When it comes to commuting by bike, the most important piece of attire to consider is undoubtedly your pants (or shorts).
After all, when you’re pedalling away, it’s your legs that are doing all the work. So having a comfy pair of keks is an absolute must.
But even the comfiest of trousers aren’t always good for riding. The most typical issues your legs may encounter in a pair of trousers is that they are restrictive, hot or they “expose” you – ahem (i.e there’s little “rear” coverage).
So over the years, I’ve covered trousers and shorts an awful lot when writing for Discerning Cyclist. I’ve even produced in-depth guides on various types of legwear, such as:
- Best Trousers for Bike Commuters
- Best Cycling Jeans
- Best Cycling Chinos
- Best Urban Bike Shorts
- Best Water-Resistant Trousers for Cycling
- Best Women’s Cycling Trousers
During that time, there’s been some brands that I’ve covered time and again. There’s the obvious mainstay cycling brands like Rapha, Chrome Industries and Ministry of Supply, but there’s another one that also pops up all the time even though it’s not a bespoke “cycling” brand…
That brand is DUER.
I love DUER. There, I said it.
It’s not cycling gear, per se. But DUER always produce stylish cycling that is great to cycle in.
And having checked out their stunning waterproof cycling jeans at the end of last year, DUER’s Live Lite Adventure Pant was the next on my hitlist.
DUER Live Free Adventure Pant
Above anything else, these pants are very good looking. There is no way anyone would see these from afar and go “you’re wearing cycling clothes”.
With side pockets just above the knee, the Adventure pant seems like a borderline cargo pant – albeit a pretty one.
And while these are indeed very good-looking pants, they are also exceedingly practical.
As well as the two side pockets (both of which are zippered and big enough for a phone), there are also two deep hand pockets as you’d expect, as well as two more deep pockets on the rear.
Another great feature for a cyclist – and one that I don’t remember seeing before – are button adjustable cuffs on the ankles. This means you can quickly and easily tighten up the cuffs if you like – which can be valuable when cycling as it reduces the risk of picking up dirt from the chain.
While DUER isn’t a cycling brand, they are activewear brand. In effect, they create gear that can handle the rigours that an active person will put their clothes through in day-to-day life.
So, a staple of DUER’s gear is that it is light, breathable and stretchy – and the Live Free Adventure Pant is no different. These trousers are made from a blend of 62% cotton, 30% TENCEL Lycol, 6% LYCRA Polyester and 2% LYCRA Spandex which enables this flexibility and comfort.
One thing I was a bit surprised to learn was that these trousers also have a DWR coating. However, from my experience, this offers very limited protection. Admittedly, rain doesn’t soak through the material in a hurry, but it’s not like it just bounces off either. It’s better than nothing, but it’s not of the same level as protection as some other water-resistant trousers we’ve tested (including DUER’s own All-Weather Denim jeans).
But that shouldn’t take away from what is a truly excellent pair of trousers.
I boldly opted for the green variant of these pants, but they’re available in a total of six colours – including black, grey, brown and some different shades of those colours.
The DUER Live Free Adventure Pant is available for $ 149. Unfortunately, though DUER is based in North America and doesn’t currently have a UK or European distribution centre in place. This means you’ll be liable for a lengthy wait (around 4 weeks) to receive these pants in Europe, as well as an additional customs fee of about 10-20% upon arrival.
However, these are a few DUER resellers in the UK, including Cotswold Outdoor which sells the DUER Live Free Adventure Pant for £114.99.
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