Yeah but still no fun putting on wet clothes. How do you store your bike? In one case I had a bike locker... the bike locker itself got quite warm, so I'd just drape the clothing over the bike. Later I brought some plastic hangers and put the clothes on the hangers and hung the hangers from the bike.

Hanging wet clothes in a narrow clothes locker never seemed to work well.

Another place I worked had a large chainlink cage where bikes went. I used the same hanger idea and hung the clothes from the fence.

A different place I just hung my clothes in a utility closet.

By your desk in a cube farm is not good, but if there is decent air circulation it can work... consider using a small fan to move the air around.

No reason that won't work for jersey and socks, too.

If I know it is going to be wet then I pack extra socks. I hang my clothes in our shower area and remove my insoles from my shoes. I also take a blow dryer to the clothes until mostly dry. If it has been rainy for quite a few days then I consider packing separate gear for the ride home but that is a hassle especially if you are limited on your really cold gear.

+1. I've never *heard* any objections when I hang up my merino undies and socks on the rungs of a spare office chair, the baselayer/jersey on the back of said chair, and any leggings on the seat. They hardly smell, and dry out quickly that way.

Having to put on cool, damp stuff is miserable unless it's really hot out. I recommend against it.

We have a secure area (badge to get in) outdoor area to store the bikes, dark so clothes wouldn't dry. I think decent fast drying clothes, rinsed if possible and dried under my desk with a fan is my initial plan. Thanks to everyone for their suggestions, I'm looking forward to riding and will report back-most likely April after my first ride! Initially I'll only ride one way-to work one day, home the next, will mean the clothes won't be an issue, but the plan is to ride both ways 2-3 days a week.

I've now done my commute 4 times, one way each day. Construction on my route means it is 30 miles each way, so I am tight on time at two hours-some traffic lights and traffic jams add to my overall time. One thing I should have counted on-being made fun of in my spandex at my office! I am enjoying the ride a great deal, although I got caught in a rainstorm today. Within the next month I'll start riding both ways once or twice a week. Thanks for the advice on this site, you guys are a great resource!

I give you props for going for it. I will say that I personally would not put on clothes I'd soaked from a long a ride. I would do the two sets of clothing and a plastic bag option. If the under-desk solution works, great. I guess I'd worry about bacteria and skin irritation with dirty clothing. I'm a bit of a germaphobe.

I'm sorry you got that impression, most of us welcome all bike commuters, even those who drive their car sometimes () and newbies.

I have lycra jerseys and cycling shorts and most of the time, hanging them to dry (I too sweat a lot) is sufficient to dry them out in time for the ride home. However, sometimes my shorts aren't fully dry and they'll be "cold" to put on but just for a moment. If your bike is in a safe enough area, you could consider hanging your clothes over your bike, I've done that too, even when my bike is locked to the rack outside our building on the sunny south side of our building (it's great on days when I've ridden in during rain or showers and then the weather turns warm/hot and sunny).

Dealing with wet clothes is one of my biggest issues from bike commuting. At my old office, I hung my clothes to dry on a coat rack in my room and they easily dried by the end of the work day. However, my office moved to a new "green" building a couple of years ago, and the powers-that-be determined that we could no longer have coat racks in our rooms for some unexplained reason. I tried hanging my clothes in the shower room, but they were often still damp at the end of the day, so I got permission to hang my clothes in a storage room.

I wasn't aware of any issues until some of the prissies in our office complained about my clothes hanging the storage room, even though very few people ever enter this room and seldom stay in there for more than a couple of minutes. I always hung my clothes in the far corner of the room so they would not be in plain sight when you entered the room or blocking anything. Long story short, the prissies removed my clothes from the storage room and unceremoniously dumped them in my office. When I inquired about what happened, I was told that it "inappropriate" to keep my clothes there, even though our business manager (and the person responsible) had suggested that I use the room in lieu of a coat rack.

So now I am back to square one, hanging my clothes in the shower room. However, my manager has given me permission to put a coat rack in my office, but I will probably have to smuggle it in during a weekend so the green police don't stop me.

If you can take a shower, just wash the clothes in the shower with you then get as much water out of them as you can. Then keep them hung up in your office. No smell that way and they should dry out.

I have a co-worker who runs at lunch time in a wicking shirt and his shirt absolutely stinks!! So, it's not about the material but rather than the person's body, how much they sweat, their glands and their cleanliness. (Regarding cleanliness, I use very little soap: armpits and front and rear groin areas; no shampoo, no soap or wash on body, just a good shower rinse. I do use deodorant but I generally don't stink that much at the worst of times so the message is that different bodies produce different odours.)

However, I do believe that 100% merino wool long-/short-sleeved shirts and jerseys do prevent or reduce odours from forming.

Can you sneak in 3-4 3M Command Hooks to hang on the back of your door instead?

I've accepted the fact that my clothes will likely still be slightly damp at the end of the day. And I'm ok with it.

