wrinkle

April 18, 2007 5:43 AM

How do you transport your work clothes when riding your bike to work?

I have started bike riding to work everyday however, I have to dress 'business professional' (so either a suit or slacks and a button down). Does anybody have tips for transporting my clothes to limit the wrinkles?

I do not want to ride the bike in my work clothes, since i will be sweating plus dirt that kicks up while riding. What I am doing now is just folding the clothes throwing it in my backpack and changing at work. I cant help but think there is a better way to get my clothes to work that I am not thinking of.

posted by goldism to travel & transportation (24 comments total)

I use panniers instead of a backpack, but same diff. Then I can keep my shoes separate from my clothes and I'm slightly less sweaty.
posted by GuyZero at 5:48 AM on April 18, 2007

Tomorrow, bring 2 suits. Wear one, hang up the other. The next day, bring just one. Hang it up and wear the other. Every succeeding day, do the same thing. It won't be wrinkle-free but at least the worst of the worst will have straightened a little overnight.
posted by DU at 5:49 AM on April 18, 2007 [2 favorites has favorites]

Various companies sell bike panniers designed specifically to carry clothes, like this:

http://www.twowheelgear.com/

although I have never bought or seen such a thing so I can't comment on their effectiveness.
posted by emilyw at 5:52 AM on April 18, 2007 [1 favorite has favorites]

I folded things very carefully and put them in my backpack for a while, but now I just keep about 5 shirts and 2 pair of slacks in my cube (in a garment bag).

If there's a dry cleaners near your office with pickup/drop off service you're all set.
posted by spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints at 6:02 AM on April 18, 2007

My husband packs his in his panniers and changes at work. He buys slacks and shirts that resist wrinkling.
posted by The corpse in the library at 6:07 AM on April 18, 2007

Ya, the secret is to transport a working set of clothes to and from work separately.

Unless you work on your own like me, in which case nobody gives a flying one what you look like.
posted by unSane at 6:07 AM on April 18, 2007

You can also learn to roll your shirts in a way that prevents wrinkling. I attempt to do this, but I use a backpack, which is pretty small and cramped.
posted by M.C. Lo-Carb! at 6:27 AM on April 18, 2007

Presumably you're leaving shoes at work, try the same with pants. 2 pairs works fairly well, 3 is ideal. With the shirts, roll them as someone has suggested.
posted by sien at 6:29 AM on April 18, 2007

It depends somewhat on your office setup; the ideal would be if you have some closet space somewhere. Drive to work once and shuttle most of your work clothes in. Then wear what you want, and send them out to a nearby dry cleaner as needed.
posted by craven_morhead at 6:32 AM on April 18, 2007

I use a packing folder from Eagle Creek. I would leave my suit jackets at work and pack the pants and shirt into the folder, which I then placed in a large messenger bag. The folder would also fit in a backpack.
posted by suasponte at 6:33 AM on April 18, 2007

if you must carry it in your backpack, id consider rolling your clothes instead of folding it. i do that when i pack for any travel trip and my clothes comes out wrinkle-free.
posted by deeman at 7:53 AM on April 18, 2007

thanks for all of the answers, will try out the rolling first...see how that works out...then move up to purchasing something.
posted by goldism at 7:56 AM on April 18, 2007

Ditto: don't fold, roll, loosely.

Pack clothes on top and put as little pressure on them as possible. Pants, fold lengthwise, then roll. Shirts, fold in thirds, arms into the centre, then roll. Use wrinkle-free fabrics. I've been doing this for years without wrinkles, 30 min ride each way.

Alternately, pick a day to drive in and bring in a bunch of shirts.

Keep shoes at your desk, don't transport them. They're heavy!
posted by bonehead at 8:26 AM on April 18, 2007

I wear suits at work, and I just leave them there, changing at the start and end of the day. My shirts I have cleaned and boxed at a shop near my house, and it's easy to lash the box to my bike's rear rack with a bungee cord. This way, the shirts are already neatly folded in a convenient package for me.

Other than those boxed shirts, and the occasional undershirt (which of course can easily scrunch into my pannier), I don't really carry many clothes back and forth. Happily, this leaves room in my pannier for my massive thermos of coffee.
posted by chinston at 8:45 AM on April 18, 2007

You males have it easy. Leaving shoes at work isn't practical for women who need to wear different shoes for different outfits. I tend to wear part of the outfit for biking and roll up the rest in my bag. Which part depends on comfort, wrinkles, road dirt, rain, skirt vs. pants, etc.
posted by bassjump at 8:49 AM on April 18, 2007

Do you cyclists somehow shower at work, or do you change into your fresh clothes when you're all sweaty from your ride? I used to be within cycling distance from my office, but there were no shower facilities available, and I can't stand putting on clean clothes when I'm all grungy.
posted by Oriole Adams at 10:34 AM on April 18, 2007

Speaking for my husband (I work from home, so what is this "shower" you speak of?): he showers at work. It's a 17-mile ride, so not showering really isn't an option... even if he is a computer programmer.

