Galentine’s Day Sale, offering 25% off sitewide. This one-day sale event is the perfect time to shop for your baddie bestie who loves ripping singletrack, dancing at aprés, or enjoying a hike outdoors.
To begin with, I love this company! It is women-led, which is vital because my body and needs differ from a man’s. I appreciate that women are behind the scenes addressing my requirements, thinking about what works for me, and trying to help me be my best. I have four pairs of Freel bike shorts and love them.
Wild Rye is B Corp Certified and also aims to use Bluesign-certified fabrics. Bluesign is a Swiss group (bluesign® | Sustainable Solutions for the Textile Industry) that monitors the path of materials from factory to final product and includes experts in chemistry and textile production–all to operate efficiently, reducing resource consumption, limiting hazardous chemicals, implementing worker safety protocols. Wild Rye ships using recycled and recyclable paper mailers. They are members of 1% for the planet and have implemented a resale platform to ensure their products last a long time. I wear clothes until they wear out, but many folks like to get the latest color, and then what happens to the older but still excellent clothing? Resale is honestly such a great way to minimize our use of landfills. I don’t know about you, but I consider these factors when choosing to part with my hard-earned dollars.
Given all that, I was stoked to try the Eleanor Chammy (size 10 in eggplant.)
Styling
Eggplant is the best color—thanks for letting me know! I also love the retro riptide multi-color that this short comes in. Wild Rye never fails to offer great fabrics and colors. I love them all; they constantly come up with great new styles.
Also, pockets! I have items and need places to put them, so thank you for addressing that need. The pockets on this short are big enough for my iPhone and located appropriately.
Sizing/Fit
I ordered a size 10, which is my standard size. Sometimes, I even need a 12, but in the Eleanor Chammy, the 10 is too loose and does not have sufficient compression. When I look at the size guide on the Wild Rye website, I can see that a size 8 could work for my waist measurement, but given my hip size, I would need a 6, which I never wear. In the Freel shorts, I have a few size 10s and an 8, but the snap on the size 8 sometimes pops open, meaning it’s a tad too tight. With the Eleanor Chammy for me in a size 10, there isn’t the compression that I’m used to in a bike short. Most chamois come in S, M, or L; I’m always a size large, and the chamois are always compressive. That compression isn’t there in the Eleanor Chammy. And with no compression, the shorts ride up a bit. Riding up for me is not an issue because I usually have baggies over my chamois. But when I road ride, I don’t wear baggies, so I would be disinclined to wear this chamois on a road bike ride.
The shorts might not ride up quite as much if the inseam were longer. Some women prefer a shorter inseam, so this chamois could perfectly suit them. I’m used to a longer inseam and more compression, which helps prevent that riding-up problem.
Fabric and Padding
Wild Rye nailed this department. The fabric is soft and quick-drying, and the padding feels supportive. The leg bands have some silicone grippers. I think they could use more substantial silicone or more of it, but what is there is helpful. The silicone at the back of the waistband didn’t seem to do much because the waistband seemed high enough in the back to stay in place.
Bottom line
These shorts have some great features, and I’ll continue to wear them. As I said, they won’t be out without baggies over them, but I have many, many baggy bike ride days, so they’ll come in handy. If you like shorts that are a bit shorter than traditional, you’ll probably like these shorts. Also, consider ordering a smaller size to get a little more compression.
Lastly, Wild Rye, I like the new logo!
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