Are you a MAMIL or whatever the lady version is?

[Vantage]

Get the right saddle and there's no need for any padding whatsoever....except for the natural type that hangs off your arse.
I gave up on the lycra years ago and found that there are some downsides to 'normal' clothing. It doesn't pack away so well (bulk) and holds onto water in the rain which gets cold. Merino wool t-shirts are a nice compromise to lycra or cotton. And it doesn't smell. Pricy though.
I no longer have the figure for lycra and even if I did, living on a council estate I'd probably get twatted for wearing it

 

[Dogtrousers]

Possibly your idea of utility cycling is different to mine? In a normal week I go into town once. Supermarket shop for two, possibly a haircut, odds and sods of other shopping perhaps. That sort of thing.

What sort of bike am I going to require to carry at least the equivalent of two "bag for life" bags, often three if I need bulky items. A couple of kitchen rolls and a 24 pack of toilet paper would more than fill any pannier I'm familiar with. I could reel off many things that would be a challenge.

Presumably you do your supermarket run by bike?

You do realise you are now going to be bombarded with information about cargo bikes and trailers?

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Possibly your idea of utility cycling is different to mine? In a normal week I go into town once. Supermarket shop for two, possibly a haircut, odds and sods of other shopping perhaps. That sort of thing.

What sort of bike am I going to require to carry at least the equivalent of two "bag for life" bags, often three if I need bulky items. A couple of kitchen rolls and a 24 pack of toilet paper would more than fill any pannier I'm familiar with. I could reel off many things that would be a challenge.

Presumably you do your supermarket run by bike?

Touring bike will do it and you bungee the 24 pack across top of panniers

 

[PaulSB]

Touring bike will do it and you bungee the 24 pack across top of panniers

You do a weekly supermarket shop for two by bike? You didn't answer the question.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

You do a weekly supermarket shop for two by bike? You didn't answer the question.

Yes

 

[Gunk]

95% of my cycling is now on a Brompton so just regular clothes for me. Stopped wearing Lycra when I hit 12 stone About 25 years ago!

 

[Baldy]

Yer but, if you wear normal clothes it doesn't wind up the fashion police, where's the fun it that.

 

[Vantage]

Yes

I did it once.
Easy with the right panniers and even easier if you shop at Asda. They have those bar code readers so you can pack the shopping into the panniers as you go avoiding running out of storage space.
Carradice Carradry panniers are huuuuuge and the the posh ones (forget the name) I think are even bigger. You just need the legs...or motor to drag it all up the hills.
I worry about the bike getting nicked and so don't do it anymore.

 

[the_mikey]

I don't own a pair of jeans or owt to ride in, that sounds like hell. I made the mistake of going for a pootle wearing a regular pair of shorts, I was sore for a week. So for the sake of my own comfort, I'll pretty much always get the lycra shorts out.

 

[Mike_P]

Simple fact is everyone is different and what is comfortable for one is definitely a pain in the backside for another. I quickly gave my ebike the Ridgeback padded saddle off my hybrid which is perfect for the range I do on the ebike wearing non cycling specific clothing.

 

[Aescott]

Proper cycling gear for me - padded undershorts and baggy overshorts, and tops to match. Not because of the look - it just makes it a lot easier to decide what to wear i.e. whichever set isn't in the wash.

Newer clothes a bit tighter than I'd like - but I keep telling myself that the weight will come off again.....

 

[presta]

its very good at thermal management, by that I mean its good at wicking sweat away when youre hot

Lycra's about as windproof as a sieve though, after wearing polycotton walking trousers Bikesters took some getting used to with the cold wind howling through them.

I don't own a pair of jeans or owt to ride in, that sounds like hell. I made the mistake of going for a pootle wearing a regular pair of shorts, I was sore for a week. So for the sake of my own comfort, I'll pretty much always get the lycra shorts out.

I used to ride in jeans or tracksuit bottoms without any bovver but I switched to Lycra shorts when I started touring, not because I was getting sore, but to make sure that I didn't.

Plus reflective strips that ran across the calf’s, which tracksters don’t have

Ron Hill seem a bit inconsistent, from left to right in the order they were bought:
1 Bikesters
2 Bikesters, the yellow piping has gone and the waistband is lower at the back
3 Sold as Bikesters, but don't have the logo, calf band gone and piping's returned
4 Sold as Tracksters after Bikesters were discontinued, same as previous pair

 

[raleighnut]

Carradice Carradry panniers are huuuuuge and the the posh ones (forget the name) I think are even bigger.

Super 'C' ?

 

[oxoman]

Yep im definitely a slightly overweight mamil. Can't see the point of really FG,s who insist on wearing full race team lycra 2 sizes to small. Apparently according to A,I the female equivalent of a mamil is either MAFIL middle aged woman in lycra. Or WAW, Women Awhee.l

 

[lazybloke]

What sort of bike am I going to require to carry .... a 24 pack of toilet paper would more than fill any pannier I'm familiar with. I could reel off many things that would be a challenge.

I'd worry more about my diet if I was getting through a 24 pack of bog roll every week!