Commuting

Review: On the Saddle in Bike Nicks Luxury Lingerie

We review the highly talked about cycling lingerie from Bike Nicks, but is it a little too sexy?

We often wear padded cycling shorts for longer rides. But a commute to work or a bimble down to the shops both pose a similar problem for your undercarriage. In more relaxed circumstances you often want to feel comfortable, unrestricted and dare we say, feminine.

No one fancies wearing bulky padded shorts under their sun-dress or work attire. Pedalling down the promenade on a lovely sunny day, on your way to see some friends for a coffee should be freeing, and for the first 3 minutes it is! Then the dull ache, the wincing pain and bum shuffling sets in to wreck the quaint picturesque scene.

Your downstairs anatomy has a vital role to play in saddle comfort. Read more about the innie/outie theory here

When cycling to that all important meeting, the last thing you want on your mind is a sore foof or nappy like VPL. Wouldn’t it be great if there was a happy medium where comfort, style and protection could harmonise for a happy saddle ride?

At TWC we’re very considerate of our undercarriage on the bike, and finding the perfect padded short, chamois and saddle combo. So when Bike Nicks offer a new lingerie style padded pant for the urban rider, we were keen to check them out.

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Bike Nicks

Fledgling British company, Bike Nicks, have been up and running since 2015 with the aim of providing padded cycling lingerie “for women cyclists who want to feel safe and comfortable whilst looking amazing in the saddle.” How can we not cheer a sentiment like that?!

Lili Millar is the brains in the knickers who has dedicated her life to yoga, injury recovery and cycling. Having cycled the streets of London for her daily commute, Lili found that regular cycling shorts were too bulky, and wearing nothing at all was too sore. Feeling frustrated with the lack of stylish cycle lingerie, she decided to make her own.

With fabrics sourced from around the UK, and the garments being made in South Wales, it’s an all British company with a passion for cycling fashion. Equipped with a pair of Bike Nick knickers and my Vintage Raleigh Wayfarer, I aimed to recreate a sun-dress cycling movie scene, only with a lot less Grace Kelly…

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Bike Nicks knickers

When the Bike Nicks delivery arrived at my front door, I was immediately drawn in to the lovely pink stripy packaging which I opened to find my new panties carefully folded and awaiting.

Unfolding these soft silk-feel panties I was surprised at just how “normal” they were. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting since my previous experience with padded pants have been heavy road or MTB nappy-like pads. The Bike Nick knickers feel soft and stretchy with a lovely wide and elasticated cuffs on the legs and waist.

The lace detail on the sides certainly set the knickers apart by adding that little feminine touch.

The padding is a thin layer that runs the gusset length of the knickers. Unlike most padded pants and shorts, these knickers provide coverage for the undercarriage area only, and not the sit bones. For this reason, Bike Nicks advise their garment is for short distance riding, maximum of 2hrs, so ideal for general commuting and town pootling.

After riding around my neighbourhood and visiting the local shops, I was grateful for that little bit of extra protection for my foof. Better than wearing regular knickers which would have surely caused a lot more pain.

Colours: Back – Pink/Black

Sizes: Small – Large

Available here for £27

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Bike Nicks Thong

Bike Nicks also offer a thong cut which is more suitable for body hugging clothing which saves you from that dreaded visible panty line.

Using the same material as the knickers, the thong has a lovely lace detail for a feminine “whale’s tail” feature. Also sown in with the same level of padding as its sister model, the thong provides just enough cushion to take out that achy sting from hard saddle riding.

As expected with the thong, there is no bum bone comfort, just padding for the foof which is where you want it for short rides. I wasn’t as comfortable riding in the thong as I was riding in the knickers. There’s no sensitive and careful way to really put it, but feeling flossed on the saddle is not something I cared for. However, when wearing the Bike Nicks thong with skinny jeans, this sensation wasn’t as noticeable. Nor did the thong move or ride up whatsoever when held in place by butt-hugging attire.

Colours: Back – Pink/Black

Sizes: Small – Large

Available here for £27

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Verdict

We’ve seen similar fashionable cycling pants hit the saddles in recent years, but non that offer a minimal, and yet functional level of padding like Bike Nicks.

I did have my reservations at first with the thought: “Surely, they’re just knickers with a panty liner sown in”. But after having tested them, I was surprised to find that the little extra padding was enough to give me a more comfortable ride.

The material is soft and breathable, and even though these aren’t my usual preferred style of underwear – M&S packs of 5 all the way – they were nice to wear and great to ride in. Considering myself to be about as sexy as a dead fish, and thinking these Bike Nicks would be a little too fancy for me, dare I say I felt… sexy?

If you’re going out on the bike for more than a few miles, you’re meeting friends, going to work, even going on a fancy date, this range of cycling lingerie is a great multi-functional companion.

It’s great to see that more consideration is being made for the women’s body. With Rapha launching the first cycling specific bra, and brands like Bike Nicks offering more variety in the undercarriage department, our bums and boobs are being shaped nicely for a comfortable ride.