General Cycling Discussion - Anybody use athletic shirts in lieu of jerseys?

Anything like a Nike dryfit (?) shirt or any other similar non cycling-specific athletic shirts. functionality wise wouldnt they all work equally well... theyre all meant to wick away sweat. the only feature difference i see is the rear pockets which i personally dont need.

so... good idea? works well?

i think cycling jerseys are too expensive, and i dont like their style/image/stigma :D

I use regular ole sports shirts the colorful ones, 14 bucks at Dicks sporting goods
I also have a couple of jerseys of the Christian variety from Teamsaved.com
Im not real up on advertising beer or bread HA! Anything but cotton!

I use a wicking compression nylon/spandex matierial that was called naturexx but the company is selling what apears to be identical stuff as zyflex, I haven't tryed the stuff branded zyflex however. The naturexx works great- wicks quick, dries fast, feels good, very slick wind wise. It comes in sleaveless, short sleave and long sleeve shirt form and in unpadded compression shorts. I don't recomend their tights, they use a different design than the shorts. http://www.zyflex.com/store/productDetail.asp?id=48&cID=9&sID=6

WalMart has a decent "DriStar" shirt quite reasonably.

No back pockets.

I find I use the back pockets regularly, but if you don't need them then !!

I don't believe it does much wicking, though. However, in our extremely dry climate here, that is not as important to me.

I wear a tank-top made of a very close-knit mesh that doesn't absorb any sweat at all and lets all the wind through.

Since I am an unfashionable commuter and utility Phred, I just use my running gear, or soccer jerseys from the second hand store.

On the other side of the coin, I do find that cycling jerseys are great for running with a backpack. The elastic at the bottom of the jersey prevents the back of the jersey from climbing up your back when wearing a pack.

Dan

When I'm out for long distance rides, I'll generally wear a nice jersey. For commuting, I like to use the WalMart finds. I've gotten some nice UnderArmour clones and Starter DryStar shirts recently. On cooler days, I'll pull a BMX type jersey (again, Wally-World) on.

EBay has become my new shopping ground though.

I wear coolmax t-shirts. Never even owned a jersey. No graphics on the ts at all, which I like.

I use normal athletic shirts. I find that they work fine. I am also finding that I wish I had rear pockets on my longer rides to store food and other things. I'm considering just getting a lightweight vest with a pocket or two to wear over my athletic shirts, so I can have the best of both worlds.

Anything like a Nike dryfit (?) shirt or any other similar non cycling-specific athletic shirts. functionality wise wouldnt they all work equally well

Zippers, my man ... zippers. I must have a zipper to help me cool down. In fact, a full zip is now all that I'll buy. Rear pockets are also pretty handy, but not if you use a Camelbak.

My walmart dristart shirts have zippers that zip to just about halfway down the shirt. They are cooler than my jerseys on hot summer days.

Me, me!! I have yet to buy a single jersey, I use Nike dri-fit singlets. Perfect for weathers over here, but can be cold when it is about to pour. No riding when it's raining too, but I do intend to get leg warmers. Arm warmers have to go with a jersey, so wait till I buy a jersey.

L.L. Bean Coolmax t-shirts here. Best thing I did in ages was ditching cotton t-shirts for the Coolmax ones. Now my t-shirt actually dries up in a few minutes instead of still being wet for the afternoon commute home. In fact, the Coolmax t-short doesn't really much wet at all.

WalMart has a decent "DriStar" shirt quite reasonably.

No back pockets.

I find I use the back pockets regularly, but if you don't need them then !!

I don't believe it does much wicking, though. However, in our extremely dry climate here, that is not as important to me.

Those are the only ones I wear! They wick famously for the price and at less than $8.00 a piece are well worth every cent so I have quite a few! I even use them as a base layer in the winter and they keep my skin dry.

Downsides... no pockets as you said, someone else mentioned further down they have them with zippers though. The sleeves tend to ride up a little but in the summer who cares, it's just a little longer tan.

I couldn't ride without a jersey on long rides ... I fill the back pockets with gel and energy bars. If I'm out for hours, I'll sometimes get a rash under my arms from sweeting for a long period, and the CoolMax jerseys help prevent that from happening.

On a short ride (under 25 miles), I just wear a loose fitting cotton t-shirt. I don't need the pockets, and the wet t-shirt doesn't bother me on shorter rides.

I use RLX's athletic shirt sometimes in lieu of my jersey. It's more comfortable!

