Gaping waistbands, stifling fabric, seams that hinder athletic butts and thighs if you’re a female mountain biker who has shopped for a pair of overshorts, you’re likely familiar with these problems. Riders need breathable yet protective bottoms that can fend off abrasive rocks and snaggy branches. Plus, baggies blend in better during après. But, like many women’s bottoms, they don’t always fit as well as we’d like.
So I recruited six women to put the current crop of overshorts through the wringer. Our testers ranged from straight-hipped to pear-shaped, 4’11” to 5’5”, and sizes 4 to 16. They tested shorts on loamy paths near Mt. Hood, sandstone ledges around Moab, and rooty trails in Colorado; on shuttle-assisted rides, rock-hammering downhills, and 4,000-foot climbs; and in conditions ranging from spring sleet to late-summer scorchers. These are the overshorts that delighted us all with their fit, comfort, and performance.
Professional triathlete
Nicole DeBoom wanted a functional garment that could help her compete without sacrificing style. It was 2003 the height of the pink-it-and-shrink-it era and she
was tired of sacrificing femininity to work out and race in men’s clothing. “I saw the power [skirts] gave to athletes like Venus and Serena Williams
on the courts,” she says, “I was like, that’s what I want. I want something that’s going to make me feel good, and by feeling good, I’m going to have more confidence.”
DeBoom took matters into her own hands. She began working with the wicking, quick-drying, silky fabrics she knew well from her years of triathlon training and collaborated with a designer and production facility to create a “race-belt skirt” prototype to wear to the 2004 Ironman Wisconsin. “It felt a little bit like a loincloth,” she says, “but the truth is I just wanted something to cover my butt, and this did the trick.” DeBoom won and invested