I belong to the LA Fitness downstairs from my office, so when I get to work in the mornings I go in there to shower and then I hang stuff in my locker all day while I'm at work upstairs. I turn my bibs inside out so the pad dries. After work, I come downstairs, change clothes, lift if it's a lifting day and then ride home.

It's pretty rare for my clothes to be completely dry. But I don't have a clothes line in my cube or elsewhere in the office. I park my bike in the mailroom and so far, no issues about it being there. The only things I leave in there are my shoes, stashed neatly under my bike, and my helmet, perched on my bars.

There's a push that's starting soon, to spur our employees to be more healthy (we apparently have a high obesity rate in the company .. which impacts our health care costs) ... so I'm thinking about trying to push for a secured bike room or something, and suggest the company consider subsidizing memberships to the club downstairs

Huh huh. You said groin.

Its still a bit cold in the morning so I am using arm and leg warmers; since I'm only riding one way at a time just now, I just take my damp clothes home. When things warm up (and I get a few more miles under my belt), I'll rinse out my shorts and dry them as much as possible and experiment with jerseys-either bring in an extra one, or ride home in a damp one. I've been spoiled up til now, most of my riding is done on country roads, very little traffic-commuting on highways with rush hour traffic is definitely more challenging. All in all though, I'm enjoying the experience.

Coat racks are banned? Where do people hang their, you know, coats?

summer soon and you'll be wearing less. when I had a similar situation I had a 2nd set for the ride home. when you get there wrap everything in a plastic bag then a duffle and try to stow that in a good place. ask your boss for help. we had a basement storage area near a bathroom so I was able to arrive before anyone else and strip wash change and stow. I carried the wet stuff home everyday. the warmer it gets the less you wear and the less you carry. commuters carry, get used to it ... there are some amazing rear trunks, I like this one very much. mine is black but I like this red one

Hunchback Rack Trunk - Timbuk2 Bags

Bike to Work with Timbuk2 : TreeHugger

Custom Messenger Bags | Laptop Messenger Bags Backpacks - Timbuk2 Bags

Our offices have small lockers with a door that are supposed to take the place of coat racks, but the locker is too small for my bike clothes and clothes won't dry due to lack of ventilation.

I've now done my 30 mile (one way) commute for a month and a half, ridden both ways in one day four times, usually ride in one day, out the next-I take the bus when not riding. The wet clothes issue has been pretty much solved by washing my shorts in the morning when I get to work while I shower. I have a window ledge that I can dry them on-never fully but as another poster said, they will be damp soon enough anyway. shirt and socks I hang up and they dry completely (not washed). I've learned to keep an extra tube at work-had a flat on the way in; I also scrutinize the hourly rain forecast before firming up my ride schedule. Thanks again for all the advice, I'm now enjoying my commute to and from work!

Awesome. 30 miles is a tough distance for a commute. Good job.

+1

I don't know why everybody else is making this so complicated. Keep a set of clean, dry "ride home" clothes at work at all times, as well as a stock of plastic grocery bags.. Whenever you feel like it, ride into work, dump wet clothes into plastic bag and tie it off. Whenever you ride home, use clean dry clothes. Whenever you are not riding, reset the system by bringing used clothes home or fresh clothes to work.

i agree thirty miles is a long time to be in the saddle. I hope the family doesn't mind

Ignore this if you need a cycling jersey with pockets, but I've found some shirts I really like. I have always sweated profusely but stuck with cotton tee shirts for cycling and other athletics because that's what I've always worn. I saw the Nike and UnderArmour wicking shirts at Sports Authority and elsewhere but wasn't about to spend $20 - $25 for ONE tee shirt when I have a closet full of old tee shirts at home.

Then I found myself in an Old Navy store recently and saw their store-brand quick-dry shirts priced at $12 regularly but on sale for $8. I bought one and it is great. Tomorrow is payday for me and I'm going back to buy a few more.

Often I can literally wring sweat out of a cotton tee shirt when I get off my bike but this shirt stays quite dry on my body and what little bit of moisture it might retain when I take the shirt off dries very quickly. The Old Navy shirt is plenty long enough to tuck in and have it stay tucked in when leaning over on the bike. It is a bit baggy which might bother the skin-tight aero gang but I think it's fine, especially for the money!

Cheap wicking shirts here: Men's Clothes: Activewear Sale | Old Navy

we have showers at work too. depending on how much your employers cares about the appearance of such things...i hang my towel and shirt right on my bike. however, our parking area is out of view of clients if they're doing a walk through. also, be conscientious of your co-workers. if you're in a cube farm they may not appreciate your smelly rags through the course of a day.

Kids are grown, only one still at home-wife does yoga after work, so family is all good! I couldn't have taken this much time (or I would have had to ride faster!) when the kids were younger and had activities. As I mentioned earlier in the thread, it takes me about 1:45 to ride, bus ride and ride home from stop was 1:15 anyway so not much more but now I don't have to squeeze in a ride after I get home!