FitEgg.com Multisport Reviews
In the past few weeks, our running and workout gear has lost a bit of weight. We’ve been testing a few products from GoLite, a company focused on making sustainable, green, and lightweight outdoor gear. GoLite manufactures quite a few different lines of products for outdoor, trail, and camping applications. Although many of their products are very specific to other outdoor sports, there are many products that are useful to triathletes and endurance athletes. In the past few weeks, we’ve completed an initial review of the Men’s Wildwood Trail Shortsleeve Top, an initial review of the Tilly Jane Running Skirt, an initial review of the Manitou Women’s Sleeveless Top, and an initial review of the HydroSprint Lumbar Pack.
Today, we’re going to take a look at the Mesa 7″ Men’s Running Shorts. The Mesa Shorts are available with a 5″ inseam, a 7″ inseam, and a 9″ inseam. A little something for everyone, based on how much leg you like to show… The Mesa 7″ shorts retail for $40 and the 5″ and 9″ versions retail for $45.
About GoLite:
According to their website, GoLite was founded with the “simple idea…That experiencing nature would be better with less. Less weight, less fuss, less waste…more fun”. GoLite strives to not only provide products that are not just light in weight, but also light in their impact on the environment. GoLite uses the GoLite Index to determine the impact of each product and calculates this index using three main measures: Environmentally Preferred Materials, Responsible Production, and Education+End-of-Life Programs. GoLite has also adopted a Fair Labor audit process and follows The Timberland Company’s Code of Conduct.
About the GoLite Mesa Trail Run Shorts:
The Golite Mesa 7″ Trail shorts weigh in at a meek 140 grams or about 5 ounces. The 5″ version is even lighter at 113 grams and the 9″ model weighs only 146 grams. The shorts are available in a few combinations of black and granite. There are a few subtle differences between the three models, like the waistbands and the inner liners.
The GoLite Mesa 7″ Trail Run Shorts are touted as the ultimate training shorts. They feature a brushed waistband and hand pockets. The shorts are made of 100% polyester, with 58% being Minerale. We’ve discussed Minerale before, but in short, it’s a fabric that includes microporous particles derived from natural minerals. This fabric is designed to reduce odor and increase performance. The minerals are embedded in the fabric, so they won’t wash out or wear off.
The GoLite Mesa shorts also utilize DriMove Lite fabric. This fabric assists with moisture management and is designed to quickly move moisture away from your skin and keep you dry even in the hardest workouts and situations.
Testing the GoLite Mesa Trail Run Shorts:
The Mesa Trail shorts are a bit longer than our standard running shorts. At first, we were a bit concerned that the additional material would require a bit of adjustment, but we were soon proven wrong. The shorts are so light and the fabric so comfortable, the additional inches went unnoticed. We were concerned that the additional fabric could lead to bunching and chafing, but our fears were unfounded.
We’ve worn these shorts on a few short to medium distance runs; our training plan hasn’t included any runs beyond an hour or about 6 miles. The average temperature where we’re testing these shorts is in excess of 90 degrees most days and our training and life schedule requires us to run at the hottest part of the day occasionally. During these hot and humid runs, the Mesa Trail shorts perform very well. They wick moisture very quickly and, although they do stay damp at 90 degrees and 90% humidity, they remain comfortable.
We didn’t find the hand pockets to be very useful for our needs. We used the hand pockets to carry our ID and there’s certainly room for a gel pack or two in each pocket, but we prefer to use a lumbar pack to carry our nutrition and hydration. We did find the zippered pocket to be very useful and a nice change from some of our other running shorts. The zippered pocket was large enough for our keys and our ID and we probably could have tossed in our cell phone if we were going for a longer run.
Initial Impressions on the GoLite Mesa Trail Shorts:
We like the light weight and moisture wicking property of these shorts. Even though our sample is black, the light weight and moisture wicking ability of these shorts kept us cool on our runs, even when we were running with no shade. We like the abundance of pockets, even if the hand pockets aren’t very useful for our needs. It’s always better to have more pockets than you need and other users might have a different view on the hand pockets. We also like the brushed waistband on the Mesa 7″ shorts: this isn’t a feature that you regularly see on running shorts. More shorts should include this style of waistband. We believe that this waistband will be even more comfortable once we get into longer distance runs.
We will continue to use these shorts in our Ironman training program. It doesn’t look like it’s going to cool off too much in the next few weeks, so we’re sure we’ll have plenty of time to continue testing the breathability and moisture wicking properties of these shorts. Stay Tuned!
