Mountain Hardwear Women's Dynama Capri

A pair of casual capris can be a handy addition to the arsenal of any cyclist who may, at some point, want to ride their bike without necessarily looking like a cyclist. The Mountain Hardwear Women's Dynama Capri isn't a cycling-specific design, but it's stretchy, looks good, breathes well and dries quickly, and it's definitely versatile enough to consider using for recreational riding and summer bimbles.

Manufacturer Mountain Hardwear is not a cycling brand, nor are the Dynama Capri intended to be a dedicated piece of cycling-specific clothing. These three-quarter-length pull-on trousers, made from a lightweight nylon/Spandex fabric with durable water repellency treatment, are aimed primarily at walkers, climbers, runners and pretty much anyone with an active lifestyle who wants a comfortable stretchy pair of trousers for everyday use.

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Features are low-key, keeping the style uncluttered, with two side pockets and two rear pockets. The rear pockets are obviously not that useful on the bike. A zip pocket would be handy – especially on the bike, but also off it.

The fit is slightly forgiving, with the stretchy nature of both waistband and fabric allowing for an extra slice of cake now and then, and the waistband fits nice and high on the waist, yet not obtrusively so.

On the bike, they're airy and superbly breathable, giving exceptional levels of comfort from the point of view of moisture management and temperature control, as well as having oodles of stretch.

The lightweight nature of the fabric makes finding padded undershorts that don't show a bit tricky, but it is possible, and they work well in tandem with these for slightly longer rides.

I found them fine without liner shorts for shorter to mid-length rides, but given that the seams are not finished with cycling in mind, there's a possibility that chafing may result on longer journeys, although it didn't for me. They would make a brilliant pair of trousers to pack for touring – light, comfortable and good on or off the bike.

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All in all, considering they aren't intended to be cycling-specific, these function very well. A small zipped pocket somewhere – maybe at the rear of the lumbar area – would be useful, and a gusseted crotch area would help, though that's asking a bit much for non-cycling-specific wear. Just flattened internal seams would be good.

But in my opinion they look great and allow for an easy and comfortable cycling action without screaming 'cyclist'. At £45 they're pretty good value when considering how many other non-cycling activities they are likely to be worn for.

Verdict

Super-versatile and very comfortable, good for recreational cycling and other uses