Originally Posted by
thump55
The chamois absorbs your ass sweat.
Sweat = wetness = chafing = pain (did you ever wear wet swimming trunks too long?)
The padding is important, but not necessarily for the reason you would think.
1. This ^^ The padding on your shorts is about dealing with moisture and chaffing.
2. The padding on your shorts generally is stuck to your body and the outside of the shorts slides around on the seat. If the padding is on the seat, then your butt is moving around on the seat with only a thin layer of fabric between you and the more stationary seat. That is a recipe for chaffing. When your seat has more padding, this is exacerbated due to the fact that your bones will sink into the foam on the seat. The foam on the seat is fixed to the bike, not you. Any sliding around on the seat means the skin between you and the seat gets even more shearing.