Biking to work - how to carry clothes?

[letsgetsilly]

Hello all,

I want to start biking to work, however I need to wear business casual, and I sweat a lot, and I need to carry a laptop, so there are a lot of challenges I'm trying to overcome. I'm hoping there are some people here at anandtech that have already faced those same challenges and have overcome them.

My biggest problem is getting to work and looking presentable. I don't know how to bring clothes to work and not have the wrinkled in my backpack. I was looking into a product I heard about in Men's Health magazine called the Pack-It Folder but I'm not sure if it works. Anyone tried it?

I do have access to a small locker at work and a shower, although I think what I would do is shower in the morning, bring a towel and wipe down at work, then dress (I don't have to look GREAT). I would have to use this in a clever way, because I'm not sure how exactly I'd fit a laptop, power supply, mouse, folders, clothes, and shoes in my backpack.

Please let me know if you've got some helpful tips. Anything is appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[potato28]

Start pack ratting at your desk. Keep the shoes and maybe a few ties if you have the space? Wrinkle free clothing is a good thing too, or you can buy that pack it thing. Laptop specific backpack will fit everything you need for the laptop and it should be quite large.

 

[ppdes]

I run to work every day. I just roll the day's shirt and slacks up into a cylinder, drop it in my backpack, and it comes out fine on the other end. My work machine synchronizes files with my home machine daily via rsync, so I never carry any electronics, though. At the very least you could buy an extra mouse and power supply for work so not have to carry them.

 

[Capt Caveman]

I used to bike and run to work. I kept a pair of shoes at work and carried everything in a backpack. Can't you get a second set of power supply, mouse, etc? One set for home and another at work?

 

[HardcoreRobot]

you are gonna wanna shower at work, towel will dry you off, but you will stay hot for a while and keep sweating, plus it won't help the stink
bring towel socks undies soap deodorant undershirts shoes belt and leave it in the locker or at your desk, you dont wanna haul those every day
i also keep a pair of pants and a few dress shirts, which i bring in on days i dont bike. that means all i need any day is just keys badge wallet.
i dont mind reusing pants or even dress shirts a couple times so it makes it easier for me. if thats not your style its not too hard to bring those every day, just shove em in a backpack. reducing the stuff you need to bring every day reduces the time you need to get ready, and reduces the chance you are gonna forget something
plus getting all that other crap outta your bag will give you more room for your laptop. getting an extra power cable is a good idea as well

 

[letsgetsilly]

Good thinking on getting the extra laptop power supply/mouse.

If you can believe this, I don't have a cubicle where I work. I just have an open desk in the middle of the office. It would be funny if it weren't so sad, and it wouldn't be so bad if the job weren't awful.

I do have access to the lockers tho; no one seems to use the lockers in the whole complex, but there are only about 6 and 1 or 2 showers. I think I'll get a lock and start storing some things there. Buy another pair of shoes, etc. Thanks so much for the tips up to this point!

 

[LS21]

roll, dont fold
buy wrinkle free clothes
get large "pannier" racks for your bike
drive to work 1 day a week and stash your changing clothes there

etc

 

[PHiuR]

you can always get a motorcycle.

 

[Kelemvor]

As long as you fold them nicely you don't have to worry about stuff getting wrinkled just because it's in a backpack. Or get a little portable steamer thing you can use in the locker room to remove any wrinkles that might appear.

 

[nageov3t]

get a basket for your bike?

 

[JulesMaximus]

One word of advice, shower at work. My commute is pretty hilly though and about 10 miles one way so I work up a good sweat.

I keep a towel, toiletries and a pair of shoes at work so that I'm not carrying this stuff back and forth every day. I don't carry a laptop though. I'd probably look into getting panniers if you're carrying that much weight back and forth every day.

A good hybrid bike with a rear rack would be your best bet.

 

[Cdubneeddeal]

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
One word of advice, shower at work.

Man speaks the truth. I used to shower before I left home then just baby wiped down at work but I would still be sweating. So I said screw it and kept deodorant, shampoo, toothpaste, etc in my locker then showered at work. Nothing like a nice cold-luke warm shower after a good bike ride then off to work.

 

[KingGheedora]

Sounds like a lot of trouble to go through just to be able to bike to work. What's your reason for wanting to do this? If i could bike to work without being all sweaty I'd do it. But I'm not going to shower at home and then bring a change of clothes to work and change when I get there every morning.

 

[KingGheedora]

What kind of work do you do that you just have an open desk? Software by any chance?

 

[Soundmanred]

Where do you guys work that there are showers available?
The YMCA?

 

[Boo Boo]

buy a bag

 

[Savarak]

buy a large duffel bag, fill it with lots of clean clothes and drive it to work... when all those clothes are dirty, bring bag home in another (weekly/monthly/yearly) car trip and replace with clean clothes

 

[Saint Nick]

I work for a large corporation downtown and we have a lot of facilities built into our building--dry cleaning, day care?, doctors office, pharmacy, cafeteria, and a gym.

I would consider biking to work, but between where I'm at and my workplace, its just ridiculous amounts of hills. It would be miserable. I'm a relatively fit guy, but I don't want to deal with that crap everyday. I just want to get to work, and when I'm done, get the hell home.

 

[letsgetsilly]

I'm interested in getting in exercise, helping the environment, and saving gas money. Sounds like worth the trouble to get a routine set to me.

I work in software development, yes; I'm a .NET web developer working as a consultant. I'm not a client right now, and that's why they have me at these crappy tables.

Thanks again for the suggestions.