As any good cycling advocate, I’m obliged to inform you that May is Bike Month. Not only that, but this week in Los Angeles is Bike to Work Week, and, to go even further, today is Bike to Work Day! The LACMTA says they are expecting record participation, and judging from my morning commute I can attest to seeing a number of new bicycle-mounted faces on the road. It’s certainly ideal weather conditions for people to give commuting a shot: temperatures in the mid-70’s and gloriously sunny. That beats the weather from Monday at the beginning of Bike to Work Week which was overcast with a very light drizzle. Still perfectly pleasant in my mind, but probably intimidating for the average fair-weather Southern Californian.
At any rate being a daily bicycle commuter already, riding my bike for one special month or week or day of the year isn’t really a big deal. Instead, I do have two fairly minor goals. The first is to actually ride my bike to work for the entire month. I don’t own a car, but I do have a Vespa that I ride into work maybe one or two days a month. So yeah, two days tops of changing my gas-sipping habits isn’t that big of a deal, but it’s something.
The bigger challenge, actually, is my second goal, which is to be more of a plain-clothes cyclist. I don’t wear lycra bike shorts and jerseys in to work. I don’t even own a pair of lycra shorts (though I do have one pair of wool bike shorts for any kind of special event). What I tend to wear is normal shorts or knickers from Swrve or REI with a wicking wool shirt. That actually look pretty non-bike geeky and would be fine in a bar. But at work, even though it’s jeans and t-shirt casual, the thought of wearing knickers or shorts doesn’t sit right with me. I normally pack a change of clothes in my messenger bag that I bring with me everyday. The irony is that the messenger bag ends up making my back and shirt extra sweaty. Even if it’s a nice looking, wicking, stink-free merino wool t-shirt, I’d rather not wear it around the office waiting for the sweat marks to evaporate. This week, I’ve been rediscovering riding around in normal old pants, be they khakis or even *gasp* jeans, which I had sworn off doing back when I started commuting because they were extremely uncomfortable. I’m finding now that jeans aren’t so bad – the difference being the underwear.
Sorry to speak so candidly of my undergarments, but wicking underwear is absolutely key! Cotton boxers simply will not do. Patagonia active briefs are pretty good, but even better are these Icebreaker merino wool boxer briefs. They are the ultimate shiznit. Kind of pricey, but so very, very worth it.
At any rate, now that I no longer need to pack an extra pair of pants, I’m able to use my saddle bag for my commute luggage, relieving my sweaty back and even allowing me to wear the same shirt I rode to work in around the office. Hurray for simplification!
I still wear dorky bike shoes, though. I can’t get over how much I like clipless pedals. However, I picked up a pair of Keen cycling sandals at REI recently with my member dividend, and they have been treating me very well – still dorky, but not as much as my Sidis.
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[...] rides than last summer during the Hot Knives’ Le Grand Crew ride. Anyway, he had written this post about Bike To Work Day, which discussed the event’s significance and then segued into bike clothing — [...]
I Adore It When A Series Of Unrelated Factors Coalesce So Serendipiticiously » [sic] added these pithy words on May 18 08 at 7:18 am
