Intro
We ran our latest women’s MTB short roundup last week, and now it’s time for a new men’s one, too. We’ve been testing nine new options from super light to quite warm, and there’s a big range of styles, fits, and design features across the models we’ve been testing. And for even more options, check out our roundup from last year, most of which are still current models.
Fabric: 92% polyester / 8% spandex
Inseam Length: 12’’ / 30.5 cm
Pockets: Two hand pockets (open); two thigh phone pockets (zippered)
Blister’s Measured Weight: 259 g
Reviewer: 6’, 170 lb / 183 cm, 77.1 kg
Size Tested: 32
MSRP: $99.95
David Golay (6’, 170 lb / 183 cm, 74.9 kg): Cognative MTB makes what are still my favorite lightweight MTB gloves (the “Summer Mountain Bike Glove”) and having spent a bunch of time in their MTB Guide Trail Shorts, they’re a very good option, too — especially as the most affordable ones in this roundup. The Guide Trail Shorts use a mid-weight, super-stretchy fabric that’s a little warmer than the very coolest options here, but still breathes fairly well and is quite soft and comfortable. The inner face of the fabric is lightly lofted and does a nice job of wicking moisture away from the skin, but despite the added thickness and the air layer that it helps trap, the not-super-tightly-woven outer face of the fabric still breathes quite well and the Guide Trail shorts regulate temperature nicely.
The Guide Trail Shorts’ fit is maybe a touch on the looser / baggier side of average overall, though the inseam length is on the shorter side (but not an outlier, either). A hook and ladder adjuster on each hip attaches to an integrated belt that wraps around the back of the waist and cinches things down effectively for me, though it does start to bunch up a bit at the tighter ends of the adjustment range. A button secures the waist, and a standard zippered fly is used as well.
The pocket arrangement on the Guide Trail shorts is nicely sorted out. The thigh pockets are well-positioned to hold a phone securely without much movement while pedaling, and the open hand pockets are reasonably deep. Both use a dense mesh liner that helps a little bit with airflow without being open enough for things like keys to easily snag in it.
Overall, the Guide Trail Shorts have a fairly classic design that doesn’t particularly stand out for any given feature but is well thought out and uses quality materials and construction at a reasonable price.
Fabric: 55% recycled polyester / 45% polyester
Inseam Length: 14’’ / 35.5 cm
Pockets: Two hand pockets (open); two thigh phone pockets (zippered)
Blister’s Measured Weight: 205 g
Reviewer: 6’, 170 lb / 183 cm, 77.1 kg
Size Tested: Medium
MSRP: $115
David: Yeti is best known for their bikes, but they’ve got an extensive line of apparel as well, and say that the Freeland short is their “best selling ride short” out of the several options they offer.
The fabric used in the Freeland Short is on the lighter, more breathable end of the spectrum, and while it’s only subtly stretchy, it’s fairly soft and supple. Yeti describes the Freeland Short as having a “trail fit” and they feel about middle-of-the-road on fit and sizing, apart from the notably long inseam. The Freeland is also a little tight across the seat for me, personally, but that’s a somewhat frequent problem for me with shorts that fit well in the waist.
The hand pockets on the Freeland are maybe slightly on the shallower side, but certainly not tiny, and use a very open mesh liner to help with ventilation. The zippered thigh pockets are more generously sized and use the same liner material so that they can act as vents if left open. The thigh pockets land a little bit too low on my legs to work great as phone pockets while riding — my phone bounces around a little too much for my liking — but I’ve been happy enough putting my phone in one of the hand pockets, and it’s stayed put in there just fine.
One of the more interesting features of the Freeland shorts is the pair of zippered thigh vents — basically just a zipper that opens up across the top of the thigh about midway between the hem and the crotch. The vents do indeed bolster airflow appreciably, but also make the shorts noticeably stiffer and less supple across the thigh, and can feel a little irritating against the skin. Especially as someone who doesn’t wear chamois liners, I often find the back side of the zippers to land directly on my skin (somewhat depending on which knee pads I’m wearing, if any), and while it hasn’t caused me any real issues on the bike, it’s a bit less comfortable than most shorts without, and I don’t find the tradeoff to really be worth it. Folks who wear a liner that would lie under the vents probably won’t mind as much — and might appreciate the extra ventilation — but that detail didn’t work great for me, personally.
If you don’t mind (or specifically like) the thigh vents, though, the Freeland is a good option for a fairly light, breathable short that doesn’t skimp on pockets and features a notably long inseam.
