Outdoor Research

Freewheel Ride Short - Men's

Best MTB Shorts Ever!

Familiarity:

I've put it through the wringer

I've been mountain biking for over 30 years and these shorts are the best I've ever had. Better than Patagonia & Fox by far. Superior materials, superior cut/fit. Also, you get the best warranty in the industry! Fit is true to size. My 34's fit as expected and are a great length for me. I'm 5'7" and 150 lbs.

Nice short

Familiarity:

I've put it through the wringer

Really like these shorts, stretch is great and integrated belt adjustment works really well. As some have said the legs are on the narrower side especially at the bottom of the leg, but the slim fit works well for riding. If you’re on the fence on sizing, going up a size is provably a good call and the integrated belt can take up the slack.

New Favorite Shorts

Amazing shorts! I use these for both gravel and mountain biking, and I’m really impressed. The front left pocket is perfect for holding the next snack or small item, and the front right pocket is deep enough to securely hold my iPhone 13 Pro without it bouncing around and still easy enough to get it out. The zipper pull tabs are smooth and easy to grab every time; (It's the little things) I’d definitely recommend these to both new and experienced riders.

Great MTB Shorts

I really like the button closure OR uses for these shorts (kind of like a chain lock on a door). It keeps them from popping open or tearing out buttons. The cinch tabs on the hips keep things tight. The pocket layout is great and will keep things tight on the outside of the thigh. The material is stretchy and robust, holding up to scuffing, tire chafe and the occasional tumble in the dirt. The black color will show dirt and sweat pretty clearly, but that's to be expected with a soft shell type material.

Nice, but noisy

Purchased local. Great fit and features. However, super loud while pedaling due to the type of fabric that's just really noisy rubbing against my padded shorts. Must return or be driven crazy. Too bad the fabric is not softer.

Killer bike shorts

Superb bike shorts. Great fit, length, stretch and design. Love the secures snap closure, on the fly adjuster’s and great pockets that fit phone and keys. Material is stretchy and just the right thickness. I wouldn’t change anything about these shorts.

Comfortable & Secure

The shorts are just the right length, comfortable, and the way the button fastens makes them secure. Takes the abuse of mountain biking very well.

Great shorts

I got the freewheel pants mid summer. I love them so much ordered the shorts a few months later. Great fit, durable, well thought out (pockets), well bade. Another solid product from OR and I’m stoked on the OR MTB gear. I’ve used them for everything, XC, DH, park, trail, even did a 4 day 140 mile backcountry trip.

The right fit makes riding better

I’ve never owned “bike specific” loose shorts before. Always figured that the basic shorts I owned already worked fine. Now I know that getting shorts built for the riding position is so much better. The pockets and the hems are in the right place, much nicer to ride in these. The one con is the diameter of the thighs shrank after the first wash, now they’re tighter than I’d like them. They fit perfect brand new. If future versions are built looser, so they shrink to size they’ll be perfect.

exceptionally well designed for MTB

These are the first MTB shorts I've tried with a button and waist fastener that works well, feels comfortable and doesn't roll under a hip pack. The rest is all good too. The fabric is sturdy and stretchy. The pockets are well placed and functional. Overall they look good. I've tried lots of shorts from Fox, Kitsbow and Pearl Izumi, none have had a waist tightening/belt system that worked as well as this.