How to Marie Kondo your bike gear

by Molly Hurford

If you’re a longtime cyclist, likely your gear closet looks like the site of an archaeological dig. If you go deep enough, there’s that jersey from the team you were on back in the ’90s, at least one tube that went f lat in 2003, T-shirts from every race you’ve ever done and half-a-dozen dead heart-rate straps.

Let’s get really honest: when was the last time you pulled all of your cycling gear – from helmet to kit to bikes to sports nutrition to every last accessory – out and really sorted through it? I’m guessing that for most of you, the answer is never, since cycling gear is rarely stored all together. Maybe you’ve cleaned out your garage or edited your wardrobe, but it’s uncommon to get all your gear together in one giant pile for a serious look at what you have, and what you need.

But that’s what you’re missing: you probably have some expired gels sitting in a saddle bag, some beat-up old tubes tossed in a pile with those 26″ tires from the bike you had 10 years ago jammed in the back of the garage, and way too many mini-pumps for any one rider. Marie Kondo started a minimalist revolution with The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, and you can take some cues from her to make space (and spark joy) in your cycling life.

It’s not that you necessarily need less stuff, by the way. You may have the exact right amount, or might even need a few pieces. But most cyclists, from apartment-dwellers in 500 square feet to those in houses with multiple garages and storage sheds, face some kind of organizational quandary when it comes to keeping all of the gear in order.

The reason this matters is simple: the more organized your bike stuff is, the faster you’ll be able to get out the door and into your ride. If you waste five minutes every day trying to find your cycling computer, bib shorts, gel, matching socks or pump, that’s 31 hours per year wasted – quite a bit of training time. Organize your gear, change your life.

Let’s get started.

Sort it

Start by apologizing to your partner for what’s about to happen. Then, pick a large, empty space, like your garage floor, and pull out every last piece of cycling gear. Don’t leave anything out – even your cables for recharging bike lights and cycling computers should be in this pile. Once you have this giant mountain of cycling swag, separate it into four piles, assessing each piece as you go.

Keep

This pile is for the gear that’s in great shape, the bike you love, the socks that still match, the kit that fits you like a glove and your favourite on-bike snacks. Like Kondo says, keep only things that spark joy. And yes, joy can come in many forms: from a vest that fits perfectly to a mini-pump that never lets you down. (In addition to keeping clothing that fits you perfectly, also consider keeping a few of those pesky event T-shirts to turn into bike-cleaning rags.)

Fix

Cyclists often have at least a few needed repairs to current gear. That might mean a Garmin computer that needs to be sent back to be refurbished because it freezes on half of your rides, a heart-rate strap that needs new batteries, a favourite cycling jacket that has a rip on the sleeve or a bike that hasn’t shifted right since midway through last cyclocross season. The key here is to keep this pile as small as possible – and handle arranging the repairs in the next 24 hours. Make a deal with yourself: if anything in this pile sits for longer than one day, it gets moved to toss or donate pile immediately.

Toss

Get rid of any expired food, frayed or torn kit, tubes with holes too big to patch and mismatched socks with holes in them. Use this time to check all of your helmets for cracks, tossing any that have seen better days. Not sure about if you should trash a kit? Model it for your spouse (with apologies, once again) and let your spouse be the judge. If you notice you’re throwing out a lot of the same thing, such as most of your jerseys or a lot of expired ride food, make a note to yourself to stop collecting that particular thing. Many of us get in the habit of over-ordering drink mix ahead of the season or buying that jersey that’s been hugely discounted, but would be better off saving the cash for better goods.

Donate/Sell

The still-good jersey that has never quite fit you properly, the saddle that makes your butt go numb after 8 km, the tires for your kid’s 20″ mountain bike that he outgrew five years ago, the box of bars with nuts you bought without reading the label that has been sitting on the shelf promising anaphylaxis, the bike you haven’t ridden in three years – all of this lightly used and still-new gear can be given a new life, either helping out a rider in need or even scoring you a few extra bucks so you can buy that new wheelset you’ve been ogling. To sell old bike gear, you may have to go on Kijiji or look for local bike swaps. You can even organize your own gear garage sale with your cycling club or friends. If you aren’t looking for cash, ask local cycling clubs if they know of any youth programs looking for bike stuff. Often, there are high school teams that could put your old swag to good use.

Clean it

Once you have three piles, bag or box up the gear in donate/sell and toss piles. Move all of it out of the space, never to be looked at again. Do not second-guess yourself here.

Make arrangements for anything in the fix pile. Don’t forget, a good tailor can do more than hem pants. That jacket that doesn’t fit right? The bib strap that’s always flopping down your shoulder? Take your imperfectly fitting cycling kit to a tailor to get it properly fitted. The cost, compared with replacing your current gear, is minimal. What you spend in cash, you’ll make up for in added comfort and potentially a few more watts thanks to a more aero silhouette.

Since you already have all of your cycling stuff in a pile, also use this time to clean your bikes and gear. Drag all of your bikes outside, hose them down, give them a good clean, degrease the chain and check your tires and all of your cables. You may find you need to head to your local bike shop to get a tune-up, or that you need to order a fresh chain or new bar tape.

Give all of your cycling clothing a sniff test. If you detect a hint of body odour clinging to the fabric (a common problem, don’t stress on it), run it through a wash cycle with a few tablespoons of white vinegar and your normal detergent. Opt for a double rinse cycle. The vinegar helps cut odours better than any sports-specific detergent.

Do the same sniff on your cycling shoes. If they fail the test, soak them in a bucket with some dish soap, white vinegar and warm water. Check all of your small gear; the interior pads on your helmet may come out and could definitely use a wash. The same goes for your helmet straps. Your heart-rate strap could stand a soak, too. And don’t neglect those water bottles that have tiny spots of black mould growing inside. (A baby-bottle brush can help get to hard-to-reach spots in a water bottle.)

Organize it

Now, the fun part. Let the organizing begin!

It’s time to put everything from that now-clean keep pile back. Before you do, however, assess how you’re putting it back. Does your current setup make sense? Think about what it looks like when you get ready to ride. Are you often stuck frantically trying to recharge your computer minutes before you’re supposed to meet your group? Always stressed about where the pump is? Slipping down the stairs because your road shoes are slick but you always head up to your the bedroom where your helmet hangs?

Take time to reassess your current storage setup. Ideally, your gear will live in only three or four specific places: your bedroom for clothing, kitchen for food and bottles, entryway for helmets and shoes, and the garage for bikes, spare parts and tools. Try to avoid putting random boxes of spare parts in the attic or storing kit in several different locations.

The next steps

Your last step, other than taking a deep sigh of satisfaction as you look at your clean bike-shop-worthy setup is to consider any gaps in your gear. Did you realize you don’t have a great wind vest? Did you opt to sell off your old mountain bike, but now the trails are calling your name? You shouldn’t end up with a massive shopping list at the end of this exercise, but often it does help to highlight one or two specific things you could use to make this your best biking year ever. Ideally, you now have the head space, the garage space, and the space in your budget to get the bike, kit, helmet or wheelset of your dreams.