Shower after cycling to work?

Hello,

After reading the "Copenhagenized Cycleliciousness" thread I was
curious about bike commuters' need to shower after biking in to work.

Me? I just need washcloth to wipe up my sweaty body. I'm lucky that,
because I have a buzz cut, I don'thave to worry about my hair.

I wonder how rare it is for workplaces to have showers for bike
commuters?

If your job doesn't have a shower, bike commuters, what do you do?

Cullen

On Jul 19, 3:21 pm, " wrote:

Me? I just need washcloth to wipe up my sweaty body. I'm lucky that,
because I have a buzz cut, I don'thave to worry about my hair.

I wonder how rare it is for workplaces to have showers for bike
commuters?

I don't think it's as rare as generally thought. All four of my
workplaces had showers, but in two of them they were rather hidden and
unknown to almost all of the workers. They were primarily for use by
the maintenance staff but there were no objections to use by others
such as bike commuters. One was down in the basement tucked away at
the end of a long corridor past various building equipment rooms and
in the other they were accessed through an unmarked door in one of the
restrooms.

But the washcloth wipedown and a brief cooling off period works well
too if showers aren't available.

wrote:
....

If your job doesn't have a shower, bike commuters, what do you do?
....

I'm only 4 KM from work, so I ride slowly. Except for the hottest, most
humid days, not much of a sweat.

Jeff ? wrote:
wrote:
...

If your job doesn't have a shower, bike commuters, what do you do?
...

I'm only 4 KM from work, so I ride slowly. Except for the hottest, most
humid days, not much of a sweat.

Being that close to work and having to ride slowly takes the fun out it.

--
Tom Sherman - Holstein-Friesland Bovinia
"People who had no mercy will find none." - Anon.

wrote in message
...

I wonder how rare it is for workplaces to have showers for bike
commuters?

If your job doesn't have a shower, bike commuters, what do you do?

At my new job, it's a 12 or so mile ride in. While it's mostly flat, the
final last couple of miles are at a 12% grade, and yeah, I work up a sweat
coming up the hill.

At first, I didn't think I had a shower available, so I showered before the
ride, and then did a bird bath at the sink in the bathroom. Then, my boss
finally directed me to the rumored shower, and now I use it every time. I
just feel much fresher afterwards.

At the new place we'll be moving to, you'd think that I'd make sure that a
shower is part of the deal as I negotiate the lease. Well, unlike my current
work place, where I informally tie the bike to a downspout under an eave,
I'll have covered and locked bike parking at the new place. But no shower.
There is a janitor's closet with a floor sink and a hose on the faucet, and
I know from using these in the past, they work fine as a shower of sorts.
You just have to be careful with the direction of the hose.

--
Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky
http://www.bicyclemeditations.org/
See the books I've set free at: http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky

On Jul 19, 6:21*pm, " wrote:
Hello,

After reading the "Copenhagenized Cycleliciousness" thread I was
curious about bike commuters' need to shower after biking in to work.

Me? I just need washcloth to wipe up my sweaty body. I'm lucky that,
because I have a buzz cut, I don'thave to *worry about my hair.

I wonder how rare it is for workplaces to have showers for bike
commuters?

If your job doesn't have a shower, bike commuters, what do you do?

Cullen

No showers @ my place of employment. I leave a stash of clothes
here. When I arrive, I walk up to my office and get some clean duds.
Then I head to a private bathroom (one-man, that can actually be
locked) and clean myself up with cold water and paper towels. On with
the new threads, and off to work. I'd damn near kill for a shower,
though.

On Sat, 19 Jul 2008 15:21:44 -0700 (PDT), "
wrote:

Hello,

After reading the "Copenhagenized Cycleliciousness" thread I was
curious about bike commuters' need to shower after biking in to work.

Me? I just need washcloth to wipe up my sweaty body. I'm lucky that,
because I have a buzz cut, I don'thave to worry about my hair.

I wonder how rare it is for workplaces to have showers for bike
commuters?

If your job doesn't have a shower, bike commuters, what do you do?

Cullen


15 mile commute in NYC. I keep lots of shirts and some pants at work
but have no shower since we're just tenants in an office building. I
leave home at 6 AM so I miss most of the real heat, plus I don't
really push it and average around 11mph.

Originally I took the bike into work on the subway and just rode home,
precisely because I was worried about smelling, but I tried biking in
one day and it worked out ok. I can towel off in the men's room plus I
keep deodorant around.

I have more trouble in the winter because, no matter how much wicking
stuff I wear, I end up pretty much soaked The summer is a simple light
layer so it's easy to deal with.

On Jul 19, 6:21*pm, " wrote:
Hello,

After reading the "Copenhagenized Cycleliciousness" thread I was
curious about bike commuters' need to shower after biking in to work.

Me? I just need washcloth to wipe up my sweaty body. I'm lucky that,
because I have a buzz cut, I don'thave to *worry about my hair.

I wonder how rare it is for workplaces to have showers for bike
commuters?

If your job doesn't have a shower, bike commuters, what do you do?

I'm off work for the summer. But where I teach, I could have used the
showers in one of the athletic facilities. I've never bothered. Too
much trouble.

I shower in the morning before work. Luckily, it's mostly flat to
downhill on the way in, and I take it relatively easy. I'd still
arrive a little moist, but I'd just mop my brow.

The only time I had to do more was riding in to teach an evening class
in the summer. Then, I had to ride in during some hot, humid
afternoons. So I sometimes took a fresh undershirt (or occasionally,
rode in shorts) and sat in front of a fan for five or ten minutes
before heading up to my office.

Clean sweat doesn't normally stink. If it does, talk to your
doctor. He can probably suggest a remedy.

- Frank Krygowski

On Jul 21, 9:46*am, Frank Krygowski wrote:


Clean sweat doesn't normally stink. *If it does, talk to *your
doctor. *He can probably suggest a remedy.

- Frank Krygowski

that's my experence too; you just have to ride hard enough to sweat
regularily, stay hydrated with water, and avoid oils, salt and spicy
foods; so your sweat is mostly water, and doesn't sting your eyes.
Wipe that off with a cold wet towel or rubbing alcohol and your're
good to go ( just bag your riding gear and have a fresh set to change
into for the ride home). You'll notice the more you sweat the less it
smells.

Tom Sherman wrote:
Jeff ? wrote:
wrote:
...

If your job doesn't have a shower, bike commuters, what do you do?
...

I'm only 4 KM from work, so I ride slowly. Except for the hottest,
most humid days, not much of a sweat.

Being that close to work and having to ride slowly takes the fun out it.


Well not entirely. It's still better than driving or taking the bus
(although walking is fun). It's fun riding slowly and still keeping up
with the bus that I might otherwise have taken.

And riding home is an exciting serious of sprints (pedal hard and stop
for a light [lather, rinse, repeat]).

And I get a good laugh when the price of gas, or parking, goes up.

A bad trip on my bike still beats a good trip in my car.