# Favorite tshirt to ride in?



## hucked123 (Aug 21, 2017)

What is everyone's favorite tshirt to ride in? Polyester stinks and feels hot, but all cotton gets heavy. Found this from the Crested Butte BME this weekend:









Said it was made of hemp? What does anyone know about riding in hemp? The shirt looks rad. Thinking about getting one.
https://rideatire.com/


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## Nubster (May 15, 2009)

From what I've read...hemp is wicking and antibacterial and stronger than cotton and breathable. And the plant is sustainable and produced 2-3 times more fiber per plant than does cotton. So IMO it's win win win if it really does live up to these claims. Only thing is...seems like most hemp clothing is mixed with cotton. Not sure if there's a reason it needs to be or just to cut costs...but cotton is pretty undesirable as active wear. I mean yeah...lot of folks wear cotton for sports but it's not ideal. I don't know if maybe a high hemp content maybe counteracts the negatives of cotton?


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## hucked123 (Aug 21, 2017)

I started reading around. Looks like the cotton softens up the hemp, but the benefits of the hemp stay intact. I found the shirt on the website www.rideatire.com. Looks like they are newer and just starting out with that one shirt.

I know Patagonia was making their way into hemp workwear. Maybe a material worth trying out? I can accept some cotton in a blend, but that 100% crap sucks.


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## Nubster (May 15, 2009)

Definitely cheapens it too. Hemp blend shirts seem to be in the $30 range while 100% hemp are well above $50...and that's just t-shirts. I started looking too and found some blended cycling stuff...not much. I'd be interested in trying a shirt if they were a little cheaper. If it worked...some nice cycling jerseys would be awesome but not sure if it's worth the cost of over $150.


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## TraxFactory (Sep 10, 1999)

Bamboo performance apparel is also popular these days. I have an older bamboo jersey (Zoic) that was average in comfort but performed well, it was a blend. 

Still yet to try a modern bamboo blended jersey but I have heard the fabric is really nice these days. Seems like its a blend of bamboo, cotton and merino wool.

Maybe something to keep an eye out for.


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## hucked123 (Aug 21, 2017)

I have tired a bamboo/cotton blend for riding. This was really nice to the touch (soft and light), but the moisture just kind of stuck in the bamboo and actually weighted it down. Felt like I was wearing a dress by the end of the ride!


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## 2sharp7 (Aug 29, 2013)

My favorite t-shirts for all around use, including working out and riding, are "tri-blends". Cotton/poly/rayon. Thin, soft, comfortable!


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## hucked123 (Aug 21, 2017)

This material doesn't bog you down? Dry fast?


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## NYrr496 (Sep 10, 2008)

I have a bamboo collared button down shirt that I love. I have ridden in it too. 
I have a couple of real light cotton Oakley shirts that are awesome for riding on hot days. 
My favorite shirt is too heavy to ride in. It's a gray cotton shirt with a fat bike on it. It says Fat Bikes Matter.


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## hucked123 (Aug 21, 2017)

Seems like people still cruise in cotton... any specific brands that are worthy?


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## craZivn (Mar 16, 2017)

I like ringspun cotton shirts, ringspun is lighter and softer than regular fabric but it's still all cotton. I also often ride in a 50/50 cotton/poly t-shirt that I have, but mainly because it's electric blue and looks cool on me. 

Ivan


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## Cuyuna (May 14, 2017)

All polyester-all the time for me. Great wicking performance, great cooling, and remarkably cheap. Costco has been a great source, and Amazon has a dizzying array with prices running as low as $7.


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## hucked123 (Aug 21, 2017)

Ha - rule number when when doing anything (especially while riding), always look cool.


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## str8edgMTBMXer (Apr 15, 2015)

hmmm..i ride in whatever shirt I have on..and most of those are 50/50 cotton poly blends. I hate the feel of dri fit shirts. The hemp shirts look interesting though. I just deal with the sweatyness b/c i am used to it and it doesn't really bother me. I also do 90% of my riding in the fall and winter, so I don't sweat as much. I do have 2 "dri-fit" base layer shirts I guess that i do use when it is too warm for a regular winter coat and too cold for just a wind breaker. Pretty much till the end of Nov (in Ohio), I am in a t-shirt and cargo shorts, or a t shirt with the base layer shirt underneath. If it is raingin, I add my rain jacket.


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## xcandrew (Dec 30, 2007)

Thin cotton or thin cotton poly is my favorite if it's T-shirt weather. I also like the Patagonia Capilene Daily, which is super stretchy, thin polyester with a bit of spandex. Otherwise I don't like synthetics until I have to wear a jacket.


