I use to do that until I started using the Headsweat bands. Bike riding I have not really overcome the band's capacity. But I've managed to impress folks while hiking when I wring a bunch of "water" from my band. Many don't believe it was all me and not that I poured water on my head.

Draped as single layer and loosely worn under the helmet. Also keeps the sun off your neck...

Two helmets. Or more. I have two vented road helmets and one time trial helmet, so there's always a dry helmet. Some of my cycling friends are fashionistas and seem to have a helmet for every day of the week or fashion whim. I might add a third but I can't see having more than that.

You can wash helmets. I usually hand wash my cycling gear, mostly in detergent that's free of fragrances and conditioners or softeners -- supposedly that extra stuff can hinder the performance of tech fabric, I dunno. So I wash my helmet in the same large bucket, just dunking it a few times, swiping it with a soft sponge, rinse and hang it to dry.

Bandanas. I usually wear one and carry a second. Soaks up most sweat, dries as I ride, and most of the salts dry on the bandana rather than on the helmet pads. Usually the bandana will dry crusty with visible salt, but the helmet pad will be merely damp without salty residue. I have around 20 bandanas so there are enough to last a week or more before I need to wash them again.

My Bell Formula MIPS has sweat channels over the brow that work pretty well, but while riding the wind blows the dripping sweat back into my face anyway. I've tried it with and without a bandana and usually prefer with. Depends on the humidity. If it's warm and very humid I might skip the bandana, although I always carry one in a jersey pocket. If I'm sweating so much that it overwhelms the Bell's sweat channel, I'll stop and put on a bandana. Sometimes I wear it completely over my head. Sometimes just over the forehead. Same with running -- I usually wear a bandana.

Most helmet pads peel out easily for washing and dry quickly. And unless it's a discontinued model you can often order spare pads. Most of them fit with Velcro.

As soon as I get home I hang everything over the tub with an oscillating fan on the shelf blowing everything dry. Once my kit is dry it goes into a mesh laundry basket. No worries about mildew, etc., because it's already dry.

My shoes go on top of a HEPA filter that I mostly use to cut down on dust and pet dander (I have three cats), but the air filter also dries my cycling and running shoes quickly.

You'd think this was mostly common sense stuff that people could figure out easily with a little experimentation at home, but I see the same topic pop up on running forums. A popular YouTube running channel host has mentioned one particular pair of shoes getting stinky because he often runs through water overspray from a lake. I have the same shoes, occasionally run in rain and through puddles, and while the upper fabric is a bit thick and best suited to cool/cold weather, I have no problems with the shoes drying out quickly over the HEPA air filter.

And many runners don't seem to realize you can wash most running shoes nowadays -- that info is on the shoe manufacturers' websites. They won't fall apart. I wash my adidas, Under Armour and other running and walking shoes occasionally. No big deal. Even the Under Armour shoes with built in Bluetooth sensors (for cadence, stride length, etc.) can be washed. The sensor is sealed and completely embedded within the dense foam midsole.

I don't understand why blotting the pad with super-absorbent paper towel doesn't solve the problem, unless you're somehow not doing it right. The paper towels I use can suck up anything out of anything. Also, skull-cap.

Short hair and helmet liner. Houston TX.

Same here, got tired of the sweating during our present heat wave and added sweatbands to the head ware.

I wear a head liner, skull cap, head sweat, whatever you want to call them. I often carry a spare, so I can change it, 1/2 way thru my ride

as with the other day, after my hot sweaty ride, I sprayed the inside of my summer helmet with some leftover sanitizer then rinsed it w/ my water bottle. shook off the excess & left it in the back of my car, concave side up. when I use it again, it will be just fine

when I bike commute, I use a 2nd pair of bike shorts for the ride home. I have more than 1 helmet & if the helmet thing bothered me, I would certainly keep a 2nd at the office. regardless, not cleaning the inside of my helmet is not an option. I have hyperhidrosis, so I wash everything, after every ride, right away, every time

I have carried a small towel, tho several sheets of paper towel, is more common in my bike trunk, to dry my face & head of sweat, at the 1/2 way turnaround. I also carry a mesh cap in case I want to go into a public establishment

since this time of year, we sweat so much, rinsing yours with water, then blotting it, will be sufficient? if you start with it a little damp, so what?, it will just be damp from clean rinse water, & you'll be sweating again anyway

yes but they absorb some. with mine, I can wring them out & put them back on my head & continue riding. but yes they won't keep all moisture from making it to your helmet. I carry 2, but I know if I carried 4, I would use them. I wring them out & lash them under a bungee around my bike trunk to air, on the way home

