Truckers...wearing PANTYHOSE???

[ChristineRenee]

It's true ladies...it's TRUE! According to an article yesterday in the Lakeland local newspaper The Ledger entitled..."No Nonsense...Wearing Pantyhose Is Serious Business For Some Guys"...


Real men wear pantyhose. Really, they do. Just ask Bobby, a 40 year old Polk County truck driver. Bobby is not a crossdresser and doesn't have a sexual fetish, he simply likes the way hose supports his legs during long hauls and how they helped stabilize a recent knee injury.

"It's just like wearing a pair of silk boxers", he says. "Nothing wrong with that. I just like the way pantyhose feel."

As a married father of one, Bobby's family stands by his choice to wear pantyhose, but he still asked that we not use his last name for fear of his friends and colleagues might make fun of him, or worse, consider him to be a weirdo. ()

Bobby is not alone. In an effort to get recognition for pantyhose as a genderless garment, online groups such as "Legwear as Unisex Fashion" and "Men Wearing Pantyhose for Health Reasons" exist for men who use hosiery as a functional piece of clothing. Those sites shun sexual content, and hundreds of men who contribute posts ask each other advice on what to tell their girlfriends or if shaved legs keep hose from slipping. () Others give testimony on how hose helped them with restless leg syndrome or kept their legs feeling fresh after working on their feet all day.

Bobby's wife accepts his nylons and even likes the way they look on him. He says he's found women tend to be more open to the idea of men wearing pantyhose than men who don't, which is why he still keeps things under wraps.

A few men from the forums said it took some convincing to get their wives and girlfriends to understand their fashion choice, but when they did, next thing they knew, their wives were helping them pick out styles. ()

Terri Barnes, a publicist for L'eggs Hanes Bali says she wasn't aware of a mainstream market for men. "I would be surprised if there was."

Her company may be missing out. Sheer hosiery sales for women have declined for more than a decade, according to NPD, a market research company. Current fashion has favored bare legs for women and they have abandoned nylons to gathering dust in their chest of drawers. But it seems certain men can't get enough of them. ()

Mike Blackport, 38, of Grand Rapids, Mich., is moderator for the Delphi Forum site "Legwear as Unisex Fashion", and he has been a fan of hosiery for decades. "I think they are the most comfortable article of clothing available, he says. "About 15 years ago, I decided that a man wearing pantyhose is not illegal, or even embarrassing, so I decided to come out from under my long pants and in the warmer months wear them with shorts. My family, friends, and co-workers all know and honestly don't care what I have on my legs."

Blackport continues, "Today's woman wears many men's garments - all we're saying is give us equal fashion rights", he says. "No, I don't want a skirt and high heels, (lol...give it time mate ), I just want to enjoy the benefits of hosiery. And the thing is, equal hosiery fashion rights are already here. I am living proof. I wear them every day proudly." ()



I can just see Madison Avenue and their ads now: PANTYHOSE...not just for women and crossdressers anymore!

Looks like we have come a long way baby...finally eh?

I hope you enjoyed this article as much as I did girls!

[Stephenie S]

Dear Girls,

Medically speaking, wearing support hose is a good idea for anyone sitting still for long periods of time. Remember the recent article on the dangers of developeing blood clots when flying? Same thing.

So all of you who drive, fly, or even just sit still for long periods, get yourself some suport hose and be safe. Even just light support like "Sheer Energy" or "Hanes Alive" is much better than nothing.

Lovies,
Stephenie

[Phyliss]

I buy all my support stockings from here:

http://www.brightlifedirect.com/

The Allegro brand are about the best deal for the money.

I work on my feet each day and do a bunch of ladder climbing, legs feel great at the end of the day. They have no problem with my buying the stockings. Their only question is: "Which credit card are you using?"

Nice to see this article, there is hope yet.

[Vivian Best]

Christine,

Personally I believe it is men that keep the hosery business alive today or at least have a great impact toward it.

Vivian

[tootall452]

Since I drive a semi I will have find them in my size since I am 6'7, an see how I feel after I wear them for aweek or two. After I see how I feel I will let u know

[Karren H]

rrrrrrrrrrr!! Now a bunch of truck drivers are going to ruin it for us all!! Ok, maybe just for me!! If pantyhose or stockings becomes a unisex garmet then what I'm I supposed to wear when dressed "enfemme"....

It isn't fair I tell you....<Sob sob>



Love Karren

[LouiseCassell]

When I worked at a bus company many years ago I knew quite a few of the drivers that admitted to wearing tights under their trousers - usually in the winter when driving buses with no heating - it certainly helped keep you a little warmer.

[Lawren]

Believe me. When you have to sit behind the wheel of a truck for ten hours you will try almost anything to make it more comfortable. Yes, pantyhose do help.

[Nikki A.]

