POC Men’s Motion Air MTB shorts

The POC Motion Air MTB Shorts landed for testing at the most opportune moment. With the mercury hitting some outlandish temperatures across the UK, they have been the perfect hot-weather riding shorts. Stripped of any unnecessary features, they’re super ventilated and a dream to ride in, especially sans pads, but with a cut that allows for low-profile pads too.

POC Men’s Motion Air MTB shorts – Technical details

The lightweight, stretchy material is made from a blend of 95% Polyamide and 5% elastane, which feels pretty durable given these shorts’ weight (my size medium weighed 174g). The Motion Air Shorts are quite a slim cut, with an 11” inseam; the slightly shorter leg length should feel super breezy when not wearing knee pads, but they are designed to wear with low-profile pads too, without suffering the dreaded ‘tw*t gap’!

Long perforated sections in the fabric of the inner thigh are designed to maximise airflow, and the two mesh-lined side pockets can accommodate small items or a phone, and when fully open, are going to bolster that all-important airflow on hot rides. These pockets are well designed, with long zip pulls for ease of action and the face rearward so that items stashed sit flat to your thigh, a feature I love in shorts as it makes pedalling more comfortable.

The shorts feature a simple silhouette, with a slightly raised waistband at the rear which is bonded rather than sewn to keep stitching to a minimum. Waist adjustment is taken care of by a semi-hidden belt that is elasticated at the ends. Actuated by side buckles, it’s a simple and neat design, but it will be interesting to see whether the side buckles compromise comfort when wearing a hip pack.

Finished off with a fluorocarbon-free DWR (durable water repellent) treatment, a necessity for the UK with our (usually) unpredictable summer conditions.

Sizing ranges from XS all the way through to XXL with three colours to choose from: Apatite Navy, Pargasite Green and Uranium Black.

POC Men’s Motion Air MTB shorts – Performance

I started riding in the Motion Air Shorts just before we hit the really hot weather, which, being the UK, inevitably meant I got caught in some short, sharp downpours. So it’s great to be able to report that the DWR treatment certainly works. I only experienced some moisture ingress at the cross seams in the crotch after about 20 minutes, which, given the lightweight build of these shorts, was pretty impressive. Elsewhere, they continued to bead off water, and they dried out quickly.

These are an easy pair of shorts to wear, especially for trail and XC riding, and are akin in look and fit to a pair of comfy tailored boardshorts. My size medium fit well, only needing to cinch in the side adjusters a bit, but this did leave about four inches of the webbing strap hanging, as there is no way to tidy them away. I could fit my iPhone 14 in one of the side pockets, but anything bigger and you are out of luck.

I wore these both with and without pads. There is ample coverage with low-profile pads without showing any gaps between the top of the knee pad and the hem of the shorts, and the material glides over them effortlessly without too much noise when pedalling. These shorts are fantastic worn sans pads, as the combination of lightweight material, those laser-cut perforated sections, and the shorter leg makes these proper breezy. A bit of sweat build-up is kinda inevitable when riding a padded liner short underneath in super-hot weather, but this didn’t leach out into the material of the shorts at any point, keeping me pretty comfortable.

When wearing a hip pack, I did need to tighten the shorts more at the waist to keep them from being pushed down. This led to quite a bit of the belt webbing hanging loosely at my sides, which doesn’t look great, but didn’t seem to affect overall comfort.

If there was some way to tidy the excess material of the belt away, it would be a good tweak, as the 7Mesh Transition Shorts 13” have this detail nailed. I can also see them working on the gravel bike too, due to the slightly shorter leg length.

POC Men’s Motion Air MTB shorts – Verdict

There’s stiff competition when it comes to summer riding shorts. The Rapha Men’s Trail Lightweight shorts cost £130 and are rated well. With a decent selection of useful pockets, great breathability, and durability, they are a decent choice for harder riding. Their only sticking points were the lack of any DWR treatment and sizing issues.

At £120, the 7Mesh Transition Short 13” excels in warm weather and gives the POC’s a run for their money. The cut is excellent, with a slightly longer leg length and DWR finish, again with well though out rearward facing pockets. But where they trump the POC’s is on the waist adjusters, with lower-profile push buckles and bands to keep any excess material tidy.

The POC Motion Air Short certainly lives up to its name. It comes in a little cheaper than the above-stated high-end models and, if I’m honest, outperforms the 7Mesh Transition Shorts in terms of ventilation, and I prefer the shorter leg length for pedalling comfort. The adjustment belt could be finessed a bit, but otherwise these are an outstanding option for summer riding that should border the spring and autumn seasons effortlessly.