PI Elite Bib Short review

Yesterday I took advantage of a sale, closed my eyes, and pulled the trigger on a new pair of PI Elite drop-tail bib shorts from an LBS. These are a newer version than my old ones, and while I like my first pair, I like these so much better that a review seemed a good thing to do.

Both of my PI drop-tail bibs are size small. My newer pair are smaller than my first pair - which is a good thing. I've been concerned if my first pair will fit once I get to my target weight.... Right now the new pair is, well, a little tight in the middle, but it fits where it HAS to do so and now I am riding more the 6 pounds I gained over the winter will go away.

The material is different, the 2011 version is made from the In-R-Cool fabric and feels much better on my skin. Of course the fabric provides "heat-reducing technology", though probably not as much as the coal black fabric found in their P.R.O. line. I am hoping this will help me with the heat rash problem I had with my thighs last summer...

The gripper is wider - which means the length is a little longer - a great thing! My other pair has always seemed a little...short. I've wondered what taller women have made of these bibs because of that.

This leads us to the drop-tail part of the shorts, which is the entire reason we purchase drop-tail bibs. This works MUCH better over the 2010 version. Pearl Izumi appears to have actually spoken with some women on this re-designed part of the bib-shorts and it is much, much easier to use. The area that one pulls down to answer the call of nature goes much further around the waist then the 2010 version. I LIKE it - I still like my first pair but this is far superior.

In a sentence, if you like the 3D PI chamois and you are looking for a pair of drop-tail bibs, it would be hard to go wrong with these. TE does have the current version, and one of their photos show the expanded area for the drop-tail. I am very glad I went this route instead of paying $60 more for the P.R.O. drop-tail...especially after learning the TE staff do not like the more expensive P.R.O. version of the In-R-Cool shorts.

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Originally Posted by Catrin

Yesterday I took advantage of a sale, closed my eyes, and pulled the trigger on a new pair of PI Elite drop-tail bib shorts ....... TE does have the current version, and one of their photos show the expanded area for the drop-tail. I am very glad I went this route instead of paying $60 more for the P.R.O. drop-tail...especially after learning the TE staff do not like the more expensive P.R.O. version of the In-R-Cool shorts.

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Glad to hear you like them. Yes, we do have several photos that we've taken to show how the drop tail works. Happy to hear those are helpful!

So, regarding your comment on TE staff not liking the more expensive PRO version of the In-R-Cool shorts: Yes, it's true. However, we DID order them for S'11, but we ended up sending our entire shipment back to Pearl. Why? Well, when we received them, someone in the office tried them on. That's when we discovered that they had made the leg hole openings WAY too tight. WAY too tight. Even gals in the office with more slender legs disliked them. Too bad really, because they were otherwise very nice shorts. We'd also ordered the less expensive Elite In-R-Cool shorts, which have many of the same features. But fortunately, the leg hole openings are properly constructed and are actually quite flattering, even on those of us with larger quads.

We are also choosing, for the same reason, to stock the Elite Bib and not the PRO bib.

Susan

Susan - thanks for all that you and your staff does. Not every store is willing to provide the kind of service you do - especially regarding how well different items fit or even to return stock that doesn't fit as well as you would like.

I had hoped the LBS I purchased them from would have a set of the PRO bibs that I could try on- I had a tiny hope the bibs wouldn't have the same problem the PRO shorts did but they did not have any of the PRO line - at least not the In-R-Cool (perhaps for the same reason?). I am quite happy with the Elite version so it worked out fine in the end.