Cycling Shorts - How many miles between washes?

[KingstonBiker]

I know I don't have as many pairs of cycling shorts as I should have considering I use my bike 6 out of 7 days. The materials used these days seem to be very good at wicking away moisture and I seem to be able to go a long distance without them well smelling . I know I should buy some more (waiting for DHB ones at Wiggle in the right size) but does a 150+ miles between washes seem excessive?

 

[PK99]

I know I don't have as many pairs of cycling shorts as I should have considering I use my bike 6 out of 7 days. The materials used these days seem to be very good at wicking away moisture and I seem to be able to go a long distance without them well smelling . I know I should buy some more (waiting for DHB ones at Wiggle in the right size) but does a 150+ miles between washes seem excessive?

i wash all my kit after every ride

 

[Norry1]

I typically wash kit after 4-5 rides

 

[aberal]

You are really supposed to wear cycling shorts (and other kit) only once before washing. Bacteria can get impregnated into the chamois and thus rubbed into your skin.

 

[Mark_Robson]

After every ride for me.

 

[brockers]

If it's just a shortish 1 1/2 hour ride, I might just give them a thorough rinse with water to remove the sweat, as I'm concerrned that the salts in sweat can degrade the fabric.

Silly question, but what's the best flavour of non-anionic surfactant (washing powder to you) to use on Lycra ? Is the supermarket's hand wash powder OK?

 

[KingstonBiker]

A further confession ... When I commute I wear boxers underneath. I know it's wrong but I have to change in a meeting room at work and wouldn't want to alarm my female colleagues any further.

 

[GrasB]

For my daily commute it's a fresh pair of shorts every morning, so that's 2 rides/50-70 miles. For a weekend ride or turbo session shorts will only get worn once before getting washed.

brockers, I use a silk safe washing powder (I have a lot of silk base layers) which is about as mild as it gets.

 

[the_mikey]

After every ride, don't want that chamois infecting your derriere, that could be nasty...

 

[colly]

After every ride for me too. 5 miles or 55 miles.

 

[beanzontoast]

IME shorts dry so quickly that washing them regularly isn't a problem. I'm also in the 'wear something under them' group, so that also tends to reduce the amount of washing needed.

 

[ACS]

After every ride.

 

[zexel]

I think it should be made compulsory to wash kit after every ride. Wearing unwashed kit is just selfish.

 

[Jezston]

Every second ride for me - wear them to work then back, then they go in the wash.

 

[fimm]

After every ride here too, except if I've done my long commute to work, in which case I'll wear the same pair to go home.