Scott Mind LS Fit shorts

Shorts are one of those pieces of gear that if they’re slightly the wrong fit, colour or style, you will notice it the whole ride. Too tight or loose, not long enough to cover the top of your pads, the fabric too lightweight for the job at hand; these are all things to take into account, and avoid, when picking your leg wear from the wardrobe.

The Mind shorts aren’t cheap, but what they are, is a well-designed item of technical riding gear that comes with a non-fixed inner short (the catchily named Underwear Plus Shorts). The inner short resembles the design of a pair of boxers, with the Scott logo running round the waist band and an all-over graphic pattern. For an inner short the padding is very reasonable, keeping my tush comfortable on long rides.

The outer shorts have an abundance of design features. The fabric is light and well vented, there are some marks starting to appear and a little fading on the seat area, but I’ve used them on some pretty wet, muddy rides so that’s not really surprising. A multi-panel cut provides an exceptional fit: loose with plenty of freedom on the upstroke and not flapping around when legs are extended unless you have heavy items in the pocket.

Ventilation is provided by very fine mesh material near the knees and waist. By far the most outstanding design feature though is the waist volume adjustment. Scott has done away with velcro tabs and uses discreet watertight zips on either side. These lock into place, so once set you can leave them alone and they don’t have that annoying feeling when the velcro sticks to your jersey [or worse, your man fluff – Ed.].

Overall: A well thought-out and designed package, not cheap but filled with very nice features that make you wonder why you haven’t seen them before. As at home on the bike as they are in the café or pub post-ride.