Cycling Shorts?
- Thread starter leehop71
- Start date
Ok, you’ve talked me into trying a pair!
mschwett
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
After reading all these responses I feel like I probably don’t ‘need’ the cycling shorts/underwear, but I’m also curious to try a pair.
My dilemma is, I’ll probably buy and try a pair and then come to the conclusion I’ll need 7 pair because once the weather breaks I see myself riding everyday and probably more than once a day!and those puppies aren’t cheap!
realistically… you only need three pairs, maybe even two. after your ride, take them with you into the shower. one drop of soap and some wringing / squeezing under the shower, takes less then a minute, hang them somewhere to dry and by the ride after next (two days or so) they’re dry and ready to use again. no machine washing or drying required. I’ve had three pairs in rotation for a couple years.
Prairie Dog
Well-Known Member
- Region
- Canada
- City
- Red Deer
Another vote for bib shorts. I wear them simply for the reason that they are far more comfortable since there is no waistband that typically might feel restrictive around the abdominal area. There’s also no hitching meaning that you don’t have to tug at the waistband to get them back up since the bibs pull up the slack. I also wear a pair of cargo bibs and find them to be quite practical with mesh pockets at the sides and back for stowing ride essentials. For taller or heftier folks, bibs may not be the best fit as the straps aren’t adjustable.
None
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
I like bib shorts when I was racing, spending 3-4 hours on the bike 5-6 days a week.
Bibs have better support for the back muscles, even more conforming, less restrictive on the waist than regular bike shorts.
As I get less competitive, I feel the shorts are more convenient, less hassle when you have to take them off to pee vs bibs under the jersey or t-shirt.
Bibs are also more expensive than shorts, but if you're spending 3-4 days a week, few hours on a bike each day, bibs to make a difference.
Bibs have better support for the back muscles, even more conforming, less restrictive on the waist than regular bike shorts.
As I get less competitive, I feel the shorts are more convenient, less hassle when you have to take them off to pee vs bibs under the jersey or t-shirt.
Bibs are also more expensive than shorts, but if you're spending 3-4 days a week, few hours on a bike each day, bibs to make a difference.
fooferdoggie
Well-Known Member
fooferdoggie
Well-Known Member
I have to have bibs I have no hips so I need the suspenders.
old guy 666
New Member
- Region
- USA
Depends on distance. For anything over 15 miles (which is when I grab the battery bike instead of it's manual version) I grab the padded shorts. Even with them I have stand up on the pedals for an occasional butt break after 30 miles.
fooferdoggie
Well-Known Member
Ya I can do my 18 mile commute 5 days a week without but when I get home and hop on the tandem I have to have them and on weekends. I can't ride more than that without the shorts.
Mr. Coffee
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- A Demented Corner of the North Cascades
One thing I've learned is that it is better to have a diversity of padded shorts than to stick with one brand. My reasoning is that any given brand will tend to rub in one spot and not others, and each brand is going to be a bit different. So having two pairs of padded shorts from different manufacturers will probably make a big difference in butt comfort if you ride substantial distances every day. Note that "substantial distances" will mean different things to different people depending on where they are riding and their fitness.
fooferdoggie
Well-Known Member
so true. I dont like padded underwear for the most part because if I wear pants over them it makes it feel like the pants are falling off to me. but they come in handy like my trip yesterday I was able to find a bathroom to change into them under my shorts and I wore them all the way home. I didn't to want to wear my bibs and a jersey as I did not know what I was going to do and did not know if I could find a place to change.
rob feature
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Greenwood Village, Colorado
You're wearing the wrong skivvies. Get ya some synthetics that hang on tight - it'll change your life.
I don't wear any padding but I wear seamless underwear. The pants or shorts I wear over them are generic athletic type with minimal flat seams. I recently rode 250 miles on 5 consecutive days on the Erie Canalway Trail and I was comfortable. I've tried both inexpensive and expensive name brand padded underwear. Wore them without anything underneath but they never helped. My problem is that it took me a long time and many saddles, to find a saddle and then position it correctly to become comfortable.
Not sure if anyone has seen the tv series called, ‘My Strange Arrest’ but if you have you’ll know why I mention this.
I’m assuming no one here has e-biked ‘bareback’?