Simon Stewart (6’, 170 lb / 183 cm, 74.9 kg): I’ve worn the Freeland short throughout this season and can see why it is one of Yeti’s bestsellers. I agree with David on the sizing and would add that, at my 33” inch / 84 cm waist size, the Mediums are snug and don’t require any cinching from the adjusters. In fact, they fit so perfectly that I have zero room to put on any winter beer weight. I do have plenty of room in the seat — David probably needs to stop doing so many squats…
The Freeland’s fabric is one of the standout features for me, it has the right amount of give and softness, which, combined with the tailored fit, makes the Freeland one of the most comfortable and quietest shorts I have. I put a premium on a short that’s not noisy, to the extent that there is another short in this roundup that is pretty good but is so noisy that I don’t wear them very often.
David mentioned issues with the zippered thigh vents when not wearing chamois liners; as someone who always wears chamois liners (usually bibs), I didn’t notice the zippers one bit — I also felt like the Freeland breathed well enough to not need them, so I never used them anyway.
The Freeland short ended up being the short I wore the most this season. It had the right combination of fit, fabric, weight, and quietness to be hands-down my favorite.
Fabric: 80% nylon, 20% elastane
Inseam Length: 13.4 in / 34 cm
Pockets: Two hand pockets (zippered)
Blister’s Measured Weight: 321 grams
Reviewer: 5’10.5”, 155 lbs / 179 cm, 70 kg
Size Tested: Medium
MSRP: $130
Dylan Wood (5’10.5”, 155 lbs / 179 cm, 70 kg): The Endura MT500 Burner Short is a burly and durable option for folks who are hard on their mountain bike shorts. At 321 grams for a Medium, this short is among the heaviest in this roundup, and its hefty build is immediately noticeable — it’s a well-made, gravity-oriented short.
With an inseam of 13.4 in / 34 cm, the MT500 Burner Short is plenty long enough to overlap with my various knee pads. It features an unrestrictive fit but isn’t super baggy, with a pretty sleek look overall. The fabric is thick and robust-feeling, though there are enough elastic stretch zones incorporated into this short to keep it feeling supple and allow for plenty of both seated and standing movement.
I have a skinny 30” waist but a longer 32” inseam and I enjoyed the fit of the MT500 Burner Shorts. They cover my entire thighs, even going down below my kneecaps. They also feature velcro waist adjusters on both sides, which might be the first velcro adjusters on a short that I don’t immediately tighten all the way — there’s plenty of adjustment for even the lankiest of riders here. The MT500 Burner Short also features an integrated ratcheting waist belt, which provides further adjustment without getting in the way of the zippered fly. To top it off, these shorts have two zippered hand pockets, which provide plenty of room for a cell phone, keys, gloves, a wallet, etc.
On the trail, these shorts have a surprisingly out-of-the-way feel, given their weight and burly fabric. Endura did a good job of integrating plenty of elastic flex zones into these shorts, allowing for an unconfined feel on the bike. These definitely aren’t the lightest and most breathable shorts out there, but I found them cool enough in up to 80º weather.
Outdoor Research Freewheel Ride Shorts
Fabric: 88% nylon / 12% spandex
Inseam Length: 12’’ / 30.5 cm
Pockets: Two zippered thigh pockets w/ horizontal opening (right) and vertical opening (left)
Blister’s Measured Weight: 210 g
Reviewer: 6’, 170 lb / 183 cm, 77.1 kg
Size Tested: 32
MSRP: $115
David: Outdoor Research has a ton of experience in a wide variety of technical apparel, but they’re new to the mountain bike realm. Their Freewheel line of MTB apparel won’t be commercially available until Spring 2024, but I’ve been spending time in a few of the pieces for a while now, and Outdoor Research is off to a strong start in the MTB arena.
The fit of the Freewheel shorts is pretty middle-of-the-road, as is the weight of the material used throughout. It feels like a slightly thinner version of the fabric used in the Cognative Guide Trail shorts, above, but is also a little more tightly woven and actually ends up feeling pretty similar in terms of breathability.
The Freewheel Ride Shorts use a similar adjustment system to the Yeti Freeland above, with a pair of thin nylon straps with sliding adjusters to cinch things down over the hips. The sizing works well for me in my typical size 32, but as with the Freeland shorts, things start to bunch up noticeably if you need to really cinch the waist down aggressively. The fit through the seat in the Freewheel Ride Short is more generous than that of the Yeti Freeland but the two are more similar through the thighs (though the Freeland’s inseam is much longer); the Cognative Guide Trail is a little looser overall.
