Definitely a no. If you buy comfortable bike shorts with seamless "padding" you will be just fine. It does take some getting used to . . . "going commando" - but it really is quite comfortable.

Diane Douglass

No underwear! You want to get padded bike shorts. These have a fake chamois lining around where the saddle hits. They feel somewhat weird to walk around in, but work great on a bike. Some even have a gel pad. For longer or harder rides and consecutive day rides you will be more comfortable if you lube them. People use A&D, Desitin, Bag Balm, Vaseline, & Chamois Buttr. In my opinion Bag Balm is great, A&D smells, Desitin stains, but doesn't smell as bad, and I am not sure if Vaseline will just provide a great growth medium for nasty germs. I haven't tried Chamois Buttr yet. I can say from personal experience that if you do get a bad sore on day one and apply a blob of Desitin 5 times a day and ride hard on it you can be healed well before the end of Cycle Oregon. Desitin does work very well to cure sores and you can get the white stain out with stain removers and LOTS of laundering once you get home.

Rox Heath

One other thing no underwear implies - put on clean bike shorts every morning. This helps with infections, etc. You will need several pairs as they take time to drip dry - a couple of hours in hot, dry weather and a couple of days in wet weather. We will probably get both!

Rox Heath