Editorial: The Value of Spand-me-downs
My teammate Emily was recently lamenting that none of the stuff left over from our recent kit order fit her. I immediately tried to comfort her by suggesting that she post something to the list asking to buy peoples’ old spandex in her size. This with met with a look of utter horror from Emily and gasps of disgust from everyone in earshot.
“I would never wear used spandex,” she said, appalled. Everyone else nodded and added such comparisons as, “it’s like wearing someone else’s underwear,” (uh, I’m guilty of that one too…but only if I know the person) and, “that’s how my friend got a staff infection,” (hey, I know that person and that is NOT how they got that infection!).
I was surprised to hear how many people were opposed to the sharing, trading, buying, and selling of used cycling apparel. Being that this is a website about bicycling and economics (and reviews of bad movies and television shows) I decided it was an apt platform to discuss the cost and health risks involved in new and used lycra.
I think I could possibly be the broke-est amateur competitive cyclist in Portland. This is common knowledge, and after joining a team I soon became their charity case, a role that I embraced wholeheartedly. Suddenly I was plied with torn skinsuits and decomposing shoe covers, my teammates’ spand-me-downs. So what if my crotch was now touching a chamois that my friend’s crotch used to touch? It has been through the laundry and IT WAS FREE! Here’s a chart that better illustrates my point:
Company Item Price Total Savings
| Rapha | Team Issue Bib Shorts | $200.00 | 0% |
| Pearl Izumi | Slice Ultrasensor Bib Shorts | $119.00 | 40% |
| Nashbar | Stealth Bib Shorts | $79.00 | 60% |
| Voler | Veloshop Team Bib Shorts that I bought off my teammate (he washed them) | $20.00 | 90% |
| Verge | Veloshop Team Bib Shorts that Erin gave me | $0 +$2 for cleaning | 99%! |
(Source: the internet)
Between this money saving tactic and all the free oatmeal I’ve been getting, bike racing is practically paying for itself!
“But what about the germs?!” naysayers still ask.
When I mentioned writing about this topic to my friend Israel, he frowned and said, “Used spandex? That’s like playing Russian Roulette with your genitals!…Hey you know that could apply to a lot of other scenarios…like when you shoot a gun loaded with only one bullet at your crotch.”
Ummm…sort of…but not really.
So, Israel and assembled anti-spand-me-down-ers (with emphasis on downer), valid point, but the microbial lifespan of most germs (be it bacteria or virus) is very brief (except for anthrax and smallpox…so just don’t buy shorts from your friends who’ve had those). Many forms of harmful bacteria can be killed with just soap and water.
So just wash your new/old shorts and chill out! And when you’re sick of them, patch them with pieces of your other old lyrca and pass them on to your broke friends.
strange to hear others are so touchy about it… our team has a spreadsheet of bib/skinsuit sizes and we rotate owners frequently. transfer dictated by a complex system factoring hours worn, specific activity performed while in use, and scale of overall cleanliness. hell, condor and i made up one time by switching bibs halfway through a ride.
Funny. That’s exactly what tore Condor and I apart.
With all the actual inter-team genital touching that goes on with Veloshop, you’d think that sharing chamois would be no problem! Zowie!
An actual conversation that was had about this story:
Person 1: “I don’t know why people worry so much about what touches their genitals without even considering the things they put in their mouths.”
Person 2: “Right… like genitals.”
i have witnessed this happening by many a friend for years, i.e. erin playman and dawn riddle, and never knew it was taboo. i think these naysayers have too much time and money on their hands.
I was wondering,how can i get some spand-me-downs? I’m a male and i wear size med-lrg. thank you to those that can help : )
When my friend got to a recent race and realized he had forgotten his kit I offered the one I just finished racing in. After exhausting all other options he reluctantly accepted. Even I didn’t think he’d really take me up being they were still fresh with sweat. On they went just in time for the lineup. Needless to say I had fun at his expense for the next couple of days joking with him about the whole thing.