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## Rhodyman (Aug 7, 2015)

I always wear Under Armour Locker Tees when I ride in warmer temps. It's 100% polyester, and wicks moisture very well. The fit is excellent, much better than cheap knockoffs.


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## GoingNowhere (Oct 15, 2014)

I just wear whatever t-shirt is clean. I have a bunch that I save for riding and working at the shop as I sweat through them. I always wear underarmor underneath (either tank, t or long sleeve depending on the weather).


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## Gunnar-man (Mar 21, 2008)

Ditched the dryfit/climafit/dry lite/blah blah stuff a couple years ago for merino t shirts.

Don't dry as fast as the polyester but are faster than cotton. i will wear them mulitple days in a row for my commuting to work and funk only kicks in after 4 or 5th wearing.

Costco was selling them for a while but generally use Icebreaker and Ibex now.


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## MrkT (Jan 12, 2016)

Icebreaker merino tees. After trying a few different options, I'll never use anything else. Wore one in South Carolina mid-August riding to see the eclipse in 100+ heat index and high humidity. After a few hours on the bike, it was 100% soaked through, like I had dumped it into a bucket of water. SOAKED. Got to the eclipse viewing site and an hour later (never having even taken it off) it was dry. Soft as cotton, dries unbelieveably fast, and doesn't stink to high heaven after a couple of days hard riding.


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## Kevin Gordon (Oct 2, 2008)

RAB Merino+, if you can afford them. Raglan sleeves fit brilliantly. Absolutely non-stink under normal parameters (you do have to wash them eventually!).


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## hitechredneck (May 9, 2009)

That guy is a total ass......oh wait that is me! Small world. **** works great! dries out fast and does not stink. That was a very long weekend on the bike. Just shy of 5k ft of climbing a day and I never felt uncomfortable at all. People should order one up and see for themselves.


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## Cuyuna (May 14, 2017)

Bow season (deer) opened last weekend, so my polypropylene tee-shirts now are all either blaze orange or safety-green.


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## RideAtire (Sep 25, 2017)

Hello and greetings. My friend just informed me that my shirt was on MTBR. If any of you guys are wondering, hemp is great to ride in, it wicks like crazy and is super comfy. We just added two new colors of "Gnarnia" and have an a few new graphics coming out this week or next (One is Colorado Themed). Our shirts are 100% US made and look great on and off the trail. Our website is Rideatire.com. Thank you and have a great time shredding.


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## Nubster (May 15, 2009)

RideAtire said:


> Hello and greetings. My friend just informed me that my shirt was on MTBR. If any of you guys are wondering, hemp is great to ride in, it wicks like crazy and is super comfy. We just added two new colors of "Gnarnia" and have an a few new graphics coming out this week or next (One is Colorado Themed). Our shirts are 100% US made and look great on and off the trail. Our website is Rideatire.com. Thank you and have a great time shredding.


No sizes for the big guys.


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## str8edgMTBMXer (Apr 15, 2015)

Nubster said:


> No sizes for the big guys.


I was just going to send an e mail inquiring about that!

Can we get XXL?


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## Nubster (May 15, 2009)

They have XXL on their size chart but nothing available. I might be tempted to try one if they get some XXL available.


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## RideAtire (Sep 25, 2017)

Thank you for the feedback. Currently we only offer XS - XL. We will look into offer XXL but to be honest it will probably be at least a few months.


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## Nubster (May 15, 2009)

Thanks. I have enough shirts anyways.


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## mtnbkrmike (Mar 26, 2015)

hucked123 said:


> Seems like people still cruise in cotton... any specific brands that are worthy?


If you sweat, even a little tiny bit, I would recommend doing a hard pass on anything cotton, or at least on anything 100% cotton or close.

At the risk of stating the obvious, if you sweat, cotton gets heavy, takes forever to dry, loses basically 100% of its breathability and (although this is more important for cooler temps) loses basically 100% of its thermal qualities.

There is a long list of very good reasons why cotton is known among many enthusiasts as "the devil's cloth".


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## xcandrew (Dec 30, 2007)

mtnbkrmike said:


> If you sweat, even a little tiny bit, I would recommend doing a hard pass on anything cotton, or at least on anything 100% cotton or close.
> 
> At the risk of stating the obvious, if you sweat, cotton gets heavy, takes forever to dry, loses basically 100% of its breathability and (although this is more important for cooler temps) loses basically 100% of its thermal qualities.
> 
> There is a long list of very good reasons why cotton is known among many enthusiasts as "the devil's cloth".


