Summer is almost here, and I would like to take my daughter to the local large body of water with the most convenience possible. How advisable is it to wear bike shorts swimming? Will they hold up over say a half dozen uses (assuming they are washed out afterwards) ? Will they be too uncomfortable to ride back to the starting point (5 miles away) ?

I'm sure there's expensive triathlete clothes to do this, but I'm talking about regular, cheapo (performance, ascent) bike shorts with chamois.

Thanks!

I would consider getting shorts with little or no padding. Once that chamois gets wet it can increase chafing/rubbing. Not to mention being just generally uncomfortable down there. Beyond that it shouldn't make a difference. Rinse them off well, etc.

I use my old chamois-less bike shorts under my wetsuit for scuba.

With chamois or any other padding, it gets a bit soggy and heavy.

Just don't take them in a pool. Chlorine will destroy them. I go lake swimming in my bike shorts everytime I go Mountain biking, provided the weather is warm.

I go in swimming (in lakes, rivers, ponds, the ocean, etc.) with my padded cycling shorts all the time ... and they are fine.

Just a word of caution though ... the padding is meant to absorb and wick away moisture. What happens is that it gets busy absorbing ... and there's too much to wick away!! So you do go around with the feeling like you've got a full diaper for a while.

The only time I found chafing to be an issues was when I swam in the ocean - those waves are full of sand, and the sand gets caught in the chamois, and you start to feel like you're creating pearls down there!! If you can grab a shower somewhere (most beaches have some sort of shower faciliites) and rinse out the shorts before cycling home, that would be a good idea.

Do you really need to wear bike shorts for a ten mile round trip? I'd wear nylon trunks because they dry fast.

I've ridden as far as 20 miles round trip to go swimming wearing trunks with briefs underneath and had no discomfort. I just lay out in the sun for a little bit after I get out of the water until I'm dry. Fortunately, trunks dry pretty quickly.

Your mileage may vary.

I'd be tempted to wear baggy mountain bike type shorts. Wet spandex ones are just a little too revealing for my liking.

For 10 miles you can just wear swimming shorts on your bike. My boyfriend bikes a lot in his, sometimes a lot more than 10 miles (like 100...).

my mountain bike rides often turn into mini adventures ... rain . mud . river crossings . even swim breaks ... i have never had a problem with my padded bike shorts . lycra dries fast . mud rinses out . ... i agree about the chlorine . avoid that . but go have fun . it's why you have a mountain bike !

Zombie Thread Alert!
Kind of a a timeless topic, I suppose, and Summer is drawing closer.

This is what happens when we emphasize the use of the search function. New members use it, see an interesting topic and don't think to look at the last post date to see if they are posting something relevant.

Try J & G touring shorts. They provide just about an optimal combination of features - comfortable fit, long lasting, light pad, look decent, not overly expensive. I wear a pair most all summer; for cycling, swimming, mowing the lawn - where every I need shorts.

Try both: wear comfortable bike shorts and bring along swimming trunks.

Get tri shorts, problem solved, zombie.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004LY49OO/...SIN=B004LY49OO

why bother?

You can get swim suits that look like bike shorts. They're called, "jammers." Speedo, Nike, Dolphin, and all the other racing suit makers sell them, along with their, um, smaller products.

+1 given: It's swim, bike, run, in that order

Maybe if your bike shorts were 100%polyester the chlorine would take longer to break it down.
The chamois....i dont know about that...i woudl it it would be like wearing a diaper when you get out of the water. lol