Endura Venturi 3/4s - Quick Test
We've found these bike-specific, short-cut eVent overtrousers every bit as good for general outdoors use.
Posted: 9 July 2008
by Jon
Endura Venturi eVent 3/4s - Quick
Look
|
Price: £99.99
SRP
|
|
Weight: 300 grammes
(medium)
|
|
Features: Fully
seam-sealed, 3-layer eVent 3/4-length over trousers, bonded
front waterproof zip pockets, reinforced seat and stretch
rear shaped panel, reflective thigh prints, zipped fly with
storm flap, integral belt, articulated knees, Velcro hem
adjustment.
|
What Are They For?
Designed for warm but wet weather cycling use with a below the
knee cut giving a good combination of protection, breathability and
ventilation even when working hard, the Venturi 3/4s also work really
well for walking and scrambling over shorts when the going gets wet,
which is why they're here.
The Techy Bits
The key to the Venturis is the highly breathable eVent fabric.
It's the most breathable conventional fabric we've used making it an
ideal choice for those who run on the warm side. Technical features
on the Venturi include bonded pockets with water resistant zips and
full-on fly for easy relief.
How They Perform
We bought the Endura eVent 3/4s initially for cycling use, which
they're great for thanks to a combination of a cut that fits over
shorts but isn't restrictive, decent breathability and good cooling
thanks partly to the lower regions of your legs being
water-cooled.
The surprise was that all those qualities carry on over seamlessly
to general outdoor use and we've found ourselves layering them over
shorts when summer squalls hit. They're long enough to stop the hems
of your shorts from getting soaked, have a nice, easy cut and don't
side down thanks to an integral belt. You can even adjust the lower
cuffs using Velcro tabs.
They're even good for use on the rock when the short cut doesn't
obscure your view of your feet scrabbling desperately for holds. Best
of all, on days when full overtrousers seem just too much, these
short-cut versions allow enough cooling to be barely noticeable.
Finally at 300 grammes, they're also light enough not to be breaking
any camels' backs.
Having a pair of three-quarter length, summer-specific
overtrousers may be a bit of a luxury, but they're a great mid-way
point between soaked shorts and full-on overtrousers. A great cut and
the most breathable fabric out there is the icing on the cake. And
you can use them for cycling too ;-)
|
Great fabric, decent cut, nice looks and they work. Light
enough too.
Pockets seem unnecessary.
|
Know more or want to?
If you'd like to add your own experiences of this
product check out our user review system and post your opinions to
the world. If you have questions you can mail
us direct, ask
Richard Gear or try a posting to our
gear
forum.
Discuss this story
I wouldn't buy anything from endura. I emailed them a simple question and they didn't have the decency to respond. If that's the customer service on offer, they can ram it!
Posted: 09/07/2008 at 18:10
Shame bout the customer aftercare, maybe you got sent to junk. or maybe they just couldnt be arsed! i like the sound of a short cut over trouser, i alwys get too hot in overtrousers so these babies could be just the job for keeping your butt dry in the summer.
Posted: 10/07/2008 at 12:31
That wasn't aftercare, that was before I'd even bought the product! They could learn a thing or two from the Alpkit team, or Bob and Rose at BPL. The shorts do look good, I met a guy camping in Glencoe who had a pair, kind of expensive though.
Posted: 10/07/2008 at 13:15
See more comments...
|
