Boasting more pockets that any cycle jersey, these Reivers will let you load up for long-distance gravel adventures.

Endura GV500 Reiver Bibshort

$169.99 / £129.99, endurasport.com 

Pros:

  • Impressive pocket capacity
  • Gel inserts improve chamois comfort
  • Ideal for road or gravel riding

Cons:

  • Less breathable when loaded
  • Quite a high waist

Comfort: 4/5
Design: 5/5
Style: 3/5
OVERALL: 4/5

Wearing the Endura’s GV500 Reiver Bibshort means you’ll never have to deal with an over-packed cycling jersey. It has the most cunning array of pockets I’ve ever seen on a Lycra short. It’s optimised for gravel riding, which meant I could put it through the mill on some gnarly terrain too. Check out how it fares against the rest of the best cycling shorts.

Endura GV500 Reiver Bibshort features

Blasting across the eerie lava fields of western Iceland feels like riding on another planet. I think my greatest fear as an outer-space adventurer would be to run out of snacks. So it was comforting to be able to stuff these bibshorts with enough calories to see me through an exploratory gravel ride into the Icelandic wilderness.

As far as I could make out these bibshorts pack seven mesh pockets: two Cliff-bar sized ones on the left thigh, one cargo one on the right thigh, and two each side of the lower back.

Combined with a jersey, that’s enough stowage to leave a sweat-making backpack at home and still be self-supporting for all but the longest adventure rides, and because the weight is distributed, it never feels like you’re hauling too much.

The chamois insert features more clever Endura product development. It’s the company’s 600 Series Pad II which stretches with the body and has gel inserts to absorb lumpy trails or potholes.

Something I didn’t test – thankfully – was the double-layered side leg panels, a feature designed to guard against gravel rash in a spill.

Endura GV500 Reiver Bibshort performance

The combination of the sheer number of pockets and the beefed-up leg fabric on the Endura GV500 Reiver Bibshorts does make them less breathable than the competition, but that’s tradeoff’s to be expected. What they did give me was the confidence that I was prepared for the unexpected (and the ‘bonk’), while still retaining a sleek, aero-dynamic profile. A winner for any adventurous ride.

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