The not-so-minor details

A couple of months ago we introduced you to DHaRCO, a new Australian apparel company with a style the we really dig. Blending mountain biking tech with a bold surf aesthetic, their shorts and jerseys grabbed our attention straight away. You can read more about DHaRCO in our profile here.

For the past three months we’ve been trialling a number of items of DHaRCO kit, including their Gravity Shorts. Really, the ‘Gravity’ tag is a bit of a misnomer, and we’ve been using them for general trail riding an awful lot – we’ve been spending more time in these shorts than any other item of cycling apparel in the wardrobe. In fact we’ve run them through the washing machine so often that the once glaringly bright orange has begun to fade a little and become a tad peachy. We should have cold washed them…!

What we like about the DHaRCO Gravity Shorts is their simplicity – they aren’t covered in vents and zippers, and they’re sold liner-free so you can wear them with your favourite knicks. For us, this is a plus as it keeps the price down and we always end up riding with bib knicks under our baggies. DHaRCO are quick to emphasise that their shorts are built for Australian conditions (i.e. warm weather), and as such they’re much lighter, more breathable and feel far less bulky than a lot of baggy shorts. So often, baggies feel like something a commando would wear into battle, but these shorts feel more like a nice pair of boardies.

Storage is kept to a minimum, with just one leg pocket and a phone size pocket (unless you’re running the new MEGA iPhone) below the waist at the rear of the short. It’s a good place for a pocket actually, as you rarely crash onto that part of your body. Having only two small pockets means you don’t go loading your shorts up with all kinds of stuff that makes them heavy, saggy and hard to pedal in – keep your stuff in your pack instead.

The fabric is a flexible four-way stretch, and the cut isn’t too long, so pedalling freedom is a strong point (another reason why we think the Gravity name is a bit misleading). There’s an inch or two of waist adjustment via velcro tabs, which we found useful so we could keep the shorts in place and stop them moving around on our bib kicks. In fact, if there was one addition we’d like to see with these shorts, it would be little more friction at the waistband, just to stop them slipping if you do happen to be a bib knick wearer.

In addition to the orange here, the Gravity Short is available in a less #enduro black or navy blue. Simple, suitable for stinking hot weather, comfy, well-priced and local to boot – we give the DHaRCO Gravity Shorts two thumbs up.