I have also carried a washcloth on the bars, so I can wipe my face periodically. cuz using the back of my gloves or shirt sleeves or the shirt itself may not be enough

in the cooler months I still sweat so I use an ultra thin smartwool beanie

One of the first things I do upon getting back to the house is rinse my helmet off under a stream of water in my laundry room sink. It probably matters not whether it's hot or cold, but the HOT is easier for me to get to when holding my helmet in the other hand.

If I decide to go riding before it dries, so what! It is going to be sweaty soon anyhow. And the water remaining just adds to the cooling effect for a while.

Rinsing it off does keep it from getting all sticky, nasty and smelly.

that's intriguing, got a pic?

oh, I see. they make a thing that looks like a ring around your head. it channels the sweat. never tried one. there are different types. might be worth a try

here's one Sweat GUTR Sweatband

i think those things are meant to go below the helmet line? to keep it from dripping into your eyes. seems like a good solution to a related problem. veo strips are pretty well regarded.

Always wear a cap, preferably one made from a "performance" material. Walz makes some decent caps, but they will last about a season, still worth every penny. Also, I always leave my helmets to dry with the pads facing the sky (or ceiling, since they're indoors). And, yes, I have multiple helmets.

Traditional cycling cap with the short visor absorbs the forehead sweat and pulls it out where it can evaporate.
Most helmet pads can be washed and dried, and the helmet itself can be rinsed in water.

Two words: Halo headband

I got turned on to Halo brand head bands three or four years ago when I moved back to the muggy Southeast. These things are just plain awesome in every way. They incorporate a rubber band across your brow to "dam" and channel the sweat away from your eyes. The super absorbent material soaks up the sweat and transports it to the outside of the band where it sort of evaporates depending on how much you sweat.

They are quite thin and I barely notice I'm wearing it. If I'm on a long ride and sweating a ton, once it gets sweat-logged the extra sweat just drips down my sideburns and not my eyes. If I think about it, once in a while I stop, wring it out and keep on truckin'.

I have three of them including a "bandana" head cover that covers the top of my "streamlined" head from the sun. These things really save your helmet liner too.

Recommend them highly:

I wore a skull cap underneath my helmet at first but now I use a summer weight cycling cap most of the season. Wicks away the sweat and lets it evaporate away.

I use two of these helmet liners (ebay link) - thin / lycra. Adds to the helmet padding and wicks away sweat. Entire helmet gets a rinse under the shower after each ride.

This. Then throw the cap in the wash with everything else (including snotted up gloves, my nose NEVER stops dripping, dang it). Helmet into the shower for a rinse after the ride.

My cotton Waltz cycling cap goes under my helmet. I ride in the mornings so it's nice to have the bill to flip down when I'm riding in the rising sun. It goes in the shower with me after a ride.

I've looked at these in the past online and passed on them, I think because they're pictured (eg. below) as so deep that they come way down over the ears -- not something I'd really want in the summer heat. Are they indeed usually worn like this?

Like others, I have worn headsweats for years.

I think that one is mainly for winter or cold weather riding. My bandana model rides over my ears. The headband is just that, it is worn just like a regular headband and doesn't cover the ears. When it's 98 degrees and 98% humidity down here in the south (or hotter), nothing keeps the sweat at bay like one of these headbands. When I lived in Arizona I wore the bandana model to keep my head from getting cooked. Both keep you cooler also.

I'm going to give the Halo version a shot. I've been using Headsweats for years. But the idea of channeling the waterfall away from the eyes sounds appealing. This would be for hiking as generally that does not happen when I cycle.

halo headband looks great. i think i’ll get an extra set of the helmet pads (if available) and just swap them to accommodate closely spaced rides, and try a headband for longer rides. the cap seems like it would overheat my head even more, but may try that too.

I wear a cycling cap with the top cut off and the brim to the back. Does a good job of wicking the sweat away from my eyes and back towards my neck. Learned it from a blog post on Orica-Greenedge a few years ago.