Be Serious with Hygiene, Ride Healthier

If you like me you often clean your bike and do some small maintenance: clean and re-lubricate the chain, check the brakes, drop the gear in the laundry basket. But if it comes to hygiene and cleaning there are four things that we often overlook and forget completely.

While we wash our jerseys and shorts often, we usually wear the same dirty helmet ride after ride. To combat helmet stink, wash it – pads in – with dish detergent, or give it a good shampoo in the shower. Rinse with cold water and let it air dry.

We toss used gel and bar wrappers after a ride, but leave our water bottle in the cage. A bottle will breed bacteria if not washed properly. Dump leftover water into a houseplant, the wash the bottle with hot, soapy water.

A clean chain means prolonged drivetrain life. But a clean frame can make your bike last longer. Sticky drinks, sweat and road grime can mar a frame's finish or worse, cause corrosion. Hit the underside of the down tube, and look for cracks while you're at it – if you find one, go straight to your bike shop (not on the bike).

We check our brake pads for debris and wear. But we neglect the other point of contact. Brake-pad residue coats rims, speeding-wear and slowing braking. Clean aluminum rims using a dry, abrasive pad, such you find in the kitchen for cleaning the dishes.