blitzo

I have decided to start commuting to work by bicycle more often. It is a 30 mile round trip. I have only done it on my road bike a few times and I bring my clothing in the day before. I am getting a single speed cyclocross bike to use for dedicated commuting. I originally planned to put a rack on the bike and carry the clothing in a small bag bungee corded to the rack. Does any one have any other recommendations for carrying clothes on a bike? Never really cared for cycling with a backpack but considering it will just be clothing inside it shouldn't be that bad.

UberGeek

Do they need to be pressed? If so, I'd recommend a garment pannier. If not a big deal (I wear shorts and t shirts at work), what you suggest is fine (Bungeed to the rack).

fietsbob

How about a front set of Panniers ? they are small .. if the rack is above the wheel, the bags could be joined.

trouble with backpacks is a lot of sweat gets evaporated by your back.. to cool you..

blitzo

They will not need to be pressed. Most of my work clothes are wrinkle free fabrics so there shouldn't be any issues with stuffing them in a bag.




I never thought of carrying the clothing on a front rack, I will look into this further.

BaggerRyder

I carry my clothes in a rear pannier. Jeans, belt, socks, shoes, boxers, T-shirt and towel.
I roll my jeans and t-shirt instead of folding them so they are less wrinkled. Button up shirts are left at work and picked up by dry cleaners on Fridays and ready Monday.

kenji666

What if it rains?

J.C. Koto

When I was concerned about rain I'd roll my clothes (business casual attire), and stuff the rolls in gallon ziploc bags which were then stuffed in a rear pannier. They'd stay perfectly dry and quite wrinkle-free.

Nowadays I can wear whatever I want so I don't worry about clothes, but if I did, I'd do the same as above but perhaps with a trunk bag instead of the (rather too-large) pannier simply for off-bike convenience of toting the luggage around.

fietsbob

Ortlieb,and a few other welded seam panniers are shower Proof, the roller closure types,
will handle Immersion like river bags ,
I'm using a pair of Ortlieb Sport Packers , through several Oregon Coastal winters..
rain is in inches in a few minutes when a marine squall comes ashore.

no1mad 

Lots of possible options.

With a traditional rear rack:

-Your original idea will work
-Large, expandable trunk bag
-Pannier(s)

Without the rack:

-Carradice

There are a myriad of other options, but the ones I listed would be the most aesthetically appealing on your build- Wald folders and/or milk crate just would not look right on a SSCX.

Izengabe

I just bought one of these:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-CYCLING-...71231497198%26

Its a Highson suit commute cycling backpack that's designed to carry a work suit (without wrinkling it) while you ride to work. I looked for months to try and find someone selling one in the US. When I couldnt I finally gave up and order one from the UK on ebay and paid the insane shipping charge. I think the company that was making them was some kind of start up that was featured on the UK version of the TV show Shark Tank and I'm not really sure if they are still in business.

baron von trail 

Backpack in the winter, bringing in and taking home a few clothes everyday. Since some clothes can be worn more than once, in summer, I try to stock up and leave a few different changes of clothes at the office, exchanging them only when I drive. THis year, I began carrying underwear and socks in a small bag I hang off my crossbar, exchanging them every one or two days.

baron von trail 

Now there's an idea.

redbuda

Chrome bag.

Izengabe

I send out my shirts & suits for dry cleaning by my office too. I've been doing that for years. I also keep a pair of dress shoes in my office at all times and since I only wear them around the office they are usually my nicest pair with the least amount of wear and tear on them!

PaulRivers

Maybe there's something special about your job that would prevent this, but if it's possible to bring them in the day before, have you considered just leaving a change of clothes at work permanently?

Shoes - can never be washed really (with a few exceptions for especially dirty jobs).
Pants - usually only wash them once a week.
Shirt - I don't wash my shirt every time I wear it. I just find that it doesn't matter - what matters for smell is always showering. Of course I could just be lucky in the body odor department. But even then, you could leave multiple shirts at work - or *just* carry a shirt on your bike.

As for what to carry them in - just put them in a trunk bag that goes on your rack. Here's one -
https://www.amazon.com/MTX-Trunk-rigi...ords=trunk+bag

Here's a cheaper one -
https://banjobrothers.com/products/cu.../rack-top-bag/

Using bungee cords is just a disaster waiting to happen - I tried that once, my jacket sleet worked itself loose and caught itself in the rear tire. Fortunately it didn't bring the bike to a halt and crash, but it did rip a big hole in the jacket sleeve. You said it would be in a bag, but the bag can come off...anyways, point being, they make bags that are specifically designed to attach to a rack, and they're more reliable than using a bungee cord.

