Please excuse the indelicacy of some of the remarks below:
I used to let 'em hang in the wind in my youth, but older age produced a bit of chafing and the need for some support. They don't hang as high as they used to.
I tried a bunch of briefs, boxers, and boxer briefs. The conclusion:
1. Boxers don't do a danged thing for you.
2. Briefs tend to ride up (ahem) uncomfortably.
3. Avoid cotton and silk, for the former makes you sweat and the latter (though silky smooth on the skin, you betcha), makes you stink in the very place you want to stink the least, especially when hiking with your beloved.
4. Boxer briefs are the way to go, and the Ex Officio version is, IMO, swell. They are thin, comfortable, don't ride up, and dry very quickly. Besides, my wife tells me they are tre sexy looking. (The package is, shall we say, well "framed.")
Now, I wear them everywhere, not just on BPing expeditions. What secret thrill does the aging college professor get at staid faculty meetings knowing that the boys are oh so well ensconced in Ex Officio boxer briefs?
Ah, if only I could find the words . . . ;-D
Seriously, great skivvies.
Stargazer