When I started this blog a little over five years ago, I had every intention of writing about the interplay between wine and cycling (and no, once again, despite the name of this blog, I do not encourage or endorse the operation of any vehicle, much less a bike, after consuming alcohol).

Something funny happened on the way to that goal, though—I pretty much only write about wine.

Why?

Honestly, I am not all that sure. It just has worked out that way.

Nonetheless, I occasionally get sent samples to review that have absolutely nothing to do with wine, and everything to do with cycling.

Why?

Honestly, I am not all that sure. It has just worked out that way.

But I have to say it makes me a bit giddy.

A while ago, I was sent a couple of bottles of laundry detergent. Yes, I know, laundry detergent is not all that glamorous, but it is something that we use on a regular basis (at least I hope it is something we use on a regular basis…).

Since I started cycling, washing my cycling gear has been, well, unpleasant. As soon as I get home from a ride, the first thing I do is get out of my smelly, nasty cycling clothes (for those not all that familiar with cycling, said cycling clothes are called a “kit”) and through them into a hamper.

After repeating this exercise several times over the course of the week, the clothes in that hamper start to smell rather ripe (I thought about giving those clothes a proper wine tasting note, but that is just disgusting on several levels). The problem is (or I should say was) that “normal” washing of my cycling gear would not completely eliminate the smell.

Why?

Honestly, I was not all that sure.

Until I was sent a bottle of WIN Sports Detergent.

Regular detergent does a fine job with most materials, but when it comes to the high-performance synthetics of most athletic apparel these days, well, not so much. When you work out, good athletic wear wicks away the moisture, but unfortunately traps the oils that are also associated with sweat. Bacteria then consume those oils, and they release that lovely “locker room” smell that every weekend warrior “loves” so much.

I am always a bit skeptical when I come across across a product that claims to be “far better” or professes to solve a problem that had previously been unsolvable, but WIN seems to do just that.

I have been using it now for several months, and I have to say that there is a decided difference in my cycling gear. I used to pull on a jersey and get a whiff, if ever so slight, of the cumulation of all my previous workouts. Not any more.

It is hard to get overly excited about something as mundane as laundry detergent, but WIN has been a bit of a game changer for me, and I strongly recommend it. WIN comes in the original scented version (which I prefer) as well as unscented, and costs $10.95 for a bottle that is good for 32 loads.