There was an episode on that show of a man riding a 4 wheel ATV butt naked on the freeway!
I’m telling the honest truth and anyone else that has seen it will confirm!!
I finally settled on these! I wear as underwear with shorts or pants and they definitely add some cushion!
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keithj69
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Central Florida
Please report back after a couple of rides. Wouuld be interested in your thoughts.I finally settled on these! I wear as underwear with shorts or pants and they definitely add some cushion!
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I’ve taken 3 rides, and I’m not going to lie and say it’s like riding on a pillow, but I can tell a positive change with them.
For the price I paid I didn’t expect them to be like the top of the line high priced stuff, I just bought them to see if they DO make a difference, and they did.
Providing my health holds up (turning 70 on October 3rd) I may end up trying a pair of the higher up brands!
Out of curiosity, I decided to try a pair of these liner shorts from Amazon:
I wore them for a short ride today (around 6 miles). I actually found that riding on my not-yet-fully broken-in Brooks B17 with those liner shorts under my jeans on was *less* comfortable overall than just a pair of jeans with regular underwear. I found that (1) while the rear padding on the sit bone areas obviously provided a bit of additional cushioning, the improvement in comfort on the sit bones was minimal (maybe a subjective improvement of 5%), whereas (2) the front pads resulted in my “man junk” being in a weird and uncomfortable position no matter how much I shifted around; (3) the additional tightness/compression was uncomfortable on my legs and waist (I do know that the compression is supposed to be a feature, not a bug, of liner shorts); and (4) they were really warm under jeans (which I won’t mind in the winter, but I was feeling overheated even in the mid-70s temperature we had here today). I then took them off and did the exact same ride with just jeans and regular underwear, and reconsidered even the marginal improvement I thought I had felt in cushioning of the sit bones: the Brooks B17 was actually more comfortable on my sit bones without the liner shorts.
All that said: your mileage may vary, everyone’s anatomy is different, the Brooks saddle may have already conformed to my non-padded rear such that the padding is throwing that off, etc. And I’m not going to return them: they were cheap enough that it’s not worth it, plus I can see the added sit bone cushioning being of some benefit on really long rides. And I’m also gonna try a more expensive pair of liner shorts to see if I find them to be better (these: https://www.gorewear.com/us/en-us/fernflow-liner-shorts-mens-100941). Those I will return if I don’t notice a significant improvement in overall comfort.
I wore them for a short ride today (around 6 miles). I actually found that riding on my not-yet-fully broken-in Brooks B17 with those liner shorts under my jeans on was *less* comfortable overall than just a pair of jeans with regular underwear. I found that (1) while the rear padding on the sit bone areas obviously provided a bit of additional cushioning, the improvement in comfort on the sit bones was minimal (maybe a subjective improvement of 5%), whereas (2) the front pads resulted in my “man junk” being in a weird and uncomfortable position no matter how much I shifted around; (3) the additional tightness/compression was uncomfortable on my legs and waist (I do know that the compression is supposed to be a feature, not a bug, of liner shorts); and (4) they were really warm under jeans (which I won’t mind in the winter, but I was feeling overheated even in the mid-70s temperature we had here today). I then took them off and did the exact same ride with just jeans and regular underwear, and reconsidered even the marginal improvement I thought I had felt in cushioning of the sit bones: the Brooks B17 was actually more comfortable on my sit bones without the liner shorts.
All that said: your mileage may vary, everyone’s anatomy is different, the Brooks saddle may have already conformed to my non-padded rear such that the padding is throwing that off, etc. And I’m not going to return them: they were cheap enough that it’s not worth it, plus I can see the added sit bone cushioning being of some benefit on really long rides. And I’m also gonna try a more expensive pair of liner shorts to see if I find them to be better (these: https://www.gorewear.com/us/en-us/fernflow-liner-shorts-mens-100941). Those I will return if I don’t notice a significant improvement in overall comfort.
Last edited:
riplipper
Member
- Region
- USA
Interesting, My legs almost never get tired before my ass is screaming. I'm gonna try these.I finally settled on these! I wear as underwear with shorts or pants and they definitely add some cushion!
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I'm getting to the age where incompetence is followed by incontinence.
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