Biking at work - equipment advice

[Nebulous]

Hi folks - I've biked to work for the last 18 months or so, but have just started a new job.

Now biking there is not really an issue, but I'm going to have a bit of travel at work. I'm kitted out with a new bike, an Edinburgh Bike tourer and two panniers. I need to dress up to some extent, and as I'm out visiting other people's workplace use of their facilities will be very limited.

First try today was a bit of a disaster. A 5 mile trip, wet roads and foggy but not too cold. I put my waterproofs on in the office and boiled in the bag quite spectacularly. By the time I got to the site I could have wrung out my shirt. So any advice on arriving in reasonable condition? Maybe I have to try to go slow, which is harder than I thought, given I have spent the past 18 months trying to get faster.
I always tend to be quite sweaty, but there is a world of difference between sweating in bib shorts and cycling jersey and sweating in shirt and formal trousers.

 

[TonyEnjoyD]

Nebulous, you hit the nail on the head with the difference sweating in tech Lycra and work clothes.
Problem s that in the humid weather, it's peeing down and you wearing waterproofs....your gonna sweat like a peegy.
No real workaround, either fold n carry your work gear or Lycra up, proper waterproof cycling jacket and overshoes.
That's my take anyway

 

[Andy_R]

Take your formals with you and get changed at the venue. Roll things you don't want to get creased ie trousers, and make a joke of it if you do end up rumpled.

 

[MissTillyFlop]

If there's no other solution, I use this:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/16298935@N00/7504165564

Then just take a hand towel to wipe yourself down. Not ideal, but better than nothing!

 

[Nebulous]

Thanks folks. I don't think there really is a solution. I need to turn up at the site 'suited and booted' as the saying goes. I really will need to take it more slowly, and be better prepared. Certainly carrying a handtowel would have helped. What I really need though is better weather!

 

[defy-one]

Go slow - only solution

 

[AndyRM]

Go slow - only solution

Sacrilege!

Wear cycling kit to commute and change at work. May be worth asking your employer if they have shower facilities? Or see if there's a local gym you can blag a shower off?

 

[fossyant]

I travel, but only between my organisation's sites, and any other organisation I may visit is usually within walking distance of a site. I carry my shirt/trousers and shoes with me, and get changed in a handy 'toilet'. Selection of baby wipes and a roll on deo.

I appreciate it's much more difficult if you are visiting a client and need to get changed upon arrival. If it's a regular client, I'd think they'd soon be used to you signing in early then popping to the loo to get changed.

 

[Crankarm]

Do you not have use of a pool car or bus? If you are meeting important clients turning up sweaty or in a damp crumpled suit, or having spent 20 minutes in the bog changing, does NOT create a good impression. Sorry, but it doesn't. Maybe for a few days you just have to sacrifice your principles?

 

[palinurus]

Do you not have use of a pool car or bus? If you are meeting important clients turning up sweaty or in a damp crumpled suit, or having spent 20 minutes in the bog changing, does NOT create a good impression. Sorry, but it doesn't. Maybe for a few days you just have to sacrifice your principles?

If one our suppliers turned up to visit me on a bike it would create a very good impression.

 

[Flyingfox]

Maybe wear your work clothes but swap your shirt (fold and carry in bag) for lycra top - carry some baby or wet wipes and quickly change before entering the building. If you've got a nice bod - you'll soon get noticed and the women will be awaiting your next visit with anticipation

 

[Andrius.B]

or you could get a new job

 

[RaRa]

Maybe wear your work clothes but swap your shirt (fold and carry in bag) for lycra top - carry some baby or wet wipes and quickly change before entering the building.

+1 on the baby wipes. Dead cheap and a couple will help to get rid of the worst of the sweat and leave you feeling a bit fresher.

 

[lejogger]

It's not the answer you want to hear, but I find it impossible to combine cycling with meetings. I'll commute on the bike as often as I can, but if I have a meeting anywhere I have to drive in to make sure I'm presentable when I arrive.

I do a lot of one-to-one training and so I'm often crammed into a small office crowded around a single pc which makes me hot and sweaty enough as it is, without having had a cycle 5 minutes earlier!

Plus my employer wouldn't take too kindly to the additional time cycling to a meeting and then freshening up would take out of my working day.

One solution (if you drive) is to leave your car at the office through the week and commute on the bike. Then you don't lose your commute but the car is available when you need it.

 

[marzjennings]

I don't think the business culture in the UK (or here in the US) is ready for folks cycling between meetings.

I used to do it all the time in Holland where bike facilities were common at all offices, and having to have a quick freshen up before a meeting was accepted.

When I worked in the SE, having a car to visit clients and vendors was essential. Turning up hot and sweaty would not have looked good. For a while my company would cover the expense of taxi's for visits so I could at least commute to work by bike. But after a while that got cut, and so I had to drive to work to have the car available in case I was required to visit another site.

A car may be your only choice.