But mostly, unless you're actually commuting every single day of the week, the best solution is to leave an extra set of clothes at work so you don't have to carry them back and forth.

Ritterview

You can compress your clothes into a much smaller, and waterproof, bag with Eagle Creek Pack-It® Compression sacs.



If need be, you can squirrel away a bottle of Downy Wrinkle Release at work.

BaggerRyder

Another option if you have two vehicles is drive your car and bike to work on Monday. Leave a weeks worth of clothes in your car and leave your car at work for the week. On Friday drive the car and bike home. Commute by bike Monday evening through Friday morning.
This also gives you a vehicle to drive at lunch incase something comes up and you need to run an errand. Obviously this can't always be done if the parking lot isn't secure or if there isn't a parking lot.

the sci guy 

attach a medium height upright pole with an arm, to the rack eyelets on the back of your bike. Hang clothes from pole.
now it will look like you kind of have a cape as they flail out behind you when riding.

arsprod 

Waterproof panniers are nice but I didn't want to spend the money. I carry biz casual clothes and shoes in inexpensive REI dry sacs which go inside rear panniers (Nashbar ATB). When I get to work I just pull the dry bags out and leave the panniers on the bike. On the occasions I have to wear big boy clothes at work I've actually gotten a suit/sportcoat, tie and dress shirt into these and after hanging for 10 minutes or so they were fine. My ride's about 50 minutes

wphamilton

Having a rack, a bungee cord bundle is the most convenient in my opinion. Instead of the rack I have an alternative that works really well but which you don't see often. I put some straps and hooks on the bottom of a light-weight draw-string style backpack which I utilize as a frame bag. two straps go around the seatpost, high and low. The drawstring loops around the head tube, around the top tube and latches. A velcro strap in the middle of the pack fastens over the top tube. On or off in about 20 seconds, out of the way and no rack needed. It works for me.

alan s 

Topeak Explorer rack, MTX DXP bag and rain cover. Pricey, but worth the money.

Leebo

I need my car for work so I leave my bike at work. Monday am, drive car with all clothes for the week. Pedal and drive home as needed. Friday pm, leave bike at work, drive home with stinking trunk full of work and bike clothes. Repeat monday am.

InTheRain

I have at least one weeks worth of wardrobe that I just leave at work. Shirts (6) are laundered every other week and pants (4) once each month. Shoes stay at work. I only carry socks and underwear back and forth on the commute. Yes, it would be a pain to carry a full wardrobe each day. I usually have enough bicycle clothing/rain gear to fill up a pannier in the winter. This time of year is perfect. I can carry everything I need (socks, underwear, wallet, phone, keys) in my jersey pockets.

seafood

I try to get the basic hardware setup such that it gives me the greatest array of options for carrying cargo, which is to say, keep the kit basic and versatile. I have a rear rack and some bungee cords. This lets me secure most any standard backpack or a bag to the rack. If there is chance of rain, I can put the whole thing in a large enough garbage bag. If I am being extra paranoid and I have electronics inside, I can wrap those things in smaller shopping plastic bags as well.

Clothes are not a big problem. Plastic bags are your friend. I do my laundry and ironing done on the weekends most of the time. This goes a long way toward keeping everything clean and wrinkle-free. Roll shirts and pants and if they are of reasonable quality and fit, they will look just fine when you get to work and change. Just don't leave pants rolled up stuffed in a bag overnight. For pants, especially if you intend to use the same pair more than one day a week, wool helps stave off wrinkles. Each day, I carry with me a change of socks and underwear, as well as shoes, shirt and dress pants for the office. If my riding clothes get wet in the morning, I do my best to air everything out. If my riding shoes are soaked and there's no chance of them getting dry by the time I ride home, I might wrap my feet in plastic bags (like socks). Looks dorky as all hell, but it really does work. Another thing to get right is keeping your stinky clothes away from your clean clothes. The best way to do it is to put all dirty items in a plastic bag (there's a theme here) and tie it off straight away, even if your clean clothes are not in the main bag at the time, exposed smelly stuff can really stink up the bag and make anything else you put in there afterward smelly too.

Someone mentioned earlier that keeping a backpack on your back can induce additional sweating and exertion. That's very true. A rack -- no matter how you choose to use it -- is great for your commute. I'm still experimenting with mine and finding new ways of carrying various things on it without spending big money on specialty panniers or bags.

Corwin

I use the Tidy Cats bucket pannier. It's cheap, durable, and waterproof.