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Comment by rconti | Hacker News Reader

The consistency is a vastly underrated quality of bike commuting. One amazing thing I've found is I'm more likely to do social events after work, even ones that are a great distance, if I don't have to worry about traffic.

For example, sometimes after I work I bicycle 90 minutes to San Jose and don't think twice about it. If I had my car it would PROBABLY take 45 minutes, but I honestly have no idea. Or I could go home, and drive to the train station, and catch the train, then walk. But the bike gives me the freedom to not worry about schedules and also not stress about delays.

It sounds so silly to prefer to ride for twice as long as I'd drive and consider that a "win", but there's some kind of psychological block to dealing with traffic and the fact that a 15 minute drive instead takes 45 or 30 or 50 or 60 minutes.. but when the bicycle ride takes 90 minutes with or without traffic, it's so much more appealing.

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Sorry for the basic question, but how do you bike for 90 minutes without being covered in sweat and needing a shower when you arrive at your destination?

I'm not the original poster, and I'm about to write something gross, but I commute for long times too and I find the sweat less of an issue than I originally expected (I do live in a climate that is not overly hot and humid, though). I avoid using a backpack (in favor using panniers) so that my back isn't all sweaty, and for the rest I find that the sweat dries up quickly and doesn't leave a trace. In the worst case I take a spare t-shirt and a deodorant stick.

You don't. I would be worried whether the cow-orkers share this view (simply because everybody is habituated to their own smell, not noticing it as much).

Good point with the backpack though - with it, I was sweating like a racehorse, even after coming out of the shower; without, I was only sweating.

I'd bet that you could walk for 90 mins even at a fast pace without getting all sweaty? If so then you can cycle for 90 mins without getting sweaty :)

Seriously though, I have 2 main modes of commute cycling: 1 as fast as I can manage, which I only do when I know I can shower at either end 2 at a pretty decent pace but one where I know that I'll stay cool and dry enough to not be a sweaty mess. Depending on the temp and how far I might slow right down for the last few minutes just to cool off.

The right clothes also help - even going pretty fast in lycra you'll stay cool enough. Cycling in full work clothes is doable but not fun for miles and miles.

Main thing for me was not carrying a bag on my back, as that makes me sweaty no matter the speed. I have a small bag for clothes on the front of my road bike (super cheap off ebay) and a rack on the back for bits. I try not to commute with a laptop - I've not needed to really so far.

I've been riding with a pannier on my back rack (instead of using a backpack) for 4 of the 6 months. I still get that "what did I forget?" feeling when I pull out onto the road. It's so amazingly freeing not having the weight tied to my back and the sweat that goes along with it.

Ease off on your pace for the last 10-15 min so your body has a chance to cool off. If you are showering regularly you remove the bacteria that cause the stank, so sweating by itself won't cause most people to be excessively funky.

On my morning commute it's not bad, because mornings are cool. If I put on a windbreaker due to the chill, then I get a little bit sweaty. Once I stop riding, the sweat naturally dries after a few minutes. I don't need a shower just because I perspired somewhat.

If I'm going down to San Jose I'm probably meeting friends at a bar or going to a show or something. Hardly the end of the world to work up a mild sweat and then my body dries after I stop, then as I start to feel a chill, I put warmer clothes on. It's not an issue.

It's a good question. In my climate, eight months out of the year it's impossible to ride for more than twenty minutes without getting sweaty, but I find that most days don't need a full shower to freshen up. Just take a washcloth with you, get it wet, and do a once-over when you change clothes. Re-apply deodorant and you're fine. There are still a lot of days (almost every day in the height of summer) where it's so hot that just being outside is enough to make you sweat, and after any significant time on the bike, you will continue sweating bullets even in the frigid office air conditioning while your body cools down. In that case, arrive a little early, work at your desk until you stop sweating, and then go wipe off and change. You won't smell bad while the sweat is fresh (as long as your bike clothes don't accumulate a vile odor — be careful about this.) Cleaning off before you stop sweating is a mistake.

Alcohol-based wet wipes are the nuclear option if you still have odor issues. Obviously they're not very green to use every day, but having some on hand can give you peace of mind if you're afraid you might unexpectedly need to go face-to-face with upper management or a customer.

Good clothes help. I wear a lot of icebreaker merino wool stuff (yes, even t-shirts) and they simply never stink. But I also commute in 'normal' cotton/poly clothes.

True "workout" gear stinks to high heaven. I'm not sure what they put in gym shirts and shorts but once you sweat, it's all over. Don't wear that stuff when commuting to work!

Normally I commute in a t-shirt, a merino sweater/sweatshirt, and jeans with bike shorts (padded liners) underneath. They're basically like the underwear version of bike shorts -- not something to be worn solo.

Wool works great for me as well. The old synthetic stuff (say, ten years ago) used to just get smellier and smellier until it would gross you out straight out of the washer. Newer synthetics aren't as bad, but they're still stinkier than wool.

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