MTB Shorts / Liners / Bibs <- Where to start?

I started out in cheap liners under some metolius bouldering shorts - but they sucked and felt like a wet diaper. I have gone to a spandex / poly pro boxer brief under the bouldering shorts and it's totally fine for the ride, but I'm getting tender the day after and the weather is warming up... so I'm starting to see some value in having some ass and taint protection.

I'm trying to get into the longer rides and really don't want another bought with saddle sores - been there once and know how bad that is.

Who's wearing what? Especially curious about the guys doing the 20-40 mile rides with loads of sweating.

I picked up some pearl izumi attack shorts on Chainlove they have actually been pretty good for me. The inseam is a little short but I wear them under shorts so its not a too big a deal. I never wore any liner or padding under my shorts until this season but so far its been a bit more comfortable. I am not a spandex rider but they feel pretty good when I throw them under some shorts.

Jong myself here, found a couple old threads.

http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...-shorts-please
http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...-(not-baggies)

I grabbed a few pairs of Fox Ranger shorts off chainlove last year. The stock liner sucked after a season of riding, so I cut it out and got a pair of these: Aerotech Classic Padded Cycling Shorts and put them on under the baggy shorts. They seem to be doing the trick for me lately. Not doing 40 mile rides, but do end up hitting 15-20 miles a few days a week by mid-summer.

I'm gonna start using the same setup riding to work next week, which will be 30 miles round trip on road and I think it'll be alright.

I wear a pair of road bike spandex (with chamois) shorts underneath, with a pair of somewhat breathable bike shorts on top. I ride 20-40 mile rides around here pretty regularly and rarely have any issues.

What spandex are you using steve? Pactimo has some good deals on STP right now on them.

This is really easy. Get the Pearl Izumi Liner Short. It's made out of high quality mesh and comes with a really good chamois. I own several pairs of the previous two iterations of these, and they're still going strong. The mesh allows them to breathe really well when they're worn under normal shorts. So, you're not stuck buying expensive, crappy mtb shorts that don't last and come with a shitty chamois.

I also round this out with cheap, burly cargo shorts from Costco. The rip-stop ones they used to sell were my favorite, but the current ones work just fine also.

MTB shorts are junk. Like everyone else says. Find some good lycra shorts with a good chammy and throw some shorts over them. I go with the OR ferrosi shorts over some PI road shorts. I'd consider bibs too for the added room for your junk.

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Originally Posted by shredgnar

MTB shorts are junk. Like everyone else says. Find some good lycra shorts with a good chammy and throw some shorts over them.

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Agree with this. Especially if doing longer, pedally rides. But unless you have some sort of complex or care what other people think, or are on a photoshoot for Bike or Privateer magazine, skip the shorts over them, they serve no purpose and just make you hotter and snag your seat and shit and why would you want to be sitting on extra material that can rub and chafe when you're pedaling on long rides?

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Originally Posted by Poop~Ghost

What spandex are you using steve? Pactimo has some good deals on STP right now on them.

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No idea.... pretty crappy ones from Performance and REI that were cheap and have worked well for the last 2-3 years. I might have to look into the Pearl Izumi liners that Arty recommended, it's about time for a new pair or two.

Edit: I just looked on Amazon, and the PI Liner Shorts are only $22. With my Amazon Prime membership, that's pretty damn good- I'm getting two pair, thanks Arty!

chainlove has some decent stuff pop up.

If you're going the spandex only / spandex under bike shorts... mo' definitely get bib-shorts. There is no comparison. Otherwise, brand is a personal thing. Personally I prefer castelli or craft.

I'm going to try these:

http://www.backcountry.com/images/it...0548/BK_D1.jpg

http://www.backcountry.com/images/it...0548/BK_D4.jpg

http://www.departmentofgoods.com/fox...:referralID=NA

$36 is in my wheel house for the budget right now, and if they suck - shipping was free so I can return them and go for the mesh liners.

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Originally Posted by XtrPickels

chainlove has some decent stuff pop up.

If you're going the spandex only / spandex under bike shorts... mo' definitely get bib-shorts. There is no comparison. Otherwise, brand is a personal thing. Personally I prefer castelli or craft.

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Agreed. Bibs are more comfortable and keep the dirt out of your ass crack. For real!

damn sorry for the giant pix - looks like a baboons ass.

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Originally Posted by Tyrone Shoelaces

Agree with this. Especially if doing longer, pedally rides. But unless you have some sort of complex or care what other people think, or are on a photoshoot for Bike or Privateer magazine, skip the shorts over them, they serve no purpose and just make you hotter and snag your seat and shit and why would you want to be sitting on extra material that can rub and chafe when you're pedaling on long rides?

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Yeah, but I like to have pockets, and I've spent to many years making fun of you spandisexuals to not hide my lycra with baggies. I also enjoy the extra added protection during my frequent crash episodes. It also looks funny when I wear shin guards with just spandex so yeah, I guess I'm worried about how it looks.

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Originally Posted by shredgnar

It also looks funny when I wear shin guards with just spandex so yeah, I guess I'm worried about how it looks.

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The OP was talking about geting into longer rides (ie 40 miles) "with loads of sweating"..... shin guards and extra layers of clothing sounds brilliant for that!

A few maggots have ridden with me and can attest to the stream of sweat that pours out of my helmet when I push it down or look down for that matter. I'm working up to some of the longer rides - and don't give a shit about anybody seeing my package if it means I can stay a bit cooler.

Maybe not 40, but I regularly ride 20 with keys and a cellphone in my pocket. Not really an issue.

Edit: I also primarily ride above 9000' so the heat isn't really an issue.

Then just wear a heavy-flo day panty liner, and nothing else. Done.

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Originally Posted by rideit

Then just wear a heavy-flo day panty liner, and nothing else. Done.

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Consider it done.

If you decide to use over-shorts, I like these ones a lot: http://www.pricepoint.com/detail/212...Tech-Short.htm. They're also good for chamois-less shorter rides.