3/4 length 'shorts'

[in4]

Anyone using a pair of 3/4 length 'shorts' they can recommend. I've seen those on Corrine Dennis' site but want to line up another contender or two. I've always used fell running 3/4s over my lycra shorts during the colder weather but these are now discontinued  . Thanks

[jags]

rapha
dhb
endura
corrine dennis is good quality .
assos is fantastic but mega expensive.
mind u  coming into the winter months go for the longs .
good hunting.

jags.

[Danneaux]

Ian,

My suggestion will be more related to design, rather than brand-specific.

Whenever I choose lower-half cycling outer wear, I consider my padded lycra shorts as my base layer.

Anything longer goes "over" the shorts so it can be added or removed as I warm up, cool down, or as temperatures change.

Because none of these "overtrousers" are padded, I find brand doesn't matter so much as long as they include my desired waist drawstring and silicone gripper elastic at the hem so they don't ride up. I also like a design that raises higher in the back so they don't slip down as I pedal.

Keeping my padded lycra shorts as my base layer means I don't need a changing room. One time in Bulgaria on a very cool 38°F/3.3°C morning, I warmed up enough to lean my bike against a courtyard wall in a small village while I began to peel off layers. It took awhile because it had just rained, I was standing in mud, and I didn't want to get my socks muddy as i removed long tights and the 3/4 tights above my shorts. An old lady at the farm across the road had been observing the process with great interest, but disappeared briefly after the tights came off but before the 3/4 tights left. She returned with a nicely proffered bath towel and a sweet smile, apparently figuring it was all coming off!

In a related topic, I have sometimes used a blanket pin to make a wrap-skirt or kilt out of my camp towel when no changing room is available. It works well to retain modesty if other cover is unavailable, as the shorts can be slipped off or on beneath the towel.

Ian, if you go for the bib-top 3/4 tights, please tell me how you successfully negotiate toilet stops in rainstorms. I have largely given up on bibs (including my otherwise highly recommended Pearl Izumis) after one too many "natural breaks" in winter rain. Off comes the rain jacket, then the thermal jersey, then the base jersey, then the straps before business can commence. Then, the whole rain-sodden lot goes back on a cold and shivering Danneaux. Surely there's a better way with bibs? Putting the straps over all but the rain jacket has been my preferred solution to date, but the jacket still has to go. Seems like a lot of fuss compared to my preferred bibless style shorts/tights with waist drawstring.

All the best,

Dan.

[Danneaux]

Ian, except for the bib issue and their included padding, the best 3/4 tights I've ever used are the Pearl Izumi P.R.O. model shown here: https://shop.pearlizumi.com/product.php?mode=view&pc_id=331&product_id=2247912&outlet=&color_code=027
Getting them as a new store donation with tags still on at the local thrift shop for only USD $14 made them a terrific buy. They were misfiled under "ladies yoga wear", but I knew what they were when I spotted them on display.

Best wishes for similar good luck,

Dan.

[energyman]

Gonso - AND you look dead sexy too !!  (or so I've been told)

[Danneaux]

Gonso - AND you look dead sexy too !!  (or so I've been told)

Umm, e-Man?

Before I start puffing my chest and strutting in delight, was that remark directed to me, or to Anto or Ian? 

Those guys are fashion plates and movie stars compared to me, but I'll never dodge a compliment nor fail to give thanks for one even if misdirected! 

All the best,

Dan.

[in4]

Great replies chaps, thanks a lot. I'll leave the 'looking sexy' prospect to others who are less secure of their own 'stud-muffin' qualities  Moving on:

I've never liked the idea of using bibs primarily because they are less convenient at critical times. Also, I'm quite long in the body ( my mates say its my pockets that are long and my arms that are short!)  so getting a pair that do not either cut me in half or give me that 'living in a wind-sock' feeeling is not easy. I think the next step is to check out Jags' brands alongside Dan's suggestion that a pair of 3/4s or longs without a pad but worn over my usual padded shorts might be the way to go.

Gonso y'say?! 

[jags]

check out chainreaction they  sometimes have great deals on shorts .lycra and mountainbike stuff well worth a look.

jags.

[John Saxby]

"Knickers!" as some of my Britfriends would say...

You can buy 'em here, not cheap though at USD 129 + P&P + lousy C$/US$ exchange rate: 
https://www.compasscycle.com/shop/components/compass-knickers/

I exchanged emails with Ground Effect in NZ, asking if they had any plans to offer their Ranchsliders in 3/4 length.  Not yet, they say.

[Matt2matt2002]

Altura for me.
Commando underneath.
Excellent quality and held up well in the High temps of my recent tour.
Still working out how best to cope with loosing 3-4 inches on the waist whole touring and keeping 'em up.
Sounds a funny problem to have but it drove me crazy towards the end of 2 months.

[Danneaux]

Still working out how best to cope with loosing 3-4 inches on the waist whole touring and keeping 'em up.
Sounds a funny problem to have but it drove me crazy towards the end of 2 months.

Matt, you've just nailed the vast attraction waistband drawstrings hold for me. I lose about 1lb/450g of weight a day up to about 30 pounds before it levels off, so my clothing has to be adjusted accordingly while touring.

Drawstrings or immodesty for me!

All the best,

Dan.

[in4]

Those Compass 3/4's look fabulous; even more so if I had 500 acres of grouse moor.
I'd be quite pleases to lose 3-4 inches off the waist during a tour and I'm not much of a pie eater to start with LOL. I'm thinking the type of 3/4s that would be acceptable attire in town might be more adjustable than the lycra-based variety. With lycra I find a size M usually fits me well and importantly the pad is in the right place. Wearing an L size certainly gives one more Mecca (  ) but the pad ends up somewhere way, way south. Right, over to Matt's Altura store to see what they have on offer.

[Matt2matt2002]

I had the long trouser Altura with me and they have detachable braces.
The shorts have loops for them.
Problem solved?
Nope.
There was too much adjustment in the braces/ suspenders so I was unable to use them having lost all that weight.

I should be able to attach new Velcro and solve the problem for next tour.

[energyman]

Gonso - AND you look dead sexy too !!  (or so I've been told)

Umm, e-Man?

Before I start puffing my chest and strutting in delight, was that remark directed to me, or to Anto or Ian? 

Those guys are fashion plates and movie stars compared to me, but I'll never dodge a compliment nor fail to give thanks for one even if misdirected! 

All the best,

Dan.

Sorry Dan but it was a comment passed at ME !!  The first time I wore my new Gonso shorts.
But of course you can take it along with any cyclist who bares their legs.
Happy cycling
E-M

[mickeg]

This time of year I wear long exercise pants.  Sometimes bike shorts under, sometimes padded bike underwear under.  I know that the long pants are staying on, so no need to worry about what I look like if I take them off.

When I tour where the mornings might be cold, I wear Zoic long cycling pants that are convertible with zip off legs to convert to shorts.  They have a detachable cycling liner with the padding.  When I rode the pacific coast trip, I usually took the legs off at about 10am each morning.  But the legs did not have lower zippers so I had to take shoes off to get the legs off.

http://www.zoic.com/blackmarketconvertible

But, since I mostly wear the shorts during the time of day when the sun is brightest, the legs have not fadded as much as the top half.  I think most people don't notice that, but I do when I am zipping the legs back on or off.