When the days cooled off over the autumn we reached for these Windstopper shorts and have barely taken them off since. They are cut reasonably close fitting, but being made from a stretchy fabric they get away with it without restricting movement in the least. Purely an outer short, not coming with any kind of pad, the design is best described as 'no-fuss,' with a discreet zipped pocket behind each thigh for small and light items being the only storage. A buckle at the waist draws them in nicely to get perfect sizing.
We like the fact that, despite not being waterproof, the Windstopper fabric resist splashes and showers perfectly well, only soaking through with extended spray from the back wheel or if pouring rain persists. Even then it soaks through so slowly it doesn't chill, so they bridge the gap between normal and waterproof shorts nicely.
They are reasonably hard wearing, but after around a year of pretty relentless grit and saddle rubbing they are getting pretty thin on the backside. That is with mountain biking however, so we assume used for touring they would last much longer.
