What's the received STW wisdom on good quality lycra shorts these days? No bibs, butt plugs, baggies or wierd stuff please. Just quality kit for long days in the saddle.
What do people recommend?
Giordana for cheapish but good. Castelli for expensive and good.
second Castelli, , have used Assos in the past but the prices have just got silly.
Anyone try Sugoi?
if you neglect the strongman bib, you are a fool.
Bibs for anyone who takes comfort seriously.
morvelo do great shorts
Hmmm, missed the 'no bibs' bit.
Why? Bibshorts are what the people who do it for a living wear. Stop being daft.
I'd only ever recommend bibs. Waist shorts are horrid.
My names Boblo and I've been riding for ~30 years and I've never tried bibs... There now, I've said it... 🙂
Why are waist shorts such a 'poor' choice?
I find that Gore bike wear are very comfortable and hard wearing. I use there 3/4 version in the winter as well. Probably middle of the road money wise, I've had mine for 4 years and they're still going strong.
Definitely bibs!
Try some and you will see!
Because the bibs keep the shorts where they are meant to be, keeping the pad in exactly the right place, no slipping down, and the upwards stretch also keeps your auld lad and cobblers from wobbling around.
As I said above, the guys and gals who actually ride bikes for a living, who do more miles on bikes than you do in a year in your car might actually use something that works.
30 years and never tried bibs? 🙄
Another definate for bibs. Wiggles DHB Aeron pro's are superb
crikey - Member30 years and never tried bibs?
It's not that unsual surely? I'm buying a couple of pairs for a long tour so weight is a consideration.
So apart from the schoolboy error of bibs v shorts, what's good? I've tried Gore, Cannondale (when they were made in the US) and loads of others. Never been able to justify Assos.
So good, quality, comfy for 100 mile days. What's the verdict (without getting hung up on the style...)
Santini gel intec bibs are nice.
Sorry, I'm probably being a bit arsey for no reason, I moved to bib shorts so long ago that I can't imagine not using them. They really are a better option despite looking odd.
I think the range available these days is very wide, so it's worth having a really good look round.
A bit like saddles, too much padding in the pad is worse than too little, and for such long days I would be thinking about using chamois cream. It stops the sweating-drying-salt crystals-chafing thing from going on.
The fit, as with waist shorts, will be important; when you try them on, they should feel tight across the shoulders because they should be cut to work best in a cycling position, not stood up.
Zipvit Sport - superb quality and value if you don't mind the branding.
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Or Decathlon, if Aldi don't have any in.
Gore if you're flush.
Care to share a link iDave? The website is a bit crap.
S'ok, got it now. any actual pics?
boblo, whilst I think the gore shorts are great on both the MTB and road bike, i purchased a set of Assos F1 UNO S5s last summer and they are amazing. just a shame they are so expensive, but they're handy for fancy dress parties if you want to go as Borat 😯
Sorry, if I went to Aldi I'll need a new balaclava as well 🙂 I quite like Gore having lots of their stuff. They seem to do many sorts and apart from widstopper vs 'selected fabrics' (whatever they are...), I can't see the differences....
@ Popo, that's an image that has stayed with me for years. I was bought a pair of ahem 'ill fitting' bibs years ago and had more of a camel hoof than toe... 🙂 I've never recovered...
Sorry, you didn't specify that you were a snob in the op. 😉
Lusso are nice too.
I've been a road cyclist/triathlete for a while. I've gone through phases of doing 5-7 hour rides most days. I've also tried many many different types of shorts and I'm afraid I've only ever come back to the same conclusion. That if you want to do big miles or you really care about your under-carriage you have to get assos. It sucks because they are so expensive and it seems off-putting because they are double the price of even decent shorts, but at the end of the day nothing compares. They are also made very well and will last forever.
I've spent many thousands on kit, thousands on timetrial frames, wheels etc. and I've always looked at this kit in terms of the time saved. But cost for time I think has to go to the assos kit as I've been able to train longer and harder thanks to being so comfortable. So treat yourself.
The only problem is if you only get one pair you will be washing them everyday as you will only be able to wear assos once you have tried them!
The Aldi compression tops a great only £8 too, happy days, i love not being a snob. 😆
My assembled wisdom amounts to;
DHB, Castelli or Adidas for comfort (tried Assos etc, before you snob me down)
Bibs beat non-bibs hands-down (took me a while to find that out)
Lusso and Endura both incredibly uncomfortable for me (but other say the opposite)
in other words, none of us will agree on anything!
Did no one mention Rapha bibs? I use them in summer, for autumn / winter use I wear endura bibs.
OK, OK! I've ordered a couple of pairs of Gore Power bibs to see what all the fuss is about... Sorry, I can't swallow Assos. They'd need to include a complimentary go on Kylie/Cheryl for me to pay that sort of money 🙂
Thanks for the feedback, I'll let you (and Borat) know how I get on 🙂
My thoughts exactly boblo, i would need a complimentary moon if I was to pay that kind of money. And a go on the aformentioned.
Unless you are doing 100+ mile daily rides i cant really see why a middle of the road pair of shorts/bib wont do.
Paying anything more than £40 seem a bit extravigant.
Definitely bibs FTW, for all the reasons above. DHB are excellent value in my experience and have a range to suit different price points - I must have at least ten pairs in different configurations of poshness and length (inc 3/4s and longs).
Chamois cream definitely makes a difference to comfort too, I pretty much always use Assos (despite never being rich enough to buy their clothes) for reasons of habit and liking the smell but there's plenty of different brands so take your pick. A single tub (RRP about a tenner these days I think) usually lasts me at least half a year so it's better value than first appearances might suggest.
I think I gonna be in trouble again here... I've never (never, ever, ever) used minty arse lard despite riding lots of miles and quite a few centuries over the years.
Am I gonna find I could have been wafting along on a delicate breeze of minty Borat alike mankini luxury all this time? 😯
Converted to Bibs recently, wished i had done it years ago.
You don't [i]need[/i] it, and some people never use it, but as above, when you sweat, and that sweat gets dried by the wind, you can get those salt crystals causing a bit of rubbing/chafing. The cream deals with that, but if you don't need it, don't use it.
Top tip; if you are out on a ride and start to get sore, choose a big garage* and buy a little tub of Nivea or any other moisturising cream. Slap it on the affected bits and carry on.
* you don't have to buy it from a garage, other retailers are equally capable of supplying said balm.
I recently converted to bibs. Much comfier. I bought a really expensive pair of Campag bibs and a pair of shimano from crc. I never use the campags as the shimano are so comfy its ridiculous.
I guess different people will get on with different stuff though but I would say the shimano has the superior pad.
OK, update. 2x Gore Bike Wear mankinis turned up in the post today. They fit like gloves (well shorts really) and there's no divide and conquer in the testicle department 🙂
They look like they might just be a really good move. Tsssk, 30 years to find this out... Why dint you lot tell me sooner? 🙂