BIKEPGH MESSAGE BOARD ARCHIVE

Neat--I've never see this kind of thing before.

When Lolly held the Bridesmaid Dress Ride several months ago, she had found some tips on how to secure your skirt, one of which recommended wrapping a big band (elastic headband or something) around your thighs to hold the skirt close to your legs.

Skirt guards look cool! Sorry I can't recommend where else to find one.

Maybe you could DIY it with some tin snips and those perforated metal sheets they sell at home depot (for radiator covers, i think). You might have to tend to the edges a bit with a file to soften them...or do some colored piping with duct tape. They'd be elegant, though. The etsy link you posted shows how to clip them to a fender, but I'd bet you could also drill a few holes in a plastic fender and attach with cable ties.

Be careful drilling plastic fenders...if they're the metal-cored ones (SKS/ESGE), you can probably get away with it, but I've found that others (like the Planet Bikes) crack really easily when perforated. YMMV, of course.

I bet you could also do something interesting by using a rear rack as the framework for your guard.

You could get some webbing/net at a hardware store and make your own DIY one, if you don't need anything as fancy as the Etsy thing. Box of binder clips and some net should cost you about $1.50.

Great DIY tips so far. I am unfortunately severely DIY-challenged (really. my husband will back me up on this). I'm hoping for something attractive to go with my cute univega.

has anyone ridden in skirts regularly? maybe i don't need one unless i have really long, flowy skirts (which i might).

has anyone ridden in skirts regularly? maybe i don't need one unless i have really long, flowy skirts (which i might).

Sorry, mine barely hit the knee.

reddan, of all things that fall into the category of "inadvisable", riding a 'bent in your kilt, comes to mind.

Lends a whole new meaning to "drafting", believe you me.

Thanks to the internet, yet another image I now have burned into my mind.

@ Sarapgh2, I don't think you need a skirtguard. You hit upon it-- they are for long, flowy skirts. Even a long skirt won't get caught in your spokes, you need A LOT of fabric to merit a skirtguard. The vast majority of skirts you might have will not get in your way.

i dont know, i dont have too many long skirts and i sometimes think they merit a skirt guard. I was going to look into getting one for a mixte frame i have now, but i think that its not that hard to get them caught in between the tire and frame. i havent used one though... however i do remember seeing some good ones that i liked / were cool looking. ill see if i can find them...

hm. im having a hard time finding anything... but this is a cool flickr pool:

http://www.flickr.com/groups/dressguards/pool/

Electra bikes sells skirt guards. $25 on their website.

There are a couple of photos of skirt guards on this thread:

http://bike-pgh.org/bbpress/topic/cycling-in-a-long-dress

In the link that Caitlin posted, there are a bunch of photos. The one in the top row, of a woman in a blue down coat, makes me think you could "recreate" that skirt guard pretty easily by weaving two bungee cords through some of that plasic deer fence material that you can get at Home Depot, Lowes, etc. You'd probably want fencing with smaller holes rather than larger. Cut the plastic "fencing" into the appropriate size and shape, then run bungees through the two long ends of the skirt guard. Connect one end of each bungee to frame, run up over fender or rack, and reconnect to frame on other side. Portable, durable and light.

"Skirt guards" makes me think of the Greek military.

Bobbinandsprocket.com and ravelry.com have instuctions for crocheting a skirt guard. (Alas, I only knit!) Then I found this:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Quick-%26-Easy-Bicycle-Skirt-Guards/

The use of cable ties and scraps of tulle (or window screen, blech) permit customization for any event or outfit.

I've never felt like I needed a skirt-guard and I've ridden in many different skirts and dresses. I always wear little shorts under them (they are sold many places, but American Apparel has plain ones which I really like), so usually the skirt gathers a bit under my butt and I don't need to worry about showing anything but leg to the world.

I'm not someone that wears long skirts (past the knee) so I can't vouch for those types of skirts not getting caught. Maybe on a bike with a slopped top-tube you would need one? I don't know.

Semi-related skirt issue: a relatively stiff or tight mini-skirt or mid-thigh skirt can sometimes get caught on the back of your seat when you dismount the bike (if you weren't sitting on your skirt while riding). It's less an issue of showing people your butt (well, so long as you're wearing shorts underneath) and more an issue of getting stuck to the seat and being thrown off-balance. Has this ever happened to anyone? It's kind of a funny problem and happens to me in the summer sometimes. Luckily I have never fallen!

I get stuck on the seat more often than not. I'm obviously not doing something right, i just dont know how to fix it. I had a 0mph crash by getting stuck once. only my pride was hurt in that accident.

I've torn holes in a skirt with the front of a bike seat before. (in my defense, it was a cheap skirt made of a few layers of thin fabric)

Not a skirt, but my rain jacket has this little flip down ass flap thing to keep the mud off your butt if you aren't using fenders. It sometimes comes unbuttoned and always gets caught on the back of my seat. I ripped some stitches in the jacket as I came out of the saddle to make it up a big hill.

@rachel yep, I've had that happen. It can be a bit scary if you need to make a sudden stop & dismount.

So many great suggestions and advice. Thank you!!

I guess this will be a combination of trying out the new bike with a variety of skirt types and at the same time looking around for a skirt guard that is reasonably priced and, of course, looks good on the bike. I can't wait for warmer weather!

rachel that has totally happened to me!!!

i have a few skirts that are knee-ish length and have a few layers, so i havent figured out how to ride in that. i also had a fluffy dress thing at the bike fest party last year, and i tried to ride with it but had to basically tuck it into my stockings to ride in a giant fluff of tutu like material....

i just got a step through so i am going to see how the skirts work with that... not sure if i need a guard or not. i have to admit that i kinda like the way they look whether i need one or not

I've gotten long coats caught on various seats. One partial solution is to inspect the underside of the seat for things that might do the catching, then cover them somehow, file off unnecessary projections, attach a strip of duct tape, whatever.

lol - i was looking at some NAHBS pictures the other day, i saw one picture and i was thinking "wow, that thing on the rear wheel is pretty cool looking, i should get one of those". then a few seconds later i realized what it was... i guess that it would be kinda weird to put one on my bike?

No, in the firmament of things that cyclists do, having a skirt guard on your bike wouldn't even register as mildly unusual. Go ahead.

Just tell everyone it is your coattail guard.

When you wear your Viking stuff you could tell people it's an Asgard.

That's a Hel of a pun, edmonds.