Can women wear men's bib shorts?

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Originally Posted by ridebikeme

Like kilsilcox, it seems that mens shorts and jerseys fit me much better than womens. I have a long torso, so all of the womens jerseys are never long enough. Again, men's shorts fit me better as well. I'm not a PI fan, but I can say that the Louis Garneau Neopower shorts fit me well and I love them.

The sad thing to me is this: after ordering some womens jerseys for our team where all of the women are small, all of them wore a size large and XL. In the real world, these women would wear anywhere from a small for one, up to a size medium. Sizing and accommodating people with different shapes is something that our industry should pay attention to and not force folks in one direction or another.

My .2

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I agree, completely. I'm really disappointed in the bike industry for their lack of providing choice and quality, comparatively to other 'outdoor/sports' clothing manufacturers. Rarely have I seen two women be able to fit into the same pair of jeans. So to assume that all women have this or that build and therefore need in terms of cut, shape, size, length, is a little silly. I love the way the Louis Garneau men's bibs fit me as well (not sure if they're the Neopowers or not). I also buy men's jerseys. The women's are too short on me, something like the fashion industry's mistakes of the 90s when they seemed to assume that all women had shorter torsos and longer legs. There are plenty of women out there riding. But until someone starts making clothes that fit well, they're not going to invest in women's clothing in enough numbers to keep a women's line going strongly. I wear a women's medium (I'm size 6-8 in women's pants and medium or 6-8 in shirts), but I had the same issue with women's jerseys. Very frustrating.

This is a really old thread, but, obviously, there are now lots of different brands of cycling clothing and some are better for some body types compared to others. I've never had an issue finding cycling clothes that fit me. While my DH first ordered me stuff from Performance, which was kinda cheap (he wasn't sure if I'd stick with riding), that was back in 2000. I started ordering from Terry shortly after that, and I must say, for someone who can only buy regular clothes in like 3-4 places because I am short and petite, I've been very happy with Terry jerseys and shorts. I branched out and now also wear Sugoi shorts, as well as Primal and Voler jerseys. I don't wear bibs, so I can't comment on those, but it seems like there's a lot of choice. If men's clothing fits better, than you should buy it, but perhaps you haven't tried on women's bike stuff in every brand available. I for one, can't wear LG or PI clothes, as they are extremely long. I once tried on an LG jersey that came down to my knees, no joke, in an extra small.

Part of it might also be the fact that often bike stores only sell one or two types of bibs max (they're the only type of shorts I'll wear). So I can't really try things on. With men's stuff, generally there are 5-6 types of bibs and generally in all sizes, not just small and medium. So part of it perhaps isn't that the products aren't made; they're just limited in their availability and especially for trying on. I've not yet found a women's bib in 8.5" inseam which is the perfect length. That's okay too. I haven't found an issue with the men's bibs. Maybe I'd like women's better if I could find a pair that fit well. I do keep looking, just not finding!

I can tell you as a shop that has sold LG clothing for a very long time that sizing slightly varies from year to year. I own a ton of their jerseys and find that if I were to lay them all out, well you can see the difference. That is not a complaint, simply a fact. I agree with Crankin that brands may help fit most of us, but there is definitely a HUGE whole in that area. As a whole, our country is getting larger not smaller, yet many folks(women) have a very difficult time buying clothing... and I find that very sad. AS an industry, we should be truly encouraging folks to ride regardless of size, shape etc... I've said this for years, but each year hope that someone new will come in the ring of competition and offer sizing that fits larger women, looks great and be encouraging for everyone. Anyone interested out there?

