I have received numerous emails and read numerous posts on Yahoo! Answers regarding boardshorts. So I decided that this would be a good opportunity to answer many of the common questions that I receive and read.
What to wear under boardshorts and when to wear them. In recent years boardshorts have gained popularity as the swimsuit of choice among the young. But the problem is, these garments are debateably not even swimwear. Most swimwear has some sort of lining to help give you that extra support and protection. But boardshorts are one layer with no mesh lining inside. The upside to this is that one can wear whatever one wishes underneath them, but the question is 'what should you wear?' Well, it depends on what you will be doing in these boardshorts. Boardshorts are oftentimes worn just as normal shorts in the summer. If you are just going to wear them around town and you are not going to be going in the water, I'd recommend that you wear whatever underwear you normally wear underneath your shorts. But if you are planning on taking the shorts in the water (or even out on the water in a boat) then I'd recommend that you wear something else. Here's why. Most underwear is made of cotton or some other fabric that does not dry quickly, therefore if the boardshorts (and then your underwear) get at all wet it will take forever for the underwear to dry and you will just be wet and miserable for a few hours. I do not recommend that you just wear boardshorts by themselves because they have no supportive liner and they have a tendency to fall off when coming out of the water. Therefore, I recommend that you wear supportive swimwear underneath the boardshorts, like a swim brief (commonly referred to as a Speedo) or a swim trunk. It will look like you are just wearing some sort of underwear, but you will not have to worry about being wet and miserable. Also, as an added bonus, you could take off the boardshorts and just go swimming in the suit underneath if you have a change of heart. Now this brings us to when one should wear boardshorts. Boardshorts are rather big and bulky so they are not ideal for actual swimming or competitive swimming. They are fine for just hanging around in the pool though. Also, if you just want to lounge around on the beach or the boat or go surfing, then boardshorts are perfect. In future posts I will be talking about what swimwear to wear for different swimming situations, but for now that's the lowdown on boardshorts. Keep in mind, this is all just my opinion so feel free to not follow my advice. I am very eager to hear your opinions on boardshorts in the comments section of this entry.
[Note: The boardshort shown can be found here from aussieBum]
