Question aimed specifically at male cyclists!

[bainbridge]

Hi tourers

I have a specific question regarding wearing bib tights.

Does anyone else find these extremely uncomfortable in the genital area?

Last year after trying on several sizes I spent £80 on some (reduced from £100) and they're really comfortable at first, but after an hour on the bike the pressure on my genitals becomes agony. They're Specialized mens ones, with a pad designed for men and windproof front panels.

Although not amazingly well endowed I have quite large testicles and with normal padded cycle shorts I just hoist them up out of the way and they're fine, however with bib tights there doesn't seem to be anywhere for them to go.

My old bibtights were getting tight too, but they were 13 years old and purchased in my mid 20s when I was skinny as a rake, now at 39 I'm a little rounder, but still fairly slim.

Is it true that expensive technical cycle clothing is designed for just skinny racers? If I have to shell out another £80 then so be it but I want to be able to be comfortable. Bibtights are so nice on cold rides, as well as keeping the legs warm the extra insulation around the lower back is a godsend, and these windproof front panels are superb.

I'm even considering some sort or cricket box type thing to wear inside the existing bibtights!

Any advice will be much appreciated, thanks.

[NUKe]

Don't do as most do and under estimate your size . you need to buy cycling clothes in the right size. most men under estimate their waist by about 4 inch. Some brands are more realistically sized. funkier and endura spring to mind. Fat bloke at the back brand is based on realistic sizing.

[uppadine]

Never liked bibtights for this very reason, and you're best off with lycra shorts.

[AndyHenderson]

FWIW I use unpadded bib tights over padded shorts in colder weather. Works well for me.

Andy

[Eyebrox]

You would do well to buy a kilt. You won't need the full eight yards of material that are used in the traditional outfit. No need to tuck anything in and you will benefit from your nether region getting a good airing. The kilt pin is handy for tacking on an entry number if you are racing and the sporran will accommodate a tube and energy gel. You will appreciate the freedom of movement it allows especially when spending a penny. A kilt also protects your saddle and seatbag from the elements. Let me know if you have a go at this.

[TonyR]

You would do well to buy a kilt

Do they do bib-kilts?

[Mick F]

FWIW I use unpadded bib tights over padded shorts in colder weather. Works well for me.

Andy

+1
Done this for more years than I can remember.

[pwa]

FWIW I use unpadded bib tights over padded shorts in colder weather. Works well for me.

Andy

+1
Done this for more years than I can remember.

+1 for me too. You find the shorts that work for you (I prefer them not too tight) then bib tights over them in cold conditions. My shorts are also bib type, so I have two sets of straps with no problem. I also wear vests of varying thickness.

[Heltor Chasca]

Can't you hang left or right? Not much skill involved.

[pete75]

Reminds me of this old joke....

There's this man that's lived all his adult life with this unrelenting chronic pain. It started in his 20s, and got progressively worse over time. He went to several specialists and by the time the man got to his 60s, the pain was unbearable and he was desperate for a cure. He finally finds a doctor that says "Well, we don't know the cause of the pain, but we have found the source. It's your testicles. We can either give you powerful pain killers that will wreak havoc on your liver and eventually kill you, or we can simply remove them."
The man thinks it over for a few days, and then opts for the surgery, because it is his last hope. He has the surgery, and after a few days of recovery he walks out of the hospital, for the first time in his adult life, completely pain free.
He feels really good, so he walks into town and into a tailor shop and orders himself a custom made suit. The tailor is a really old professional, and although he has a tape measure around his neck, he just looks at the guy and says "You're a 43 across the chest, and 32 in the sleeves, right?"
The man is astonished and says that is exactly right. Throughout the entire time, the tailor never measures, and the man asks how he does that. The tailor says that after 40 years of being a tailor, you can just look at a person and know. Finally, at the end of the sales process, the tailor wants to get as much money out of the man as possible, so he asks if he wants to get some underwear.
The man says, ok, if the tailor can guess the size. The tailor says "Well, you're a 38." And the man replies, "Ha, no, you're wrong, I wear a size 36 underwear."
And the tailor replies. "No, you should wear a 38. If you wear a 36, it would probably constrict your testicles, and you would be in unbearable pain all the time."

[Adam S]

Don't do as most do and under estimate your size

Tee-hee

[Adam S]

Sorry

[reohn2]

A difficult one(or two,sorry),I've used Lusso Bib tights for more years than I care to remember and find them totally comfortable,I occasionally need to hitch things up these days but that's more of a case of getting old and things being a little looser as the skin lacks elasticity in certain areas .
I've tried Altura,Endura and Biemme bibs in the past but found them lacking for one reason or another,Altura being the worst,their sizing is a mystery to me,their other clothing sizing being oddly shaped too IME.

Could your problem be more medically associated than bib short related?

[andrewjoseph]

i've tried several types but current favourites are castelli with the Progetto X2 pad. i'm 5' 9" with 34" waist and need the large bib short.

[stewartpratt]

Is it not simply the case that you've bought bibs that are too small? It's quite easy to get away with a smaller size of waist shorts, so you may have been wearing slightly too small a size for years without knowing it, but if your bibs are a bit small you'll end up with your balls round your ears.