I've actually *not* had that experience (of cycling clothing getting smaller). The brands I wear have remained very consistent. This is in direct opposition to regular clothing, that is getting bigger and bigger, with vanity sizing and all. There are like 3 brands of regular clothing I can buy. I have very mixed feelings about this. Yes, I think more companies should make plus sized cycling gear, for both men and women, so everyone can try the sport with appropriate clothing. We do want to be inclusive, but I worry that somehow we just "accept" that as a society, we are getting bigger. This is a huge public health problem... hopefully making the right sized equipment/clothing available, will encourage people to get out there. I hope this is not taken wrong, but I always wonder why the US has this issue that affects so many people's health.
What about these bibs? They look interesting.
http://www.terrybicycles.com/Apparel...ide-Halter-Bib

I totally agree with you Crankin! In addition to owning a shop, I also manage a fitness center for a small hospital nearby. So all of my opinion(s) are not simply based on what I see in the shop. We do have some tremendous health issues in the US, some of it is based on poor choices no doubt. But we also a strong foundation from our government that does NOT pay attention to food, food labelling etc... I'm hoping that we are now starting to pay attention to that and it will continue that in the future.

But back to cycling clothing, we without a doubt, need some help in this area. Clothing not fitting some folks isn't only an issue of being overweight; we simply need more choices and types of fit.

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Originally Posted by Muirenn

Wealth and indolence. ;)

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I dunno ... it seems to me you have to be pretty well off to stay healthy in this country, any more, and I'm not talking about health care at the moment ...



But yeah ... I can't find "hanging out" jeans any more. I can spend $100+ to get size 2 jeans that are the same dimensions as the size 13s I wore 20 years ago, but if I want jeans suitable for running errands and not much caring if I wear them out, the smallest ones I can get in the department stores are just barely small enough that they won't slide right off me without a tug. I'm not big, but I'm not tiny, either (not like Crankin... ;) )

Oak Leaf, you are smaller than me.... really. Maybe a bit taller, I am the type of person who looks really skinny in regular clothing, in certain styles. If I get it wrong, you will clearly see where I am bigger. It doesn't matter how much I weigh/how much I ride, certain parts of me will never be stick straight or without fat! The only time this was not true was when I weighed 92 and everyone thought I was anorexic, which is a joke, because I eat more than a lot of women. And this brings me back to cycling clothes. I stick to certain brands, because they not only have the performance features I like, but they are styled in a way that doesn't make me look out of proportion.
The only jeans I wear from the Gap or Banana Republic, essentially the same company. They are less than 100.00, stylish, and come in a huge range of sizes from petite size 00 to extra tall size 14 or 16. Most of them have lycra in them, which is good for anyone with an athletic shape. I actually look better in tighter jeans (skinny or leggings) and for me to get these styles over my calves, there has to be lycra.
Murienn, I actually tried on tons of LG stuff at their outlet store in North Conway (the store is closed now). Every single jersey I tried on fit the same way. I did buy a pair of regular shorts, there, though, and still have them after about 7-8 years.

LG clothing in the same calendar year are all the same size; that's a fact. What I was mentioning (and obviously did a poor job at) is that from year to year... sizes are definitely different and that's a fact. It makes it very difficult to order and likely a bit hard on consumers as well, especially if you are basing an online order from the standpoint of already owning some LG.

AS for quality, I've never had a problem with anything... and I've been wearing LG for more many, many, many years. I have owned PI, Terry, Giordana(which I love) Castelli, Voler, and lots of Trek, Specialized, Cannondale... but all in all, from year to year other than sizing, LG has been the best. But with that said, ALL companies could do a better job at fitting and hopefully that will start to happen here soon.

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Originally Posted by ridebikeme

But we also a strong foundation from our government that does NOT pay attention to food, food labelling etc...

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I disagree a bit -- our government DOES pay attention to food labeling -- but rarely in the interests of consumers. Food industry lobbyists often win the labeling battles to the extent that it's Ok (or at least not regulated -- on purpose since there have been pushes for regulation) to use phrases like "naturally sweetened" for HFCS and other misleading statements. When we have the same government agency in charge of "promoting" ag products while at the same time determining school nutrition guidelines and supplemental nutrition assistance program there are inherent conflicts.

But back on topic (I realize this is an old thread), I love the Sugoi bib shorts. I've tried PI's and Gore's bib tights (they seem warmer in winter) but not sure I'd invest in the shorts. I agree that its hard to find places that carry nice bib shorts to try on so I'm often ordering last year's model on sale to see if I like them.