Bike Knicker Battle

UPDATE, 18 Nov. 2010

The Zoic Knicker has shown a weakness.  There is a little section of fabric just above the zipper on each of the cargo pockets that has a flap.  The point where that part of fabric is sewn under the top seam of the pocket flap, onto the leg of the trouser, has separated from that seam.  It is pretty sorry since I have only had these things for 2 months, and this isn’t even a stress point. I am thinking about shipping them back to hucknroll.  At least the seam isn’t compromised on the flap which is pretty solid.

Well, here is a shot of the shredded pocket.

*****ORIGINAL POST *****

I recently picked up a couple different pairs of knickers for biking, tooling around, hanging out, whatever.  With Autumn here, and Winter just around the corner, something a little more substantial was called for, and knickers seemed the perfect thing.

I got my hands on a pair of Endura Zyme knickers and a pair of Zoic Reign knickers, and here is a brief report of what I feel about both of them.

The Endura Zyme knickers are really tough, made with the thick brushed cordura nylon.  I have about a 35″ waist and usually wear pants that range between 34-36″ waist.  The Large size of the Endura is dialed right in to that size.  They are roomy, but not baggy, and have cinches on the waist to snug them up if I don’t feel like wearing a belt.  I don’t really need a belt with them, because they fit so well, but I like to wear one because the snap on the front seems to pop open when riding if I lean too far forward.  The length of the knickers for me is just about right, maybe an inch shorter than I would like though.  They have two knee darts that when I ride, end up above my knee.  The darts are sewn for a shorter leg than mine (I am 6’3″ BTW).  This doesn’t cause any trouble, it’s just a design peeve of mine that the darts are sewn in, but don’t hit where they should.  The end cuff has a velcro tab that adjusts to tighten the cuff up a bit if you like.  I like that it is easy to adjust, but doesn’t get in the way.  The pockets are plentiful, without going overboard.  Two front pockets and two on the back all with zippers keep things where they need to be.  There are also two front thigh mounted pockets that fit phones or pens, one is open the other closes with a zipper.

Overall I like the Enduras, they seem to keep in the heat a bit so they might be a bit too much in hot temps, but fall, winter, and spring these are good to go.

The Zoic Reign knickers I just got are pretty nice.  Their sizes are different, and I had to get a XL.  The size chart for XL ranges from 36-39″  I would say 35-36″ is safe.  The cut of the legs on these are extra long, they hit just below my mid calf, and I have pretty long legs.  The leg end cinch lets you easily bunch them up and wear them just under the knee, that gives a bit of play in them for pedaling or walking or kicking.  The cinching cord is hidden inside the cuff though, and it is a bit hard to adjust.  They are a bit skinnier than the Enduras so if you have huge thighs you might have to think about something with a more generous cut.  The nylon they are made from is more of a mid weight ripstop and lighter than the Enduras.  Still being nylon they trap heat, fortunately there are two leg zips that open up just below the crotch on each leg (inside thigh seam) to let a little fresh air in, there is a mesh liner there to keep things from peeking out.  They came with a padded inner short, that doesn’t look terrible when worn inside these, I’m just not too into the padded inner short thing though.  My Brooks saddles fit me well enough, and don’t present a need for extra padding.  The pockets on the Reign knickers are as such.  Front pockets cut in jean style with a little change pockette.  One zipped pocket on the right side in back.  3 cargo pockets, one on the left leg, two on the right, with a spot in one  for a phone or music player with threading holes for a headphone.  I like that feature a lot, because I hate my phone flopping around in my bag or other pockets.

Overall, I kind of like the Endura more than the Zoic, but each are rather good, stylish knickers that you can wear tooling around town, or just hanging out having a beer in the City.  I got both of these on sale, so who knows if they will continue to be around next season, since clothing manufacturers seem to be fickle and don’t like to keep styles around for too long.