The pocket arrangement on the Freewheel Ride Shorts is on the more basic side, with just two zippered thigh pockets. The right one uses a horizontal opening while the left uses a vertical one. It’s a solid way to make things easier if you want to separate the contents into stuff you want to be able to access while riding (left side) and things that are more easily reached while standing around off the bike (right) but does mean that the total pocket volume isn’t massive. The left pocket does work well for me for phone storage, with the phone staying put and not moving too dramatically when pedaling or descending.
The Freewheel Ride Shorts are solid first effort in the mountain bike arena for Outdoor Research, and we’ve got a bunch more pieces from the Freewheel line in for review as well. Stay tuned for more.
Fabric: 85% nylon / 15% elastane
Inseam Length: 13’’ / 33 cm (standard length); 12” / 31 cm (short inseam version)
Pockets: Two hand pockets (zippered); right seat pocket, zippered
Blister’s Measured Weight: 240 g
Reviewer: 6’, 170 lb / 183 cm, 77.1 kg
Size Tested: Medium
MSRP: $119.99
David: The Endura Singletrack Lite Short is one of their lighter, more breathable options for warm-weather use, and they’re one of the lighter, more breathable options in this roundup (a close second to only the Velocio Ultralight Trail Short, below). The Singletrack Lite’s material is on the thinner, lighter side and while it’s not quite as breathable as that used in the Ultralight Trail Short, the Singletrack Lite’s ventilation is boosted by a bunch of perforations along the inner and outer thigh.
The Singletrack Lite short runs slightly on the looser-fitting side of the spectrum, and while the elastic waist adjuster (which uses a pair of velcro tabs on the back of the hips) tightens things enough to effectively keep the shorts up, it does result in a little bit of bunching up at the back of the waist for me in my typical size Medium. I haven’t tried on a Small, but the Singletrack Lite seems like an option where many folks who are on the border size-wise should go down (unless they’re after an especially loose fit). The Singletrack Lite Short is also available in two different inseam lengths, the “standard” one that I’ve been wearing, and a “short fit” option for folks who’d prefer that. As we’ve found with a number of Endura’s shorts over the years, the Singletrack Lite’s waist rises especially high in the back and provides excellent coverage
The pocket arrangement on the Singletrack Lite Short is a little unusual but works well. There are two zippered hand pockets, both of which use a nearly horizontal opening, and a third zippered pocket on the right seat. The hand pockets work well on the bike and are fairly easy to open up while pedaling, though taking stuff in and out of them on the move is a little tougher than it is on most thigh pockets. I haven’t found myself using the rear pocket much but also haven’t minded it being there.
The Singletrack Lite shorts are a really good option for folks who want a lightweight, super-breathable short in a relatively roomy fit, especially if the short-inseam option is appealing. I’m glad I went with the “standard” one, personally — I’ve got long-ish legs and wear knee pads on the majority of my rides — but it’s a cool option for Endura to offer, especially on a relatively affordable short.
Simon: I also tested the Singletrack Lite in the standard length since I wear knee pads nearly all the time. My thought was they would be more of a hot-weather short since they are lightweight and well-ventilated. I found the 13” inseam to be a workable length with pads, but prefer a slightly longer inseam like on the Yeti Freeland short.
I agree with David that the fit is on the roomy side. I have a slightly bigger waist than him (33” vs 32”) so the Medium is the right size for me and I wouldn’t consider dropping down to a Small. Also, with my bigger waist size, I don’t need to use the elastic waist adjuster so I haven’t experienced any bunching as a result.
Typically, I don’t ride with anything in the pockets so pocket arrangement is a non-issue while riding, but I do use them when off the bike and found they were plenty big and worked well while enjoying post-ride refreshments.
As David noted, the Singletrack Lite shorts have a fabric that is thin, lightweight, and breathable with a good amount of stretch, and they worked well in warm weather as I suspected. My issue with these shorts is that they are noisy, which unfortunately relegates them to backup status for me. That’s a shame since they are an otherwise solid offering. If noisy shorts don’t bother you, then the Singletrack Lite is a good option for riders looking for a lightweight, warm-weather short.
David: I’m apparently less fussy than Simon is about shorts noise — he’s right that the Singletrack Lite makes a little more than most of the other options here, but I never gave it a second thought when riding. If that’s an issue for you, there are better options (the Velocio Ultralight Trail Short, below, is pretty close on breathability and quieter) but I don’t think it’ll be a big deal for a lot of folks.
