Cargo Bike Shorts with 4 Pockets

This review is part of the “Bottoms Up” series of reviews of Terry biking bottoms and contains affiliate links.

At this time of year in the South Bay, bike commuting doesn’t feel like so much of a logistical layering challenge. I go with chamois shorts under knickers or pants in the morning if it’s chilly, and just shorts in the afternoon (I stuff the pants in my backpack).

I’ve adopted Terry’s new Cargo Bike Shorts as my commuting and around-town or short-ride shorts of choice because they have not 1, not 2, not 3, but 4 pockets! My commuting bike has panniers in the back that I can’t reach while riding, so if I need something handy, I want it in a pocket on my legs or in my jersey. Snacks, gloves, phone, office badge, chapstick, the bike light I grabbed on the way out the door — it all fits and is accessible.

One of my absolute favorite things about wearing these shorts is that I don’t need to wear baggie overshorts or a cycling-specific jersey (with pockets in the back) to have pockets. I can instead wear a regular comfy t-shirt or tank top over these shorts and stuff the shorts pockets with whatever I need! It feels very freeing, and it also keeps me from looking and feeling super “kitted out” when I’m just riding around town to-and-from campus on my ten-year-old orange Kona commuter rig. I’m usually in a rush, my helmet is always crooked, I and look something like this:

I designate these as short-ride shorts for me personally because I need a more robust chamois for longer rides. My body-saddle interface is on the more sensitive side, so I bet other women would be able to wear these Cargo shorts for longer rides than I can.

Here’s my experience with them so far:

Look and Feel: Do you have a favorite pair of yoga pants that feel like butter when you pull them on? That’s what these feel like. Stretchy cloth butter. These shorts don’t have the compression feel of Bella Primas, Bella Maxes, or Holster Primas. They just glide on. There is a high, comfortable waist band that comes up just over my belly button. I think they look good and feel dreamy, and I love that there is a color option, blue or black.

Function: These shorts have a 9-inch inseam, which is a middle-length for the shorts I use the most. (My Bella Primas are 8.5″, and my Bella Maxes are 10″.) This inseam is long enough that I’m comfortable wearing them to campus without longer shorts over them. They have no sticky leg gripper at the hem, but the cuffs stay in place and feel good. (Note: I have not tried to wear them over leg warmers or knee warmers, so I can’t comment on the overlap between the cuff and the leg warmer.) I really appreciate the reflective detail on the back of the left leg. It could be bigger to be even more effective, but at least it’s an extra visual reminder to cars that I’m there. It is one reason why I use these shorts for commuting on pretty busy streets.

Pockets: The main event. So many pockets! There are 2 pockets on each side: 2 lower pockets with flaps, and 2 upper pockets. All of the pockets are about 7 inches deep and just under 5 inches wide. That’s pretty big! The top pockets do sit higher on your thigh than pockets I have on other pairs of shorts — the Bella Max and Holster Primas. So, you have to aim higher on your leg to access the pocket while riding than you would with other shorts. Because of the height of the top pocket, I keep my phone in the lower pocket with the flap on top, and use the upper pocket for snacks, chews, or softer things like gloves. I really appreciate that having pockets on both sides means, if I choose, I can just load up the left-side pockets since I like to keep my right hand on the bars while reaching for things. It’s also important to mention that I can put things in and take things out of the pockets with and without gloves on, though sometimes I have to finagle to find the opening. The pocket outer fabric feels and stretches the same as the fabric of the short itself. (I.e., the outer pocket fabric is not a contrasting fabric, like the pocket fabric on the Bella Max Shorts or the Holster Primas.)

Chamois: These shorts have a Fleet Air chamois. Here is the technical description from Terry’s website: “Seamless chamois with 4-way stretch Elastic Interface Technology and multi-level foam padding, perforated for ventilation and breathability. Light, smooth microfiber fabric and Terry’s signature soft-wing construction reduces bulk at inner thigh to avoid chafing. Made in Italy.” Here you can compare it to all of the other chamois selections. For me, this is a shorter-ride chamois, but it does great for me on around-town rides. I personally prefer shorts with a Flex Air Carbon or Flex Air Max chamois for longer or more performance-ish riding. Everyone is different.

Size: They are true to your measured size, in my experience. I am at the top end of Terry’s measurements for small bottoms (waist 28, and hips 36.5-37) and I am very happy with a size small. I think they fit perfectly.