I figured I'd stick this question in here because while it's apparel, it's a tri specific question.

If people wear tri shorts for an IM distance, are tri shorts acceptable riding shorts without the tri? I guess what I'm saying is I know why road shorts don't work due to the extra padding taking longer to dry. But if tri shorts are comfy enough for distance riding in a longer tri, do people opt to wear them in situations other than tri's?