As MTB clothing brands continue to develop their ranges, riding pants are getting more technical features, intricate paneling, and riding-specific vents and pockets. Fasthouse has opted to take a different approach with their Shredder Pant.
Aimed at trail riding, the Shredder Pant(s) have a more relaxed aesthetic for a pair of mountain bike pants using subtle tailoring, more casual day-to-day features, and minimal styling. So how does this smart/casual look perform on the trail?
Design and specifications
Complimenting Fasthouse’s gravity-focused, heavily reinforced Fastline 2.0 Pants, the Shredder pants are aimed to be an ‘everyday riding pant’. That means lighter materials, a more casual cut, and a few other less riding-focused features.
The Shredder Pants are made from a four-way stretch material which has a slim fit and articulated knee panels to give them a slightly better fit on the bike. The material is DWR treated to help ward off splashes and drizzle too. The pant closure is handled by a single button and zipped fly and the waist has some velcro adjusters for fine-tuning fit. The pants are available in men's (28-38in) and women's (W0, W2, W4, W6, W8, W10) versions. I found they fitted as expected, opting for my normal size of 32in waist and using the adjusters to bring them in a touch.
There are two standard pant hand pockets and a deep zippered side pocket on the hip to secure items when riding. Fasthouse has added a small loop above the left hand pocket should you want to secure keys or tools to your pants with a karabiner or lanyard.
Performance
Fasthouse has done an impressive job with the tailoring. Although it's hard to achieve the aggressive tapering that some of our favorite riding pants like the Specialized Trail and iXS Trigger pants have, they still manage a slim flap-free fit. The material has enough stretch that I didn't feel any restriction to movement even with a pair of knee pads underneath. Being a trail-orientated riding pant, there isn't loads of space around the knee for protection so bulkier enduro-focused pads might be a bit tight, the slimmer fit does mean they don’t have overly baggy knees when you opt not to wear pads.
The DWR treatment stops them from becoming immediately soaked through and if they do become sodden, they will dry pretty quickly too although not as quite as quickly as Rapha’s Trail Lightweight pants.
The mixture of regular hand pockets and a large zipped pocket is a nice touch as well, giving you somewhere to put your hands, momentarily stash tools, gloves, etc while also having a more secure pocket for a phone or other valuables when riding. The zipped pocket itself is well positioned on the side to the hip to assure that if you are storing a phone in there, it doesn't interfere with pedaling.
The two external waist adjusters are easy to adjust and the simple button/fly configuration was fine. The pants feel light to wear, breathe well when warm, and if they get wet they dry quickly without feeling heavy or flappy in the process. Other than a bit of discoloration on the seat and a small pull from a barbed wire fence, the Shredder Pants have so far been pretty durable too although I haven't put them to test against the ground yet.
Verdict
Fasthouse’s Shredder Pant are a really comfortable and versatile pair of riding trousers for general riding, whether it's cruising pump tracks in town, hitting the trails, or going further afield. You can fit a kneepad underneath if the trail demands it, but they also work well on their own for casual cross-country rides or MTB bikepacking trips. Styling is excellent as well, with a subtle aesthetic that doesn’t look like you're wearing some vintage jodhpurs when hanging out pre- or post-ride.
Tech specs: Fasthouse Shredder Pant
- Price: $110 / £89.99
- Fabric: 75% polyamide / 17% polyester / 8% spandex
- Colors: Camel, Black, Grey
- Weight: 306g (32in)
- Sizes: 28-38 / W0, W2, W4, W6, W8, W10
