know those bases are covered. These are things I learned as I went with my commute. It was a little rough the first few weeks, but once everything normalized it's been awesome. I lost something like 2 inches of waist in the first few months without really noticing. Gained it back over the winter, but I expect it to be gone again by June.

DaveEstey wrote: I used this to get to classes quickly. No sweating required. 40mph and 85mpg.

Why do I think this would be fun offroad? You get it from ebay?