Fabric: 88% recycled nylon / 12% spandex
Inseam Length: 12’’ / 30.5 cm
Pockets: Two thigh phone pockets (zippered); right pocket features D3O insert
Blister’s Measured Weight: 254 g
Reviewer: 6’, 170 lb / 183 cm, 77.1 kg
Size Tested: Medium
MSRP: $130
David: Akta is a newer player in the mountain bike apparel market, and especially after loving their Trail Knee Pad (check out our latest Knee Pad Roundup for more on that), I was curious to check out some more of their offerings. The straightforwardly named Trail Shorts are their lone short so far, alongside the Trail Pant, a couple of jerseys, a glove, and some casual wear. The Trail Shorts are a solid mid-weight option that’s neither ultra-light and breathable nor extremely burly and warm. The material feels quite similar to that used in the Outdoor Research Freewheel Ride shorts, above, if maybe a touch less stretchy, and their overall fit is notably similar, too, with a medium fit in terms of tightness and an inseam on the slightly shorter side of average.
The Akta Trail Shorts differentiate themselves in some of their other features, though. For starters, the waist adjustment works very differently from the other options here. The waistband is very stretchy, with elastic panels along the front and sides of the hips, and a ratcheting adjuster for the waist closure to fine-tune the fit. It works well and does an especially good job of snugging up the waist on the Trail Shorts without bunching up anywhere and getting uncomfortable, though the bulky ratchet mechanism does take a little care to situate alongside a hip pack strap. I didn’t have any issues if I took a moment to align everything nicely when putting a hip pack on over the Trail Shorts, but having the pack strap land on the ratchet made it dig in and feel somewhat uncomfortable.
The other most notable feature of the Trail Shorts is the pocket arrangement. While the layout — two zippered thigh pockets with vertical openings — isn’t that unusual, the inclusion of a sewn-in D3O pad on the outer face of the right pocket is. The idea is to offer some protection for your phone if it’s carried on that side, and I’ve got somewhat mixed feelings about the design. I’ve never personally broken a phone in an on-bike crash (yet, anyway — I definitely just jinxed myself) but know friends who have, and while I didn’t test that particular functionality out by crashing on it, it does seem like the D3O pad should at least help. The downside, though, is that the combined phone + case + pad feels pretty bulky and makes the heft of a phone in that pocket quite a bit more noticeable. The pocket is well-placed and nicely sized, so it doesn’t move around too much while pedaling, but it feels like a bigger, thicker thing strapped to your thigh than I particularly liked.
Putting my phone in the left pocket is more comfortable for me personally, but of course defeats the purpose of the padding, and makes it feel a little bit like you’re carrying two phones, one on each side. If you’re a serial phone smasher and/or are just less fussy than I am about having things in your pockets, that particular feature of the Trail Shorts might well be a welcome one, but it didn’t work as well for me as I might have hoped. It’d be nice to see the 3DO pad be removable, so folks who aren’t a fan could do away with it, but it’s sewn into the shorts.
I quite like the Trail Shorts otherwise, and definitely think that plenty of folks will be just fine with the D3O-lined pocket — I’m fussy about the feel and design of thigh pockets for carrying phones, and just being careful to carry mine screen-in (and with a case on) has served me well to date.
Fabric: 72% polyester / 20% recycled polyester / 8% elastane
Inseam Length: 14’’ / 35.5 cm
Pockets: Two hand pockets (zippered)
Blister’s Measured Weight: 352 g
Reviewer: 6’, 170 lb / 183 cm, 77.1 kg
Size Tested: Medium
MSRP: $149.99
Simon: The Endura MT500 Freezing point short, as the name suggests, is a cold-weather short. The use of Primaloft Active Gold insulation adds a whole bunch of toasty BTUs to cold-weather riding, and the resulting shorts have shaken up my winter riding scene where I typically would opt for pants.
I tested the MT500 Freezing Point shorts in a Medium and I would say they are true to size, and offer a slightly less roomy fit than the Endura Singletrack Lite short — likely due to the added insulation. There’s an elastic waistband that has velcro adjusters on either side that I found myself using often during rides.
The insulated inner of the short imparts a somewhat slippery feel, which is super comfortable, but they do have a tendency to slip down and ride low. Cinching down the adjusters tighter than I’d normally do at the start of a ride helped keep them in place — even with the elastic waistband fairly tight, I still had to pull them up multiple times during rides and re-tighten the adjusters. That said, there are belt loops as well so adding one might help keep things in place. I also appreciated the generous inseam length, which adds a little more coverage and makes sense, given the cold-weather focus.
The MT500 Freezing Point shorts have 2-way zippered leg vents down the outboard seam that start below the pockets, go all the way to the bottom of the leg openings, and provide a wide range of ventilation options. These shorts are warm, so these vents are a necessity, much the way most touring ski pants have vents. The rear panel features taped seams for fully waterproof spray protection and the thermal lining is floating — I’m not exactly sure what “floating” means in this application and why it is a benefit, but Endura calls it out as such. Endura has included their ClickFast system for attaching compatible liners.
