When I first jumped on board the padded (road) short thing I ended up getting some “liner” style shorts that are made to wear underneath other shorts to begin with, and I still wear those for commutes or short rides. After that, since I had no idea which brands, etc. I’d prefer, I just bought 3 pairs of cheap shorts on Nashbar, one LG, one Sugoi and one… something else I forget. The total was only $100 or so. I formed preferences after riding those for a while and also branched out to some more expensive brands (Castelli, Voler, etc.). I also bought some in M and some in S to figure out my size but even the ones I don’t like as much are fine for commuting a couple years later.
@TwoWheelsDC 63424 wrote:
The Performance Ultra bibs were my gateway drug, although I eventually stopped wearing them because I lost weight and they were too big. My only complaint is that I found the chamois a bit abrasive after a couple hours in the saddle. But they’re perfectly good for commuting and short workout rides.
Same here on two counts – they were my first pair of bibs, although I still wear (padded chamois) shorts for most commutes, and I also find they get more abrasive than other pairs I own, after a couple hours. Possibly a fit issue though since I bought a M and I usually buy S.
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