I sweat a little, and, like I said above, I like THIN cotton. I've heard "cotton kills" for the past 30 years in running/backpacking/cycling/outdoors media, but that doesn't make it true for all use cases. It's still my favorite for warm and hot conditions. I even use it in winter sometimes, when I know I am controlling my effort in such a way as to not sweat much. Thin cotton doesn't ever get heavy for me in the summer.

It's not like people here can't make up their own minds. I'm sure everyone here knows what it is like to wear cotton T-shirts, as well as synthetics.

In the Western States 100 running ultra, which usually gets way hot 100+ degrees, I know some, including 2013(I think) winner Pam Smith, deliberately wear cotton soaked in water in order to stay cool.


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## J.B. Weld (Aug 13, 2012)

I went on an impromptu ride last week and rode in the cotton t-shirt I had on, it got nice and wet on the climb and was cold and clingy on the mountain descents. I think I'll stick with my fruity spandex.


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## Nubster (May 15, 2009)

xcandrew said:


> I'm sure everyone here knows what it is like to wear cotton T-shirts,


We do. That's how we know it sucks.


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## leeboh (Aug 5, 2011)

Patagonia or Smartwool thin merino wool blend. Once you have tried, you won't go back to anything else.


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## xcandrew (Dec 30, 2007)

Nubster said:


> We do. That's how we know it sucks.


And that's why I know it's the best for me too. We obviously sweat different amounts, have a different feeling on our skin of what is comfortable for ourselves, and ride in different weather. There's no one material that is the favorite of everyone, and that's the way it should be.

On merino wool, I got into that about 10 years ago, but no longer use it. They wore through and got holes too quickly, especially for how much they cost. I wasn't impressed with the moisture handling in the winter either, where I favor synthetics like Patagonia Capilene.


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## xcandrew (Dec 30, 2007)

leeboh said:


> Patagonia or Smartwool thin merino wool blend. Once you have tried, you won't go back to anything else.


I tried wool offerings from both of those brands, as well as others. I've gone back to synthetics for winter, cotton for summer.


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## J.B. Weld (Aug 13, 2012)

xcandrew said:


> There's no one material that is the favorite of everyone, and that's the way it should be


You are wrong, it should be unanimous 

Maybe it's climate biased, I don't see how cotton could work in mountainous environments. I'd end up freezing my ass off.


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## Guest (Sep 26, 2017)

Tan Dri-Duke Polyester T-Shirts left over from my short 33 year stint in service. Don't do anything great, but they do everything good enough and I already own them.


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## hitechredneck (May 9, 2009)

Forster said:


> Tan Dri-Duke Polyester T-Shirts left over from my short 33 year stint in service. Don't do anything great, but they do everything good enough and I already own them.


I second that.

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## PUNKY (Apr 26, 2010)

I've been liking the TLD Network shirt so far


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## mtnbkrmike (Mar 26, 2015)

J.B. Weld said:


> ...Maybe it's climate biased, I don't see how cotton could work in mountainous environments. I'd end up freezing my ass off.


Agreed. I suspect it must be a climate/regional thing. I don't know a single person who would even think about wearing a cotton shirt on a serious ride, regardless of the season. With absolutely no disrespect intended to those who feel otherwise, in the climate I ride in, that would almost certainly always amount to a very poor choice. To each their own though.


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## leeboh (Aug 5, 2011)

xcandrew said:


> I tried wool offerings from both of those brands, as well as others. I've gone back to synthetics for winter, cotton for summer.


 Guessing Alaska is different than say MA where i'm from? Our winter tend to get more freeze thaw, say 20-35 F and your summers ever get above 60 F?


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## xcandrew (Dec 30, 2007)

leeboh said:


> Guessing Alaska is different than say MA where i'm from? Our winter tend to get more freeze thaw, say 20-35 F and your summers ever get above 60 F?


It was not a weather issue. Wool is just not as durable, and also did not perform as well as synthetics for me when wet. Though I always bought on sale or clearance, the wear life was still not acceptable for how much they cost. I'd be looking at holes in my Patagonia wool thinking, I only wore that a few weeks. I do have a nice looking Ibex zip top that is in perfect condition, but it's worn maybe twice a year. I always reach past it for the Capilene when I'm expecting to get wet, like in the rain.


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## xcandrew (Dec 30, 2007)

mtnbkrmike said:


> Agreed. I suspect it must be a climate/regional thing. I don't know a single person who would even think about wearing a cotton shirt on a serious ride, regardless of the season. With absolutely no disrespect intended to those who feel otherwise, in the climate I ride in, that would almost certainly always amount to a very poor choice. To each their own though.


