rain + cold commute

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Originally Posted by lph

So what do you call them?

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Here where we have no snow, nothing :p To us it sounds as foreign as putting your boots/gloves on the radiator to dry out....

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Originally Posted by lph

oops, sorry. I never think that I might not be using the right name. If it sounds good to me, I go for it ;)

A large, well, cupboard or locker, if you like, looks like a large fridge. Metal. Has a heating element and a fan installed at the top that blows warm air down inside, and is "furnished" with racks inside to hang clothes on. Commonly used to dry clothes or laundry indoors but they make a bit of a racket. We have 5! of them at my workplace, dearly beloved by the winter cyclists.

So what do you call them?

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Oh wow!
I've never seen (or heard) about such a thing! Cool! What state do you live in? Lots of people have these? In houses ever, or just offices and such?

I live in Texas...so...well..yeah. ;)

I live in that long thin state, way north, called Norway ;)

Funny, I just assumed everybody knew what these were! They're fairly common at schools and suchlike, not quite as common in homes since they're noisy, but some people have them. They're good for drying wet outerwear, heavy jackets, shoes etc, that wouldn't do well in a dryer.

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Originally Posted by lph

I live in that long thin state, way north, called Norway ;)

Funny, I just assumed everybody knew what these were! They're fairly common at schools and suchlike, not quite as common in homes since they're noisy, but some people have them. They're good for drying wet outerwear, heavy jackets, shoes etc, that wouldn't do well in a dryer.

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Oh, Norway is now a state?!?! ;) JK!

Very interesting! I can see how these would be really good to have in snowy/rainy places!

I'm surprised I haven't seen them in Colorado. Maybe this is just a non-US phenomenon? ;)

I'm super envious of your drying cupboards at work!

The US is fairly backwards in respect to Europe sometimes...

They have towel warmers and trouser presses, and all that good stuff standard.

We have to like specifically go out of our way to get things like that.

Layers because it is often that we overdress rather than underdress, then drying sweat makes ya cold.

I do:

polyester or other synthetic base layer (either a jersey or a tight fitting underarmor shirt)

light alpaca wool or other wool sweater

high vis windbreaker (that has no insulation.) It breathes, but keeps the wind out.

If it's raining, gym warmup pants over my capris or shorts.

Wool socks.

garden gloves over a liner (sometimes.) You can get those rubber dipped garden gloves at the hardware store - they are nice because the rubber grips, is tough, and insulates, but the fabric side breathes.

Alpaca hat/beanie or a synthetic balacava or a synthetic (coolmax) buff under the helmet.

That's it!

It starts out chilly, but after five minutes I am warmed up. Best, I am not overdressed, which I think is worse than being underdressed. I hate being hot on the bike.

We don't even have coat rooms.

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Originally Posted by indigoiis

garden gloves over a liner (sometimes.) You can get those rubber dipped garden gloves at the hardware store - they are nice because the rubber grips, is tough, and insulates, but the fabric side breathes.

A

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Garden gloves---good idea! A different take on the kitchen gloves!

I live in Portland, and riding in the rain is unavoidable. My commute is about 10 miles each way, and I really like the helly hansen freeze long johns (polypro inside/merino outside) topped with a wool sweater and finally a waterproof shell. I have gloves that are somewhat waterproof, and love my swrve knickers with the fleece insides. Rainpants suck a bit, and I can't seem to find a pair small enough to fit, but the knickers are water resistant and allow me to move comfortably. Oh...long wool socks rock!

I just read a strange but possibly good tip for riding in the rain - chop off some old rain pants below the knee and make "rain shorts". Supposed to keep off the worst rain from above/in front, stop the worst of the splash from behind onto your shorts, but still let air circulate much better than rain pants. I have yet to ride in rain pants and not wonder whether I would've been dryer without.

We are in agreement, Rainpants are good for a short commute only.
I want a drying cupboard! we have drying racks that we set over heat vents.

Never heard of a drying cupboards in this part of the planet, either! How much energy do they suck up?

Couldn't be too much, it's just powered by a fan.

Here ya go, ladies - the drying cabinet:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drying_cabinet

The one in the photo is about twice the size of the ones we have at work, and looks a bit more fancy.

Another one:
http://www.staber.com/dryingcabinet

Funny that they call it a "high-end product" - they're pretty standard in kindergartens and schools here and are not considered high end at all.

From what I've noticed, most european appliances are a lot more energy efficient & conscious than American versions... so I'm sure a drying cabinet doesn't take much and is way better than a dryer.