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First MTB shorts

3K views 21 replies 15 participants last post by  bikestok 
#1 ·
I just bought my first pair of MTB shorts, the Fox Men's Ranger 12 Short, which comes with a removable chamois. Based on the tight fit of the chamois, I'm assuming that you wear the chamois as underwear and do not wear any underwear underneath it?
 
#11 ·
You wear undies, but only banana hammocks under tight fitting clothes. No one likes "panty lines".

In seriousness, chamois cream is a savior. Rub chamois cream over the entire chamois then ride in comfort.

I use shea butter with tea tree oil added as an anti-bacterial.
 
#15 ·
No, it's just for compression. I would suggest wearing padded short with your choice of chamois cream at first. Once your butt gets used to riding wear whatever you want. I will always wear a padded short of some type, with or without baggy shorts. Do what is most comfy for you.
 
#18 ·
Since this is my first pair, I do not have anything to compare it against. Before when I just wore regular boxers and shorts, my groin area used to get numb on long extended climbs. The numbing seems to have disappeared with the chamois, so I think I'll stick with the chamois from now on all rides.
 
#20 ·
What's probably more important than the padding on the chamois is the saddle itself. I haven't had any major discomfort problems with the WTB Speed V saddle which came included with my bike. You should make sure the seatpost isn't too high, and I noticed it also helps to have the nose, or forward end of the saddle pointing slightly downward to relieve some pressure.
 
#22 ·
The ranger with the fox M chamois has been my favorite out of my past 4 pairs of bike shorts. I think several things are really important to not get chaffing in the first place.

1) make sure you seat is the right size (i.e. width). Specialized and some others have ways for the bike shop to actually measure the width of your sit bones. You want to make sure your sit bones are doing the work - not the soft stuff in-between!!

2) An important corollary to this is having the seat in the right location - this is vertically (too high and you have hip tilt, too low any you tend to move back and forth a little much) and fore-aft. Just a really small adjustment fore-and aft makes a huge deal. Just think about where your sit bones are on the seat and adjust the seat on the rails to make it work. Also, your saddle should be very close to level (no tilt of the nose). I used to think I want that saddle away from my boys, but that is wrong! If the nose is pointed down (too much), you load your arms. As your arms tire, you slide forward on the seat and this results in some soft part loading and subsequent chaffing.

3) Another reason (especially for new riders) mt bikers get chaffing is because they are in the seat too much. If you have a chance to watch a really good rider they are out of the seat a ton. They are positioning their weight fore and aft. Also they are loading the pedals which are much lower than the seat. Being out of the seat has the nice byproduct of letting the blood flow in your soft parts and keeps the chaffing down.

4) No underwear (unless you are talking something that is seamless). Some people like a jock to hold the boys out of the way a little.
 
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