Specialized BG RBX Women’s Shorts

By Laurel-Lea Shannon

Comfortable Performance Shorts for Women

The first thing I noticed about these shorts was the proper fit. I ordered a size small — and they fit as they should. I didn’t have to second-guess or size up or down as I’ve had to with other brands.

The next thing I noticed was the leg gripper. A lot of cycling shorts have super-tight gripper bands. Of course, you don’t want cycling shorts drifting up your leg when you ride, but you also don’t want shorts with a circulation-impeding death grip on your leg. Specialized BG RBX shorts have an easy stretching, plush elastic gripper band with a light but firm touch.

The seamless and stretchable chamois in these shorts offers more than adequate padding without being bulky. Its triple-density design has extra coverage on the thighs. The light-density surface covers the top part of the pad, reducing chafing, and the mid-density surface protects the soft tissue area. The high-density surface has two waffled pads that protect the sit bones.

I did a series of test rides with these shorts to test them with and without chamois cream. In short, the rides without chamois cr??me were quite comfortable. When I used chamois cream, the shorts didn’t feel as comfortable. I confirmed this dichotomy on separate rides with and without the cr??me.

Some manufacturers don’t recommend the use of chamois cream, claiming the ingredients in the cream damage the chamois material, making it uncomfortable. But Specialized Canada marketing manager Hannah Parish says, “All of our chamois can be worn with or without chamois cream. It is 100% personal preference.”

Even though the temperatures have been sizzling and the humidity high, I felt dry and comfortable in the BG RBX shorts. The reason they stay dry is because of a fabric that Specialized uses called VaporRize, which wicks sweat away from your skin to the outer surface of the shorts, where it evaporates. This system works well. With a UV protection rating of 50+, the fabric also protects you from damaging rays that can go right through untreated material.

The waistband on the shorts is wide, which adds greater support without clinging, or feeling too tight. These super comfortable shorts performed great on the bike and fit well from the leg gripper right through to the waistband. I’ve enjoyed wearing them and look forward to many more comfortable rides in these shorts.

Bottom line: Excellent shorts for women. They look good, are comfortable in all the ways that they should be, fit great and perform on the bike. What’s not to like!

August 2013

Laurel-Lea Shannon is publisher of www.WomensCycling.ca and contributes the Women on Wheels column that runs occasionally in RBR Newsletter.