Compression Skins

I'd never considered wearing compression clothing on the motorbike until I got a email from Shark Leathers in Queensland adverting it a while ago. I have been wearing skins under my footy shorts and t shirts riding my pushy in winter and found the pretty good, they help with circulation and draw the sweat away from your skin effectively keeping you drier.

a week out from the Parkes trip and I was in agony with my upper back and not sure if I'd be able to do it. 3 intensive physio visits later and although I felt like I'd been beaten up my back was moving a lot freer and not clamping up.

I decided it was time to try the skins I already had while riding.

Thursday, 670km, I still felt like I'd been beaten up but had no noticeable back soreness or stiffness other than the residual pain left from my physio the day before. I had no issues with my pants creeping up making my crutch uncomfortable, the 1st time ever riding distances.

Friday, 400km, the pain inflicted by my physio was disappearing, still no stiffness or soreness

Saturday I didn't bother as it was just a couple of short trips to Forbes and the Dish, I sort of felt naked.

Sunday, same as Thursday/Friday except by then there was none of the effects of the physio beating me up.About 1 1/2 hrs before we finished I was feeling hot so took the skins top off, within 1/2 hr my back was getting stiff and sore, on the road moving I didn't feel any cooler with them gone

Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday, no pain at all, skin was kept dry even though I was sweating like a pig

I'll never do long trips without them again, the ones I was wearing I got from a online cycling shop https://www.velogear.com.au/clothing/compression-clothing.html Shark leathers have some great specials at the moment as well, their starting price is higher than what I've bought but their current specials are really cheap, $45 for a set of longs (normally over $300), $45 for a set of shorts or $89 for a set of each http://www.sharkleathers.com.au/product-category/compression-gear/

I have the shark skins and are majorly dissapointed. They make me much colder on the bike. I know I'm cool but these things make me cold.
The good thing is they allow me to fit into gear a size smaller though

I get epic leg pain on long rides, I do wonder if these would help.

Nobody has ever been ale to tell me what it is.

NZspokes wrote:I get epic leg pain on long rides, I do wonder if these would help.

Nobody has ever been ale to tell me what it is.

The main reason they recommend wearing them for riding, or any other time you are stuck in pretty much one position is for improved circulation, that was one reason I thought I'd give them a go, the other was for my back. I agree 2WA, they didn't make me warmer while riding, I do have thermal compression skins for the really cold weather on the pushbike and I reckon they would keep me a lot warmer, I'll give them a try when the weather cools down.
I think the reason they don't make you warmer is because they wick any moisture away from your skin, as the air hits the damp outsidse of the skins it's just like a evaporative air conditioner

I bought some Lycra skins for my big ride (3 weeks, 12,000km)
The idea was to not sweat the hell out of my leathers in the top end and centre, and be one layer for the Vic/ACT bit.
Found them on a rack in Kmart.
Leggings $15, long sleeved top $7.
Best $22 bucks I spent on bike clothes.
No cramps, no chafing, easier to slide leathers on and off, rinse them out in the camp/van park shower every night, dry by morning.
You can even walk to/from your tent without being arrested for indecent exposure.

On the recent trip to Edenhope I wore lined thermal cycling skins, same if not better comfort that the regular skins and they kept me pretty warm without having to resort to my plastic rain gear to keep the wind out.
Even leaving Bordertown Saturday morning not long after the iced melted on the grass I only got a little bit cold on the knees.