I have my first ever duathlon coming up in November ( Miami Man half iron) and was doing a brick yesterday. In T2 I got rid of the bike shorts and put on my running shorts, thinking to myself, do you guys wrap yourself in a towel or do you just let it all hang out.
I don’t, tri shorts for the whole race.
Find yourself a pair of tri shorts for cycling (they usually have less padding in them and don’t make you feel like you are wearing a diaper while on a bike) and then you run in those same shorts. No changing in the transitions should be necessary with a few minor exceptions such as taking off a wetsiut after a swim, adding a race number belt, bike helmet, etc…
I cant imagine how it is going to feel in the bum after riding 56 miles in LESS padding than what I have now. Why do we use the tiny plastic seats? Would it not make sense to take the extra padding from the shorts and put it in the seat? Its the same weight.
At a tri shop in Miami, I noticed some of the big cushy seats and thought, “why dont people use these seats on racing bikes.”
I know it would look stupid, but would you feel better after a long ride?
When I was a BMXer as a kid I got used to the hard plastic seat and could spend hours on it, I suppose I will adapt to my racing seat, just curious though.
With most races, you’ll be DQd for nudity so I’d advise against “letting it all hang out.” I think the rule only applies to men though 
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Exactly, your bum-region gets used to it. It is going to take a few sore days to get acclimated. The other option is to just go with what feels good for you, but you are right, keep the extra padding on the seat rather than in your shorts because you are not gonna like running in one of those diapers. Talk about a chafe waiting to happen.
The sooner you get tri shorts and get used to it the better. Forget about changing and at Miami Man transition is right next to spectators with no tents. If you want to speed up you “aclimatization” ride them on the trainer…
peace
Started looking at some outfits and it seems that the one peice suits are taking on popularity. Any advantage of the one piece over the two peice tri suits? Are the tops required? Can we guys run without the tops?
So how much should I plan on spending. I want a good tri suit, does price really matter?
I just need to start wearing these in my training so I dont start chafing on race day.
Well since you are going to race a Du, I would rather look into Du suit rather than Tri suit 
I prefer two pieces as it give more options (i.e. different tops/bottoms) & also if you need to pee it is a lot easier to deal with.
Fred.
I have never worn one piece suits so wont comment on that but I personally do like flexibility of taking pieces off if needed (bathroom breaks) specially for HIM.
Whatever you are going to use for racing wear it several times training. I found out that the pads on the Desoto power shorts w/pockets and without pockets feel totally different after long rides and now favor one over the other, same with tops, places that get sore, chaffed, etc, etc, etc.
Peace
Being a dedicated but slow runner, most of my racing clothes are technical and light and as a result pretty inexpensive. Now I am looking at buying a Tri suit and spending $300 for shorts and shirt. Going from strictly running to Triathlon was like when I moved to South Florida, everything is twice as expensive.
I love it though. I have never been more motivated to speed up my running times and now learning to swim on top of that.
So twice the enjoyment at twice the expense. A good tradeoff.
The first judge of a booming economy? Check the number of triathlon race entries.
$300, what are you buying? how many?
With the heat here, the better and lighter the most you will appreciate it
peace
Yea, I guess I went overboard on that. I guess $200 is closer to the mark with top of the line Desoto stuff.
So if I order online, will the sizing be about right? I see the medium in shorts is for a 32 - 35 waist. Is the sizing pretty close?
The DeSoto stuff is fantastic and you will find that Emilio DeSoto himself responds to most questions about his stuff.
Tops required or not: depends on the race. Good to find out before you show up.
One v. two piece: Personal preference. Like others have mentioned, two piece is more versatile and easier when dealing with porta breaks.
clm
Desoto has great customer service. Give them a call and they’ll be able to help you figure out the right size for everything.
I now do all of my riding in my tri shorts because I find them more comfortable than my bike shorts. Ever since I started riding in aerobars, I find the bike shorts less comfortable on long rides. It also took a while before I found a saddle that worked for me, so it’s really a combination of time on the bike + good tri shorts + saddle.
If you are going with Desoto (i love their stuff) ask Emilio directly he will probably respond quickly about sizing/fit or any other question. Their power shorts are awesome.
peace
If you are worried about your butt for 56 miles and don’t want to add stuff in your shorts : ) try a neoprene seat cover. These were once VERY popular and worked well over the long distances.
I’ve been wearing one piece tri suits for about 7 years and love 'em. I find them cooler and more compfy then the 2 piece. Currently the stable of trisuits are one Orca that zips in the back for sprints and an LG with the front zip for longer. Neither have pockets. I hate pockets. My food gets stuck up the pant legs.
Dave,
The DeSoto stuff is great. I biked over 200 miles this past weekend in DeSoto Tri shorts with no comfort issues at all - and I was on a narrow hard seat. I have been wearing the Tri shorts for all bike training over the past 5 years or so. No problem at all. In fact I was given a nice pair of high end bike shorts as a gift, and quite frankly don’t like them.
Good luck with your race!
P.S. Along with the right shorts, saddle and time in both…chamois butter is your friend.
Lots of brands.
Bag Balm
Assos Chamois Creme
Chamois ButtR
Udderly smooth udder creme
P.P.S. You go commando with the tri (and bike) shorts.
clm
I actually find tri shorts more comfortable then cycling shorts too. Not a change you want to make just before a race, but definately worth doing.
If you have a long torso, like i do, the one piece suit might work better. I’m tall and skinny, so tri tops that fit tight enough are too short, and I wind up looking like a goon, or constantly pulling it down