I don't know where you are, goldism, but places in the US to get wrinkle-resistant clothes include LL Bean, REI, and any place that specializes in "travel" clothes.
posted by The corpse in the library at 11:36 AM on April 18, 2007

Oriole Adams: "Do you cyclists somehow shower at work, or do you change into your fresh clothes when you're all sweaty from your ride? I used to be within cycling distance from my office, but there were no shower facilities available, and I can't stand putting on clean clothes when I'm all grungy."

I just do a little wipedown and reapply deodorant. Most of my friends also bike for transportation and I don't know anyone who has a shower at work! I don't know if I would even want to shower at work if there were facilities -- something feel wrong about being naked in my workplace, I guess...
posted by loiseau at 12:01 PM on April 18, 2007

Oriole: a shower is nice, but not necessary if you're somewhat closer than 17 miles (that's a long way) and the climate isn't sweltering. I'm about 6.5 miles one-way, and fortunately it's very much downhill in the morning. So I depend on baby wipes and perhaps a reapplication of deodorant. I used to work/bike in Washington, D.C. (I'm in Pittsburgh now), and it was next to impossible to stay presentable in the summers, and I even had a pretty short commute. Fortunately, my office there did have a shower, which I used.

I guess it depends on your individual circumstances.

One helpful realization I had was that a much greater effort on the bike really only gains me a few minutes, in the end. Call it the rapidly diminishing marginal utility of efforts over 50%, or something. Sure, that time gained seems huge if you're time-trialing or training, but on a commute it's just not worth the sweat. (Except on the way home--then it's time to put the hammer down.)
posted by chinston at 12:23 PM on April 18, 2007

I shower. Baby wipes are my second-best alternative.
posted by bonehead at 3:54 PM on April 18, 2007

I second the Eagle Creek packing folder recommendation. I've been using one for years for various travels and it's been great.
posted by altcountryman at 7:23 PM on April 18, 2007

Rolling doesn't work so well for me, especially if the fabric is quite crisp (e.g. with starch). I fold my shirt vertically first down the middle, then then make a diagonal fold at the shoulders so the sleeves are now vertical, then finish with a gentle, horizontal fold. That leaves me with only one, if any, very faint crease-line.

Pants are a non-issue for me because I wear wool (which doesn't wrinkle). I keep 3 or 4 pairs at work, rotate daily and dry-clean them once every couple of months.
posted by randomstriker at 1:23 AM on April 19, 2007

I have a shower at work, with about 50 empty lockers next to it that we can't use overnight for some reason (no, I'm not bitter...). It I could use one I'd bring in a week's worth in a heartbeat. Since I can't, though, I just fold 'em up and carry them in a Mountainsmith lumbar pack (used to use a backpack).

I keep shoes at work. I don't have a problem walking through the office in cycling shoes, but I do have a problem walking to my cube all sweaty in bike clothes to get my work clothes to then go back to the shower, etc. So I pack 'em.

One innovative solution I'd heard to the storage problem (if you have it) is to bring your own storage container to work--you know, mobile, four wheels, lockable... You could even leave your bike in there (if you park a suitable vehicle) if your existing storage is lacking.

Keep Downy Wrinkle releaser at your desk just in case.

This question gets asked at the Commuting forum at bikeforums.net fairly often.
posted by RikiTikiTavi at 10:34 PM on April 20, 2007

chinston: "One helpful realization I had was that a much greater effort on the bike really only gains me a few minutes, in the end. Call it the rapidly diminishing marginal utility of efforts over 50%, or something. Sure, that time gained seems huge if you're time-trialing or training, but on a commute it's just not worth the sweat. (Except on the way home--then it's time to put the hammer down.)"

This is so true! I'm trying to moderate myself this year. I think partly because of my anxiety in city traffic and partly because I'm always running late for work, I tend to go as fast as I freakin' can, and when I get to work not only am I sweating but my face is tomato red. (I'm one of those people.)

Another important part of my equation, though, is that I don't need to dress up for work; there's basically no dress code. So I don't worry about wrinkles at all, and the most I'll do is change my shirt. My work is air-conditioned in summer and my totally stagnant office has a fan for circulation so it's not too long before I dry out. It's actually worse in winter when the heat's on!
posted by loiseau at 11:24 PM on April 20, 2007