Men Who Shave Their Legs

Stephen Regenold e-interviewed me yesterday as part of a story he's preparing about men who shave for sports. I thought I'd share this hairy little memoir.

your name: Dave
age: 32
job/title: Marketing and Publicity Manager
city of residence: Boulder, CO
sports you play: cycling, triathlon, hiking/backpacking, skiing

1. When did you first shave your legs? What age? 21
2. What prompted the first shave? NCAA Div. III Capitol Area Conference swimming championships. We collegiate swimmers get crazy with a razor before big meets. And I didn’t just shave the legs. Everything you can see while wearing a Speedo went. I reshaved the next day and then repeated it all the next year.
3. Was it an odd feeling to shave your legs? Oh yeah. And painful. Since I didn’t know what I was doing the first time and used cheap razors and shaved too close, I was sporting some ugly razor burn over much of my body. Worse yet, shaving off all that insulating body hair makes you much colder. Then every time I got goose bumps (which was about every 5 minutes since swim champs are in February), my hyper-sensitive legs, arms, and chest were wracked with the intensity of every little touch or brush of clothing. Sweatpants were the only semi-tolerable clothing option. I think I went through an entire bottle of moisturizer that weekend, just trying to not feel like I’d been rubbed down with sandpaper. I was freezing for two weeks until I was rehaired!
4. Why do you do it? (wind resistance, hydrodynamics, narcissism, and road rash??) Swimming while shaved like a seal feels incredibly fast. I’m not sure how much difference the hydrodynamics make at the Division III collegiate level, but there is definitely a psychological advantage; I broke my PR in every event I swam shaved.
5. How often do you do it? Let's see, twice in a lifetime!
6. What is your preferred implement (electronic shaver, Bic straight blade, etc.)? You’ve got to start with an electric shaver. Clean that thing frequently until all the major hair is gone and you’re down to stubble. Then switch to a disposable razor and dispose frequently to avoid razor burn. Unjam the razor with every shave-stroke - you’ll be clogging it with every swipe. Then toss the razor after each limb. A body of average hairiness, from completely unshaved to totally shaved, should use 5 razors. Back in college, we had 4-5 guys to a hotel room - imagine what that bathroom looked like! It’s definitely a good idea to have someone helping out with hard to reach areas.
7. If applicable, what does your wife/girlfriend think? Does she care? She was weirded out at the time!