Well, I did say I wear cotton when it's warm, so I'm not freezing my ass off going down hills when I'm in CA for instance, even if I get wet.

I must sweat a lot less than most of you. I don't have a water bottle cage on my bike, and I don't usually drink for rides or runs of 2 hours, even when visiting SoCal. My default effort level/speed for riding, running, xc skiing is a low. My training volume is high. I'm like a slacker elite athlete in that I rarely do hard efforts, but can still kick ass, at least in running races. I haven't raced mountain bikes, though it's all I've ridden since the '90s. I was a climbing standout on my college road cycling team in the late '80s, but only rode a partial season... had no money, so bike racing was too expensive even just to get to races, bike broke (warrantied frame took months to get back), and switched to running.


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## mtnbkrmike (Mar 26, 2015)

xcandrew said:


> Well, I did say I wear cotton when it's warm, so I'm not freezing my ass off going down hills when I'm in CA for instance, even if I get wet.
> 
> I must sweat a lot less than most of you. I don't have a water bottle cage on my bike, and I don't usually drink for rides or runs of 2 hours, even when visiting SoCal. My default effort level/speed for riding, running, xc skiing is a low. My training volume is high. I'm like a slacker elite athlete in that I rarely do hard efforts, but can still kick ass, at least in running races. I haven't raced mountain bikes, though it's all I've ridden since the '90s. I was a climbing standout on my college road cycling team in the late '80s, but only rode a partial season... had no money, so bike racing was too expensive even just to get to races, bike broke (warrantied frame took months to get back), and switched to running.


Fair enough. If you don't sweat, then cotton should be fine. Maybe even preferable, breathability-wise. It's only with moisture (of any sort) that **** goes sideways. For me anyway. I assumed everyone sweated to some degree, but yeah. Maybe not. Lucky you. I hate sweating.


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## J.B. Weld (Aug 13, 2012)

mtnbkrmike said:


> I hate sweating.


Me too. Actually I never thought I sweated much until I accidentally wore a t-shirt on a ride last week and I was like "holy crap, my shirt is soaked!"

That never happened with my chinese polyester. I do like wool, the good stuff is comfy and lasts a long time for me.


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## hitechredneck (May 9, 2009)

I sweat a lot as you can see from the OP's picrure. So I have to find something other than cotton. Luckily I did just that. 

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## xcandrew (Dec 30, 2007)

mtnbkrmike said:


> Fair enough. If you don't sweat, then cotton should be fine. Maybe even preferable, breathability-wise. It's only with moisture (of any sort) that **** goes sideways. For me anyway. I assumed everyone sweated to some degree, but yeah. Maybe not. Lucky you. I hate sweating.


I do sweat, but enough not to matter on a normal ride. Cotton is not just breathable, it has better skin feel than any synthetic or Merino wool for that matter. I can sweat a lot in a running race, but if it's short, I don't even notice that I'm wet until I'm done. Worst case for sweating for me would be running 5:00 pace on the treadmill because there is no air movement... then I'm dripping, soaking my shorts with sweat, but not wearing a shirt either. But for an everyday ride, I can finish completely dry or with just a slightly moist, but comfortable enough shirt.


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## mtnbkrmike (Mar 26, 2015)

xcandrew said:


> I do sweat, but enough not to matter on a normal ride. Cotton is not just breathable, it has better skin feel than any synthetic or Merino wool for that matter. I can sweat a lot in a running race, but if it's short, I don't even notice that I'm wet until I'm done. Worst case for sweating for me would be running 5:00 pace on the treadmill because there is no air movement... then I'm dripping, soaking my shorts with sweat, but not wearing a shirt either. But for an everyday ride, I can finish completely dry or with just a slightly moist, but comfortable enough shirt.


Congrats. I think for the rest of us mere mortals, cotton makes about as much sense as leather.


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## xcandrew (Dec 30, 2007)

Well, I'm not the only one. Three other dudes who posted here before I did also ride in cotton or cotton/poly Ts.


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## Thoreau (Jun 15, 2017)

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KXAEMQA/

Breathes exceptionally well, is lightweight, and occasionally on really good sale too.


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## Michaelsvx (Feb 6, 2017)

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## rmasse10 (Aug 21, 2010)

I use to wear cotton but found that the shirt was hanging down to my knees by the end of the day due to sweat. I always wear 100% polyester as its cool, dries very fast and very light weight...and most have "stink" control


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