Those are the only ones I wear! They wick famously for the price and at less than $8.00 a piece are well worth every cent so I have quite a few! I even use them as a base layer in the winter and they keep my skin dry.

Downsides... no pockets as you said, someone else mentioned further down they have them with zippers though. The sleeves tend to ride up a little but in the summer who cares, it's just a little longer tan.

I have the zipper kind - it is almost 1/2 shirt zipper. Glad to know they wick - I was not aware of that. Thanks. I haven't worn mine much for biking because I like pockets in back.

In use the Nike dri-fits. Some of their ACG jerseys have pockets.

When I use my camelback I don't need pockets so that isn't an issue if you use a hydration pack.

I go shirtless. Better for the tan. I chop down my leftover BDU (Utilities from the Corps), strap on the camelback Bandito 'round the waist, pull on the gloves, and am ready to roll.

I wear those biker shorts (the padded lycra things), but are under the BDUs.

Yup. Wally World synthetic shirts/shorts for me. They are cheap and work well. Don't need pockets. A small backpack slung ofver the seat back does the job. I sometimes wear my old padded or unpadded lycra shorts under the poly shorts on cooler days. No need for all of the specialized stuff on a 'bent.

'bent Brian

Yee haa, another Walmart guy here! I too bought a "DriStar" from Walmart just to see how it would compare to my other synthetic jersey's, and the DriStar is just as good if not better!!!!! That shocked the heck out me! And for only $8? I'll never buy another expensive jersey again. Although on longer rides I still prefer the wool jersey because it won't stink.

At my Walmart they didn't have the zip up jersey though.

anything made of wool or polyester wicks. drifit/dristar/dry-whatever is hogwash.

sd

anything made of wool or polyester wicks. drifit/dristar/dry-whatever is hogwash.

sd


Nike drifit is 100% polyester, as is the reebok, russel etc, versions. You contradict youself beautifully.

nah, i usually jsut wear some cotton/poly blend knit shirts I get for $12 at the discount store. They breathe reasonably well.

anything made of wool or polyester wicks. drifit/dristar/dry-whatever is hogwash.

sd

You need to educate yourself before you make a comment; Dristar from Walmart is 100% polyester as well, just like your $75 Jersey except I paid $8. Now who's ignorant, the person that spends $75 on a Jersey or the person that spends $8 and gets the same thing? I have a $75 jersey and a $125 wool jersey and there no cooler nor any better at wicking than the $8 dollar Walmart Dristar; actually I think the Dristar might be a tad cooler!! But I like the Wool jersey the best, especially on long rides because it don't stink.

anything made of wool or polyester wicks. drifit/dristar/dry-whatever is hogwash.

sd
I'm not sure what these other cats read into that statment? Some replys made no sense, they just sounded like raveing about how much they like stuff made by families chained to sewing machines for a bowl of rice a day. 'Yea Go Walmart' lets see how high the unemployment rate can get. Sorry enough of that.

wool generaly wicks yes especialy the long fiber merino wool, like smart wool.

Polyester is normally very hydrophobic and will repel water rather than wicking it. There is a treatment or texturing prosses that is done when they make the fibers that makes it wick, the weave has less to do with it. Nylon is the same way, but it is more elastic, transmitts infared, and is broke down by UV unless UV blockers are used(not usually the case), while polyester doesn't transmit much infared and is very tolerant of UV. The infared transmittence gives nylon a much cooler feel but also lets the suns infared in so I don't know if the net effect is when in the sun (nylon's definetly cooler in the shade).

Aw man i went on a polyester search today but came up empty:

Wal-Mart: a vrey very small handful of shirts (Dristars)... ofcourse only sizes Medium and up and the Medium is a normal XL. really baggy and ugly
Academy: surprisingly, equally small selection of athletic polyester-blended shirts... plus a few skin-tight Under-Armour
Target: same
Local sport shop: a bunch of skin-tight Under-Armour weight lifting type shirts, few polyester soccer/tennis shirts with collar.


guess its hard to find a simple, slim fitting, simple cut (straight T or v-necked) polyester athletic shirt. im gonna try REI tomorrow

http://worldrugbyshop.com/images/Products/Fullsize/AB03Alt_Big.jpg

rugby jerseys. variety of sizes, and a variety of cuts. some manufacturers make tighter ones to avoid tackles easier. most modern ones all are moisture wicking.