plain clothes commute

[simongt]

Ahh, I stopped wearing jeans when I grew up - !
Back when I were lad, it was smart, close fitting Levis or Wranglers; nothing else would cut it with the lasses - !

 

[Rusty Nails]

Ahh, I stopped wearing jeans when I grew up - !
Back when I were lad, it was smart, close fitting Levis or Wranglers; nothing else would cut it with the lasses - !

So will I

 

[Andy in Germany]

Part of the problem is that modern mass manufactured fashion oriented clothes are not made with active travel in mind. They are cut, sewn and seamed in arkward places, not a problem if you are inactive all day, only venturing occasionally from room to room, and using cars to travel about.

This is my experience too, also for shoes which generally seem to be made for people who walk from the car to the office and back again. People ask why I wear hiking/work boots and work clothes (well, not verbally but they give me funny looks) but it's because these are the only clothes still made for people that move around.

Mind you, in winter most people notice the leather Akubra hat and avoid me as a wierdo anyway.

It doesn't seem to rain much in London if you do a five and a half mile trip twice a day.

So cycling is a sort of anti-rain measure? Is 5.5 miles the minimum to be effective? Can you come and commute here for a bit, it's been raining for ages.

(I'll get my coat)

 

[steveindenmark]

My 20km commute to work is done in lycra cycling attire and high viz jacket. I am not speedy gonzalez and have no wish be to be a pro cyclist. But I have changing facilities and showers at work. My work clothes stay in my locker and my riding gear hangs in the changing room to dry, ready for my ride home.

I find lycra comfortable to ride in as it stretches and there are no seams to dig in and start rubbing.

For rides under 10km I often ride in jeans and "normal" clothes. But it is not as comfortable as being in lycra. Its not a fashion statement. Its just comfortable and practical.

 

[confusedcyclist]

I can't agree at all. Jeans were originally conceived as tough hardwearing clothing for undertaking physical work in, NOT as fashion items!.

But poorly cut clothes and badly placed seams are a modern problem. Jeans were hardly active wear, although I don't dispute they were designed to durable for physical jobs. Looking to the past, active wear looked like this (note, I am not suggesting we should revert to knickerbockers);

People simply don't get around on foot anymore which is why no one makes a big enough fuss so that manufacturers improve their designs. And stuff is no longer made to measure due to industrial manufacturing/idiotically applied economies of scale. Less is more if it means you've got one or two good fitting items of clothing, rather than a wardrobe full of stuff you can't move in.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

But poorly cut clothes and badly placed seams are a modern problem. Jeans were hardly active wear, although I don't dispute they were designed to durable for physical jobs.
People simply don't get around on foot anymore which is why no one makes a big enough fuss so that manufacturers improve their designs. And stuff is no longer made to measure due to industrial manufacturing/idiotically applied economies of scale.

Badly fitting stuff is a triumph of fashion over practicality, and is entirely the remit of the wearer. I don't have any made-to-measure stuff and I get on fine so long as the stuff is correctly sized and not a crippling tight fit. That's the difference, the sizing. If you look at old photos, much of the wear will be "baggy" by modern standards, especially trousers. That doesn't mean they didn't have seams, just they weren't worn tight enough to rub or exert pressure on the wearer.
Plenty of people do still get around on foot, and plenty of people also spend a lot of time on their feet whilst working.
Mainstream, mass-produced clothing has never been made to measure. That was the preserve of two opposite ends of the spectrum; bespoke tailors and home-made DIY clothing. Levi's jeans have been made for over 140 years and to the best of my knowledge they were always made in various standard off-the-peg sizes. The budget of the typical industrial worker would not run to the expense of employing a Jewish master tailor to cut his denims!

 

[si_c]

I'm currently wearing lycra to work (winter bib tights) as they are warmer, and better fitting for my 20km each way commute in the current weather. Usually through spring/summer/autumn I wear short and t-shirt or MTB shorts and a jersey depending on the weather. I'm changing jobs from next week however and I'll have a significantly shorter commute (4km each way) so I'll probably just wear my regular work clothes.

 

[confusedcyclist]

The budget of the typical industrial worker would not run to the expense of employing a Jewish master tailor to cut his denims!

Whilst top hats, dinner suits, and silk garments would have been, made to measure was not the preserve of the elite. 200 years ago, every single garment was made by hand, even if the textiles themselves were woven in steam-powered looms. Prior to the establishment of the market economy and industrialisation, 95% of the UK population lived outside of towns (where only the wealthiest will have used and had access to skilled tailors and fancy materials and items). In rural areas clothes were made at home, to suggest that they were not made to measure is absurd. Off the peg clothing is a relatively modern phenomenon. Only the poorest of the poor will have had to wear second-hand items (clearly not made to measure) and only then because they were destitute.

Of course, hand made clothes were expensive (time intensive), so the working classes had only a few items, for some that might be only the clothes on their backs, but that doesn't mean they didn't fit well.

As interesting as it is, we have gone quite off topic now!

 

[Andy in Germany]

Plenty of people do still get around on foot, and plenty of people also spend a lot of time on their feet whilst working.
Mainstream, mass-produced clothing has never been made to measure. That was the preserve of two opposite ends of the spectrum; bespoke tailors and home-made DIY clothing. Levi's jeans have been made for over 140 years and to the best of my knowledge they were always made in various standard off-the-peg sizes. The budget of the typical industrial worker would not run to the expense of employing a Jewish master tailor to cut his denims!

I'm one of those people who spends a lot of time on my feet whilst working. That's why I look like a walking advert for workwear shops: they make clothes that are built to last when you are moving about in them.

Even my 'cycling' gloves are 'winter assembly gloves' because they are made for dexterity. Oh, and as you say they are cheap(ish) for their durability.

 

[mjr]

Cotton T-shirt, wool jumper, under a wind proof climbing jacket, wooly merino hat and a pair of Levis Commuter Cordura trousers and walking boots. I was plenty warm, had to hold back a little bit on the steep climbs. I didn't arrive too sweaty, I was impressed with how the cotton tshirt held out. I have previously heard people strictly advise against cotton due to it's propensity to feel cold when wet. I assume I got my layers just right this morning, I felt nice and toasty. The merino hat was a bit chilly though, on account of it not being wind proof at all.

Yeah, the advice against cotton is often overstated. As I understand it, the danger is that you get a cotton base layer wet (whether through sweat or from not putting a waterproof outer on in rain because you'd sweat out because you're working too hard) and then you stop working so you and it cool down and then you're basically stood out in the wind in a damp cloth - very cold. The countermeasures are not to work hard enough to soak it (many of us can slow down enough) and to change damp cotton for dry one before you cool down.

Cotton mid layers don't see to be so prone to getting wet from sweat, but can of course still get soaked by rain if you don't have something waterproof outside it. My winter wear is often a cotton or bamboo base layer with a cotton flannel shirt as a mid layer, then sometimes a fleecy jumper if cold, and if needed a wind/waterproof outer.

Ultimately, cotton's fine for everyday if used with a tiny bit of care. Original Mackintosh's are cotton, after all, but with rubberised waterproof outers.

 

[beany_bot]

I've cycled for 30 years and never felt the need to wear lycra.

 

[icowden]

I just wear a t-shoot and my coat (jumper if cold). My only "lycra" is my Endura Humvee's as they are comfy and support my gentlemans particulars.
Showering at work is available, but I don't usually get sweaty unless the weather is hot. I don't cycle in my work clothes as it's nice to change and if I do get soaked, I can hang up my bike stuff to dry and still have clothes to wear.