Before my hip replacement I found that support p/h helped alot. Even now I still wear them to work, especially if I know that I'll be walking or that I'll be outside in the cold for a while. Even my wife understands that.

[Lindsay Marie]

I have a new reason to wear pantyhose now, maybe I can get my mother to buy them for me now.

[Breanne]

I recall, many years ago (25 or more) reading that many post office letter carriers wore pantyhose in the winter months for reasons of warmth.

[Joanna Kavalaskas]

In the 1970s I was friends with a lady that managed a large truck stop, here in the USA. One evening, a very bedraggled couple, man and woman, refueled and checked into the truckers motel provided exclusively for them to freshen up and rest. It was on the second floor over the store, security was tight so that only married couples could ascend together, no funny business allowed. An hour after they had went up to the rooms, a pair of young women descended the stairs, dressed in tight cut off jeans, shiny pantyhose, western shirts, high heeled boots, dolled up to the nines, and exited to a waiting taxi. The lady manager even went up and checked the rooms, it was definitely the couple! She went off shift before they returned, but sure had something to talk about for awhile. Oh yes, truckers wearing hose. Have been wearing tights for several years on the cold days, why? Because a long ago co worker said they kept him warm when working outside in freezing weather. Thats my excuse and I'm sticking to it.

[celtic.blue.eyes]

There has also been a rumor that pantyhose is popular with cowboys, to prevent saddle sores. I can't say just how true it is, but it does seem pretty logical....

[JASMINE(2)]

Yes i have woren panyhoses on long trips and when Jasmine was out and about

Now here is one for you to think about.
If you are going hiking or working out door where you might run in to Lime ticks and venomus spisers. Panty hose will keep them off your legs.

Sspent a weekend with a friend who lives in the country. We were getting ready to work on his firewood pile when he tossed me a pair and said put them on as they woud fend off ticks and spiders.(Never told him I had woren them befor) Wearing a pair of panty hose sure does beat a visit to thr Dr. office or hospital with toxic insect bite not to mention the costs $$$

[CaptLex]

I can just see Madison Avenue and their ads now: PANTYHOSE...not just for women and crossdressers anymore!

Didn't (former Jets Quaterback) Joe Namath do a pantyhose commercial way back when? Also I remember reading that William Shatner wears them under his pants when he goes horseback riding (I forget the reason) - a tip he supposedly passed on to Patrick Stewart when they made Star Trek 7 (The Search for Lycra?) together.

[Alberta Daisy]

I was in the army for a long time, and we ruck marched once a week. A lot of the guys, me included, wore them to avoid raw hamburger thigh syndrom.

[Kerry Owens]

A pair of medical stockings for a patient to keep them from having a blood clots develop is nothing more than a extra heavy duty panty hose.

[annephorcy]

When I was in the Navy, it was quite common for male Quarteddeck Watches to wear them under their dress blues. (The so-called 'Cracker Jacks'.) A more inconvienent, uncomfortable - scratchy wool - garment I have never encountered. Too tight in all the wrong places to ever allow you to find a comfortable posture (especially when you're standing at parade rest in one place for six hours at a time.) And more importantly, too baggy in others to provide much protection against the wet ocean wind whistling through my ship's open fantail (where the nominal Quarterdeck was located when we were in port.)

Absolutely against regs, of course. But then 'don't ask - don't tell.' Besides, the Officer of the Deck was probably wearing them too. It was just as cold where he was standing.

[myMichelle]

I actually wasen't too surprised to read your post. I've also heard that some construction workers wear pantyhose in the winter--the claim is that the hose help keep them warm. (Sorry Karren! LOL)

[vbcdgrl]

Remember Joe Namath............ don't remember the details, but he admitted he wore pantyhose. I've tried the "support" hose, boy, they really support.
I can understand how they could be benificial to someone who's on their feet all the time, but truckers are sitting all the time.........HMMMMM.

Vikki

[ChristineRenee]

Didn't (former Jets Quaterback) Joe Namath do a pantyhose commercial way back when? Also I remember reading that William Shatner wears them under his pants when he goes horseback riding (I forget the reason) - a tip he supposedly passed on to Patrick Stewart when they made Star Trek 7 (The Search for Lycra?) together.

Yep...he sure did. And I heard the story about Bill Shatner as well.

Do ya suppose that it stops with just da hose?

[Lawren]

I knew a man whose wife told me that he and their son would wear knee highs under their regular socks to prevent blisters when they were breaking in new hiking boots.

[Tina Dixon]

I deal with truckers every day, now I have some thing else to talk about

[lahr]

I know many fellow fly fishermen who wear P hose under their waders while fishimg in streams in the early trout season. Standing knee deep in in rushing water can chill you in a few minutes. Also i've heard of deer hunters wearing em....lahr.

[DAVIDA]

I am in the constuction business and in cold weather I wear hose. If it's really cold,I will also wear a pair of leggings.