Renen Drop MTB Shorts review – hand-crafted, premium, warm weather shorts with unique sizing options

All Renen products are designed and handmade in the US. Created by Pete Fox of Fox Racing fame with input from multiple world champion Brian Lopes – so you know we're in good company.

Renen offer the unique ability to offer sizing for all of its MTB shorts and pants in both odd and even waist sizes, with each size specifically specced, which means in theory you should be able to get a precise fit. 

The Drop Short is an unlined lightweight warm weather short with four-way stretch material, built to be both durable and comfortable with simple styling.

I slip them on to see how these measure up to the best trail shorts on test, and if a relatively new kid on the block – to mountain biking at least, can cut it with the big hitters out there.

Design and specifications

As mentioned, Renen’s MO for its shorts and pants range is the odd and even sizing, called its precision fit. This means a truly massive range is available ranging from 28 to 38 Inches with everything in between! 

The Drop shorts are unlined and made from a superlight four-way stretch material named LiteSpeed and are intended for wearing in warmer weather. They use a simple Fly-Cam (ratchet) waist buckle for closure and have two hidden mesh-lined zipper pockets to stash your phone or small items.

They’re available in Black, Chalk White, Green Camo, a rather East-17esq White Camo and a truly vulgar Kahuku Hawaiian style pattern – the jury is out on those!

Performance

I opted for a 30-inch waist size, tentatively going on the fact that I wear Levi jeans with a 30-inch waist which are usually true to size. I'm happy to report that the fit is spot on and the Fly-Cam waist buckle only needed a few clicks of engagement to ensure a secure fit. 

The lightweight four-way LiteSpeed stretch material is very comfy, with a micro-grid texture to the fabric which feels great against the skin and flatlock stitching throughout avoids any chaffing. They fitted perfectly offering up room for movement over my Leatt Impact Shorts with the hem sitting just below the knee covering the first few inches of my knee pads – off the bike. I wore them on a mixture of long trail rides to bike park laps through warm and wet summer conditions. The material shrugged off light showers and on really hot days did a sterling job of wicking sweat on long hot climbs. On the bike, the hem sits just above the knee allowing for some much appreciated ventilation and a comfortable pedaling experience.

I like the understated graphics which employ a sublimation printing technique to embed the graphics into the fabric keeping everything clean looking. Two small mesh-lined pockets held my phone neatly in place with no flapping and they also act as air vents worn open in hotter weather. My only gripe would be that the small metal pull-tab is quite hard to use when wearing gloves. In a similar stable as Fox Racing Flexair shorts, Rapha Trail shorts and Patagonia Dirt Roamer bike shorts, the Renen Drop shorts are a good price and come in cheaper than the Rapha and Patagonia shorts and are on par with the Fox Flexair.  

Verdict

If you’re on the hunt for something new with the option to really hone fit, these could be for you. Performance levels are right up there and although they seem pricey they are well priced for the high level of performance.

Tech specs: Renen Drop MTB Short

• Price: $128/  £101 / €120
• Colors: Black / Chalk White / Green camo / White Camo / Kahuku
• Sizes: 28-38 inch