Leg Lube Performance Shave Gel

April 20, 2012

Looking at the faces of bicycle tourists, it seems like it's about a 50/50 split between those who shave and those who don't.  For myself, beard growing season happens as soon as the daytime mercury drops below 40 degrees Fahrenheit, which means I'm shaving on long summer tours.  Over the years, I more or less had to make due with soap and water when it came to shaving, since I wasn't about to deal with heavy gel aerosol cans.  It was never super comfortable, and I nicked myself a lot, but it was better than itchy stubble.

I recently got a hold of a bottle of Leg Lube Performance Shaving Gel, and have been testing it out for a couple weeks now.  As you can probably guess by the name, this is aimed at competitive cyclists who shave their legs, and yes, I've used it on my legs... it works great!  Despite the name and target audience, this is also recommended for use on your face and under arms.  I haven't tried out the underarms yet.

So there are two things that jump out immediately with Leg Lube.  First off, it comes in an awesome chain lube style bottle.  Second, the scent is awesome, and it took me awhile to remember what it was exactly that it reminded me of.  Does anyone remember Binaca?  I do, and the scent of Leg Lube took me back to 1996 in an instant.

Anyway, aside from the packaging and scent, this stuff actually does work well, and maybe the best part about it is that it works well out of the shower, so you can shave just about anywhere.  It also has a great cooling sensation that feels refreshing, and not overly intense.  A 100ml bottle of Leg Lube goes for about $9, and after a couple weeks of use, I'm maybe half way through, but keep in mind that's two weeks of face and leg shaving.

Photo by Josh Tack.

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TOURING GEAR AND TIPS is written by Joshua Tack of Adventure Cycling's member services department. It appears weekly, highlighting technical aspects of bicycle touring and advice to help better prepare you for the journey ahead.We get a lot of questions about what kind of training is needed for a bicycle tour, which is a super broad question.