Underwear! The Underdog?

Underwear are rather amazing to me. As a rider of multiple horses a day, I am quite aware of the stress I place on my undergarments. Naturally, I try to sit as light and still as I can but gravity is gravity and my underwear daily connection is real.

I truly hate shopping (Tack shops are necessary of course!) so I would guess that some underwear in my collection are older than most of your saddle pads. Still, they ride.

I must say that in all my baby training, show-jumping, and eventing careers, I was less fascinated by the whole undergarment thing but as a dressage rider…dang…

First, I had to figure out WHAT to wear. I had a serious conversation with Molly Sivewright FBHS back in the 80s about this issue. Seems seams are problematic with “regular” underwear as they are “smack dab” (I did live in Texas awhile) over your seat bones. Perhaps it was my fluffiness after having a baby but I was uncomfortable enough to ask Molly about it. She suggested longer knickers. I tried these but so much material! It was a fail for me.

So, no knickers and no regular underwear. Commando? Not a chance…

I then moved on to thong underwear. Okay, much better. Now, I am unsure whether or not this would work for a man and perhaps the pelvis anatomy for a man allows for a no issue regular underwear experience.  But for me, this worked. No seams over my seat bones. There was just this tiny little issue of the type of thong that would not, uh, slice you in two. Challenging indeed.

The reason I am amazed by underwear? Because shopping for them is AWFUL!  Shop assistants look at me dumbfounded when I say I need just the right material and width on my thong underwear to be breathable, comfortable, and stretchy. They are perplexed. No lace? No satin? No frilly anything? No G-string?

Oh brother! Why is this so difficult? Naturally, like a favorite lipstick or a favorite coffee shop, my favorite undergarment brand is no more. The search is on and it is challenging. Would someone please open up a dressage riders undergarment shop?

Don’t even get me started on finding bras with no padding.