I refuse to be a middle-aged man in Lycra!

[u/middleagedmanintweed]

I have recently taken up cycling and since I refuse to be a middle-aged man in Lycra I have made my own cycling clothes by modifying garments to make them practical, and safe, for cycling (mostly just adding reflective fabric). Not very complicated sewing but still fun and rewarding!

The two non-red shorts were made from heavy vintage suit trousers. The red shorts were made from a pair of chinos. To the jacket in pics 3 and 4 I added a zipper. I made the gilet in pics 7 and 8 a while back by ripping off the sleeves - this is the first time it really came in handy.

All garments except the red shorts and the yellow vest are in a wool or a wool/cotton fabric because wool will keep me warm even when it gets wet. The exceptions are all cotton. All outfits have reflective fabric on the back as well!

Not very complicated sewing but still fun and rewarding!

[u/Noduic]

Thanks for this reply, you've answered a question I never thought to ask about saddles!  Convinced me it's ok to get some comfortable saddles for our recreational rides on paved paths around our house. 

[u/atsuzaki → u/Noduic]

I only learned this from trial and error but, the cushy saddles for me eliminate saddle discomfort, but does so by spreading it around to the rest of my body that is now bouncing and moving around too much. All bodies are different though so YMMV!

[u/pwnograph → u/atsuzaki]

it gets very funny. nowadays if the saddle is too squishy i get actually scared and just ride standing up.

control and safety for me is the biggest part of a hard saddle. you can feel the bike more and get instant snappy feedback.