The Pockets on the MT500 Freezing Point shorts are very similar to the pockets on the Singletrack Lite shorts, and as David mentioned, they have a rather unusual horizontal opening. This wasn’t an issue for me as I prefer not to put anything in pockets while riding, but I can see how they might be challenging to get things in and out of.
Fabric: 90% polyamide, 10% elastane
Inseam Length: 13.5’’ / 34.25 cm
Pockets: Two hand pockets (open); two thigh phone pockets (zippered)
Blister’s Measured Weight: 316 g (w/ included Arcade belt)
Reviewer: 6’, 170 lb / 183 cm, 77.1 kg
Size Tested: Medium
MSRP: $179
David: Velocio is better known for their road and gravel apparel, but they launched a revised line of mountain bike gear earlier this year and several of our reviewers have been big fans of a number of their offerings.
The Trail Access Short is the more fully-featured, heavy-duty short in Velocio’s lineup, and it uses an interesting fabric that’s not super thick but feels especially tough and somewhat heavy for its thickness. The fabric is lightly textured on both sides and isn’t the absolute softest against the skin, but still feels pretty supple and hasn’t caused me any discomfort on or off the bike. The Trail Access Short is one of the burlier, less breathable options here, but it doesn’t feel unduly warm or lacking in breathability for the material weight — they’re just on the heavier side of things. The material isn’t ultra-stretchy but has a bit of give to it.
Fit-wise, the Trail Access Short is a touch on the slimmer side through the waist and seat but opens up through the thigh to a more average fit. As someone who frequently finds bike shorts and pants to be loose in the waist and/or tight in the seat for my build, the fit of the Trail Access Short is super comfortable but a little slim through the seat, without feeling overly snug or restrictive.
The Trail Access Short’s waist adjustment system helps there, too. Instead of trying to bake an adjuster into the shorts, many of which I find to bunch up the waistband in a specific point without making an effective adjustment around the full circumference, Velocio simply includes an Arcade-brand stretch belt with all of their shorts and pants. We’re big fans of Arcade belts at Blister (and I already owned a handful) and it’s frankly a great solution for a waist adjuster rather than trying to reinvent the wheel — in my book, probably second only to NF’s outstanding elastic waistband that they use throughout their line. The Trail Access Short also uses a silicone gripper at the back of the waist to help keep the shorts up, and I might personally prefer that they dialed it back a little bit, given how well the Arcade belt works on its own, but it hasn’t caused me any major discomfort either.
Velocio has also nailed the pocket layout on the Trail Access Short. It features two open hand pockets, which are fairly standard in their placement but are especially deep, and two zippered thigh pockets. The latter two sit farther back on the thigh than most, a placement that I’ve found to work especially well when it comes to keeping heavier objects (like a phone) from bouncing around when pedaling, and the Trail Access Short’s are some of the most dialed that I’ve tried to date on that front.
Velocio also offers an especially wide range of sizes on the Trail Access Short, with both men’s and women’s versions in eight sizes each (XS through 4XL for men and XXS through 3XL for women). They also offer a 30-day guarantee on all their apparel (buy it, try it, return it if it doesn’t work for you) and will repair their apparel when possible for free. Damaged apparel that can’t be repaired will get a crash replacement discount; see their repair program page for the details.
Fabric: 79% polyamide, 21% elastane
Inseam Length: 13.5’’ / 34.25 cm
Pockets: Two thigh phone pockets (zippered)
Blister’s Measured Weight: 209 g (w/ included Arcade belt)
Reviewer: 6’, 170 lb / 183 cm, 77.1 kg
Size Tested: Medium
MSRP: $159
David: The Velocio Ultralight Trail Short borrows a good bit of its design from Velocio’s Trail Access Short, and is essentially a pared-down version made from lighter materials. The Ultralight Trail Short uses a much thinner, lighter, stretchier, and more breathable fabric throughout, resulting in a short that’s quite a bit cooler than the Trail Access. The overall fit is basically the same as well, as is the especially wide range of sizes on offer.
The Ultralight Trail Short forgoes the hand pockets of the Trail Access Short, leaving just the two zippered thigh ones. The Ultralight Trail Short’s pockets don’t feel quite as stable as those on the Trail Access Short, I think mostly just because the material is stretchier, allowing whatever’s in them to move around a little more, but they’re still some of the better thigh pockets I’ve tried on that front, especially for a short that uses such light, stretchy materials.
Why do MTB shorts not have back pockets more often? I need somewhere to put my wallet and keys when I’m not on the bike.