Is it really worth commuting in heavy rain?

[Teuchter]

I'll start by qualifying this... I generally consider myself an all weather rider. I live on the "Wet Coast" of Scotland and always figured that if I avoided the rain I'd never ride.

This morning's ride in had me wondering though.

Torrential rain, strong winds and localised flooding.

No problem, I've commuted in this sort of weather countless times Man up and get on with it - the first few minutes are always the worst.

The 9 mile ride to work didn't give me any problems, despite the lashing rain and some roads being under several inches of water, kerb to kerb. I actually enjoyed the ride.

The problem was once I got to work. Showered and changed, I then had to deal with the pile of soaking wet cycling kit. The worst of it is hung under my desk, being blasted with a desk fan in hopes of drying some of it while the rest is draped around discreet parts of the office where it hopefully won't bother my colleagues.

It's this turning my corner of the office into a laundry that is beginning to bother me. Should I just bag most of my kit up and accept it will still be soaking for the ride home? Should I revise my kit so I wear less, thus having less to dry? Should I just stop worrying what effect my chosen form of transport has on everyone around me? Should I (shock horror) relent and take the car when the rain is really bad?

How do you guys deal with it?

 

[Col5632]

I'm not sure if its an option but could you not take 'spare' kit with you just incase the kit gets soaking?

I'm lucky as i have atleast 3 radaitors i can use to dry my stuff, some folk complain but i don't care one little bit cause i'm the only one who cycles in and some live with 0.5 miles of the office and still drive in. I must admit i did hear the wind this morning and due to hearing it and thinking just 5 more minutes in bed i didnt cycle in today

 

[fossyant]

Doesn't stop me, an i actually prefer the heavy rain to showers. I do, however, wear waterproof overtrousers, overshoes, and jacket, and just slow down slightly so i don't overheat.

Bit sweatty when i get in, but shoes and clothing is relatively dry. But I have my own office, most of the kit is on hangers from a shelf in the corner, drying from a desk fan, and other stuff is on a radiator.

 

[Andrew_P]

Posted before but the Dri Buddy I have tucked away at work is great value @ £50!! I understand I am pretty lucky to have somewhere to put it though, but it is great putting warm and dry kit back on. Used to find it soul destroying putting on wet kit, even worse if it had brightend up in the afternoon! Not to mention the awkard nature of hanging stuff all over the office

 

[ianjmcd]

NIce to see another local On the forum ;-)

as others have said if you can take spare kit with you for the ride home in case your kit you ride in with gets soaked and does not dry either that leave a spare set of kit in the office

 

[AndyRM]

Cycle naked?

 

[paulw1969]

as has been said some spare kit left at work for just the same occasion? The spare will get you home and save you putting wet clothes on and you can leave it there unitl need, then once used take it back to work the next day. I'm lucky we have a tumble dryer at work........got to admit it its lashing down before i leave its the car for me...(yeah lighweight i know) ..but come the new year this wont be an option so i will more than likely get wet more often.

Oh and respect to you for commuting in such weather

 

[Andrew_P]

must admit seeing the BBC weather this morning I did feel sorry for anyone travelling by bike in the West of Scotland..

 

[Teuchter]

Thinking about it, bringing spare kit may be a good option, leaving me to just worry about drying jacket and shoes with the desk fan and bagging the rest.

Cycling naked? Well skin does dry quicky enough. Maybe in a pair of speedos

I googled the Dri Buddy which sounds great if it were practical here. Not too much space however and my employers are trying to move towards more "hot desking" which would make it even less practical (and is part of the reason this is starting to bother me more).

Maybe part of the problem is the kit I choose to wear. Standard for me in this weather is my Gore windproof jacket, Ron Hill trousers and overshoes (normal cycling top and shorts underneath that). In my experience, waterproof kit won't stand up to prolonged heavy rain and I'd just sweat more in it to make up for it. Maybe I should think about revising that policy.

 

[glasgowcyclist]

Can you ask your employer for something like a clothes horse for the changing room or some other part of your office? Or even get permission to take in one of your own?

I'm lucky that my desk is right beside a radiator, above which I can hang my wet stuff to dry on a couple of hangers. The days when I couldn't do that and had to cycle home in wet stuff were awful.

There were lots of localised flooding points on my ride in this morning but I really enjoyed it. Partly because it wasn't cold but mostly for the tailwind all the way!


GC

 

[Leaway2]

The Aldi water proof coat and bottoms work for me. Shake and they are dry(ish). My feet do get slightly wet even with overshoes on, but socks dry out fairly quickly on the heater. Of course if it rains mid commute I'm k*******d.

 

[glasgowcyclist]

Maybe part of the problem is the kit I choose to wear.

That's one more thing in favour of lycra; it dries quickly.

As for the shoes, I stuff mine with paper hand-towels and that does a great job of drawing out the moisture.


GC

 

[Teuchter]

That's one more thing in favour of lycra; it dries quickly.

That's exactly my approach - accepting that kit will get wet and trying to choose stuff that dries more quickly instead. The jacket is passably waterproof except in today's sort of weather but being windproof, stays warmer when wet. The waterproof cycling jackets I wore in the past were horrible.

Part of the issue is that there are no radiators in the office - aircon only though having a desk fan on under my desk does an okay job.

I think it'll be spare kit in future.

 

[400bhp]

Can you afford a pair of winter boots? Makes a big difference in terms of an important item of 2 items of clothing (shoes & socks) that you don't have to worry about drying.

 

[ManiaMuse]

Spare kit, a plastic bag and sort it out when you get home. Nothing worse than wet cycling shorts and socks.

Obviously that only works if you remember though...

Sometimes wearing less is better in the rain, it's often warmer than you think.