Conference noted::bicycle

    
    
      I agree.  I never wear underwear under my cycling shorts.
    One of the benefits of cycling shorts is that the chamois has
    no seams to rub on your skin while riding.  If wear underwear
    there will be some fairly large seams that will rub and cause
    all kinds of problems and discomfort.
    
      Just to be fair though I should mention that there is cycling
    specific underwear that is designed with a seamless crotch.
    I've never tryed them myself but I know people who have used
    them and like them.
    
    John C.
    

    
    	By wearing underwear, you run a far greater risk of getting saddle
    sores. Unless you're wearing satin underwear (you never know!),
    underwear will be rougher than the chamois. This roughness causes
    chaffing and breaks the skin. That's why it's important to keep the
    chamois clean (no smart comments please, this is a respectable notes
    conference).
    	I've never seen specially designed underwear over here, can't see
    what good it'll do. It just sounds like something to get round the
    embarassment. Mind you, with some of the comments I got at school, I
    can understand that feeling.
    
    Graham.
    

    
    There's a note about this somewhere else... but for the record,
    some carefully chosen underwear can protect you against chafing
    better than going without.  It's the same idea as using two pairs 
    of thin socks for hiking.  So, the material should be slick rather
    than cottony (so it will slide and not bunch up)�, not absorbent
    (to avoid perspiration-dampness making it soggy), and not have
    prominent seams.  Admittedly of concern here is long distance rides,
    and even then, I suspect that most people go without.  But I'll be
    a testimonial for this attire. 
    
    -john (bracing myself for the jibes :-))
    
    �Essentially the silk that Graham suggests, though I haven't tried that! 

	Worse than pinching....

		....underwear causes pantylines. %^)

    
    	Does this mean that I'll have to get my bikini line waxed?
    
    Graham.
    

The "other note in here somewhere" is 1139. Worth a read.


Rod

     Agreed... Underwear is formal occasions (non-cycling)
    
      Chip

    Unless you're a scot :-)

    	Hey, I'm a Scott. Does that mean I kin go without
    	undies?
    
    	Uh, I think I misread Rod's last reply.
    
    	I never wear underwear with my lycra shorts.
    
    	Scott (German, not Scottish)

    Nothing gets between me and my shorts...
    
    :-}
    
    ed

     Hey, I'm not a Scott either... What does it matter, Scott, Chip, Ed,
    John... We're all cyclo-sapiens, right? Or am I being too generous...
    
     chip_who's_still_smarting_from_Flye_the_sparrow_body_MERLIN_crack

Well, since I wrote 1139 or whatever it was, and, I suppose, as a result of
it, I don't wear anything under me shorts either. As someone else said, 
nothing's worn under my shorts, it's all in perfect working order.


Rod

    
    	Maybe underwear isn't such a bad thing after all. A couple of weeks
    ago, the Daily Record (the Scottish version of the trashy 'newspapers'
    you get around the world, but no one else does it as well as the
    British) did a story on how cycling could make you impotent. They even
    got the expert opinion from one of the big chiefs of the British
    Cycling Federation. Maybe this is the reason. We're not protecting the
    vital areas. We're leaving them open and exposed to maltreatment and abuse
    from the saddle and the elements. Now where are those satin boxer
    shorts?
    	And anyone can talk to me in complete confidence. Trust me, I'm a
    doctor!
    
    Dr. G. Goodman MD
    

    
    I will admit to early notariety in one event (RAAM!) because
    of my underwear.  It was not only an interesting pattern, but
    worn under thin, white Lycra shorts designed for the desert.
    My fellow contenders had some amusement (useful diversion, I'm 
    sure) in the yellow-flag segment of the race start. ;-)
    
    -john

    	Ah, yes. I wasn't going to say anything, but Wayne
    	and I were somewhat amused by the striped (I believe)
    	shorts under the white Lycra. And, of course, John
    	had these on at the start of RAAM.
    
    	Hey, maybe if I wore striped undies under white Lycra
    	I could ride like John.
    
    	Scott (I kinda doubt it)

    
    	I'm sorry John, but I thought you must have had something lacking
    to be willing to ride RAAM. You only confirmed my suspicions when you
    rode PBP. Now, I realise that there's no hope left...
    
    	It's sad that they let them out of the institutions so early...
    
    Graham.
     

    Graham, re .2
    
    >I've never seen specially designed underwear over here
    
    I've seen some here made by Specialized. They were basically just
    non-Lycra (cotton?) cycling shorts. You wear under your normal trousers 
    (pants for US). 
    
    Chris

    joc?

    Most of the stores around here sell "cycling underwear".  It's a thin
    cotton/lycra blend.  There are both padded and unpadded versions.  I
    find the padded ones useful under unpadded tights.  They're cheaper and
    easier to wash than nylon/lycra shorts.
    
    Ken
    

   Performance sells both padded and unpadded short liners.  I think their
   excellent, especially for long rides, and you can wear the padded version
   under just about anything and make riding comfortable.

   - Jim