Nike ACG trail shorts
Price: £39.99
Trek 01908 282626

Nike is a global sports clothing superpower, who make sure several top pro athletes don’t go wandering around naked all the time. From what we’ve seen so far their new ACG trail range seems aimed more at the casual rider than the hardcore trailhound though.

Style
With its running / swimming short styling and crinkly shell fabric complete with false fly, the Trail short is the least obviously bikey pair of boxers we’ve got on test.

Cut + construction
The broad elasticated waist gets a simple tie-in-a-knot drawstring to gather in the shell material. Inside the shell there’s a simple pair of very light and stretchy 4 panel shorts sewn into the waistband. The short legs get grippers to stop them riding up, but the big – sorry, huge – pad never really settles between your legs, making for a waddle off the bike .

Fabric
The crinkly crêpe-papery shell fabric is light, dries quickly and sieves some of the silt from back wheel splashes. It also seems completely impervious to all those ice cream, sun cream, spicy sauce and donkey dribble deposits you get on holiday, making them a good choice for the laundry allergic.

We had a large pair of shorts, which were – not surprisingly – slightly large on a 30″ waist but there’s plenty of stretch in the elastic for a comfy fit. On a 6-footer the legs hang at mid-thigh footie short level.

Pockets
There’s a zipped pocket at the back with a big fob for easy opening, and it’s large enough for a wallet when you’re heading down the shops. Don’t trust the hand pockets when riding though as they’ll either throw your stuff away or rattle it off your delicates on the first rough section.

Special features
There’s a very subtle Nike ACG logo on one leg which will mean a lot to some. They’re also very light and pack down small which is great for multi-day trips .

Performance on the bike depends entirely on how you like your pads to feel. If you like a big pad that comes right up round you like a nappy then you’ll love ‘em, but if you prefer less padding they won’t be your cup of tea. The big pad means they can also get caught up on the saddle in technical situations.
We’d recommend them more for riding to the country pub than wearing for an all day epic.

Nike have definitely stayed on the simple leisure side of the coin with their Trail shorts. If you want a pair of unobtrusive lightweight shorts for short trips on the bike then these are fine, if rather expensive for what you get.
If you want a pair of shorts for replacing your favourite all day ride bib shorts then look elsewhere.