The chamois in these shorts is nice (dense enough foam), but I do wish it were either slightly further forward, or the thickest part extended further forward.
Materials also seem nice. Plenty of support/compression. Length of shorts and grippers is nice. Extra reflective bits on the leg without being overly gaudy is also nice.
Here are the couple downsides:
- the straps are TIGHT. Uncomfortably so, especially off of the bike. (I have very short torso, so I imagine this would be even worse for other people)
- the pockets are in the small side, and only on one leg. I knew this ahead of time, but still a bummer.
This is the second pair of Sportful bib shorts. My first was the Giara.
Firstly, the good. The shorts have good compression and the chamois is comfy for longer rides. I like the feel overall for shorter rides.
The things that I feel can be improved on are a deeper thigh pocket. It's fairly shallow, and struggles to keep my phone secure when vertically positioned. The big drawback for me are that the straps are like cheese graters for your nipples. They're very short as well. Bibs at this price have no excuse for cheap, overly thin and tight straps.
I'm a size large in every other brand I've owned, and learned quickly to ignore the sportful sizing and size up. Even in an XL, these straps feel like they're inches too short, with too little stretch making for a fairly uncomfortable fit on the shoulders and as previously mentioned, my poor nipples. I'm trying to figure out how to permanently stretch the straps out, but to no avail, yet.
If you have a shorter torso, I'd imagine this won't be a problem. I'm 6'4" 185lbs. I'm tall, but pretty damn thin. I'm figuring out that Sportful may just not be the best fit for me.
I bought these bibs as my previous "entry level" pair had tendency to ride up and bunch around the groin after 20 or 30 miles and the shoulder straps always rolled up. No such problems with the Sportful Supergiara Bibs. The fit definitely runs small (I am 5'-10", 190 lbs and the XL is snug), but I followed Sportful's guidance and the performance has been great. I wore these bibs on a 60 mile ride a couple of days after they arrived and had zero discomfort the whole ride. The left leg pocket was useful to stash bar wrappers in and I used the back pockets to stash my phone, wallet, and a couple snacks. The material is a little different than the typical lycra I am familiar as it is more rugged with less stretch, but the resulting compression helped keep things supported on a long ride. Lastly, I am much happier with the shoulder straps on these bibs than other brands that are using very flimsy materials. I would recommend these to anyone in the market for a new pair of cargo bibs.
The fitment is odd on these vs other sportful products - the garment has a euro fit and longer leg length. The straps are modest, but the odd part is the belly area fits very high in the torso and was a bit of a bother for me, enough so I returned the bib. The cargo pockets are nice but I wonder how durable they are, the material is very thin.
I had been wearing a size medium in Pearl Izumi bibs, yet ordered a size XL in these and they fit flawlessly (6'3" and 209lbs). The pad is very comfortable on long rides and the long legs feel great. The straps are a bit scratchy at first, and a bit snug, but after a couple wears they feel great. The side and back pockets are nice too!
I really appreciate the compression provided by these shorts, and the material seems plenty durable for my off-road excursions. They do seem to run a little smaller than my other gear from Castelli where I normally wear a medium.
They are sized like castelli only narrower. Got a great deal, so I'll use them on the trainer until Spring.
Super comfortable. Just go up one size.
definite compression, aero fit (size up if you are a tweener)..the torso bands require a two hands technique but once positioned are firm and comfortable on the bike (say 5 hour 100's)..no wear areas (weekly use)..chamois fits like my Pactimo (lets me smile)..would buy again.
Almost identical to Raphas cargo bibs but $100 less. These have much better elastic gripper bands, Raphas shoulder straps more comfortable. Quite compressive. Love the pockets. Seems to run a little small, even by Euro sizing
I really like them. For me, they are super comfortable. The pockets are awesome too. I usually wear medium. I ordered a large.
Excellent big short. Great compression and fit. Good length for tall rider. I'm 6'3" and the xl fit perfect.
Use primarily Zwifting, long hours in the saddle. Love the DSM chamois, my favorite bibs for a good price.
