Gravity Anomaly is a Colorado based mountain bike riding clothing company. Their products are all made in the United States and use domestically produced fabrics when they can. The company itself is made up of a husband and wife team, Brendan and Valeria Miller.

I was able to get the opportunity to review a few sample products from Gravity Anomaly to see how well their products fit and performed out on the trail. For this review I will be testing out their Half Nelson Jersey, Teamster shorts, and Long Haul shorts.

Half Nelson Jersey

The Half Nelson jersey worked great for XC and All Mountain riding. It is a pretty simple jersey made out of domestically produced polyester quick-dry fabric. The thickness of the material is close to quick drying fabrics from sports companies like Nike and Under Armor. It wicked sweat away nicely and didn’t feel heavy.

The fit of the jersey was really good. Not super baggy but not too tight. They nailed the shoulder fit which felt great on the bike not bunching or pulling. The jersey had a nice look with a cool Sun-rides graphic on the front, small GA bug logo on the sleeve, and GA patch logo at the bottom hem.

Colors Available: Black

Sizes:

Price: $32

Teamster Shorts

The Teamster shorts are aimed at XC and All Mountain riding. They have a good length set at 22″ along the outseam. The shorts are made out of a military grade 4-ply nylon shell that repelled water and mud . They breathed well and didn’t get hot and sticky after a long ride on the trail. All of the seams are double stitched for durability.

The shorts fit me well around the waist and include velcro adjusters to snug up or loosen them to fit. The adjustment offers a pretty big range to find the best fit (also allows you to wear them if you’ve put on a few pounds over the winter or lose weight over the summer). I noticed the crotch area was thoughtfully designed for MTB riding, as the shorts never got caught on the saddle when transitioning from sitting to climbing or maneuvering on the bike. Some designers don’t make their shorts the right dimensions, making the crotch too long for the size and it catches on the saddle too often.

The rear of the shorts have a strip of stretchable fabric that offers some flex for additional comfort.

I was glad that these shorts had so many pockets. They come in handy for holding things like multi-tools, wallet, keys, snacks, etc. They didn’t add that much bulk to the shorts and I enjoy the utility. In all there are 6 pockets: 2 front slash pockets, 2 snap closure leg pockets, and 2 snap rear pockets. The shorts have a zip fly and double snap button closure.

One thing the shorts don’t offer is a chamois. You’ll have to bring your own chamois when you wear these shorts. This is often a personal preference item, so I don’t feel it is much of a negative that they don’t come with one already. Maybe GA will offer one you can buy from them in the future. Brendan actually refers to the chamois issue in the interview below.

Colors Available: Blue, Khaki

Sizes: Small, Medium, Large, XL



Price: $64

Long Haul Shorts

The Long Haul Shorts are aimed at gravity and enduro type riding. They have a 24.5″ outseam that offers a bit more coverage to go over knee pads and provide more protection. The knee openings are generous and do fit over knee pads well. Personally I found that these ended up being a little long for me. I’m not the tallest rider so 24.5″ length is a bit much (as you can see in the picture they look like “Man-pris” on me). Most taller riders will find that these fit them well and work great for downhill and freeride.

Their construction is pretty similar to the Teamster shorts. They are made out of the same 4-ply military grade nylon fabric but feature an additional polyester mesh liner. I’ve had other shorts with mesh lining before and hated them. They got hot and sweaty way too fast. Fortunately, the mesh lining in these shorts that GA has chosen is lightweight and smooth which allowed me to feel comfortable the whole ride.

The fit on these shorts was similar to the Teamster shorts. They still didn’t get hung up on the saddle while riding and felt good to pedal in. The Long Haul shorts still feature the same 6 pocket design but the back pockets are velcro closure. They don’t have the stretch panel in the rear of the shorts but they still have velcro waist adjusters for a custom fit.

Colors Available: Olive, Charcoal

Sizes: S,M, L, XL



Price: $79

Repair Kit

Another nifty piece that comes with all Gravity Anomaly clothing is a small thread repair kit. It’s a nice touch that almost no one offers with their MTB clothing.

Overall Opinion

I really enjoyed the riding clothing from Gravity Anomaly. You can tell that Brendan is a real rider because the fit of these shorts allow you feel comfortable on and off the bike. The overall design of both shorts lend themselves to comfortable riding whether your sitting in the saddle pedaling or standing up descending and rocketing down the trail. I was impressed with the water and mud shedding of the nylon material in the shorts and the sweat wicking ability of the jersey. The clothing itself looks great too. It isn’t styled like some moto racer boy clown suit, which I find appealing and I’m sure many other riders will too. Just enough clean style for my taste. The icing on the cake is that this great riding apparel is made in the USA and is available at a very affordable price.

Interview with Brendan Miller co-owner of Gravity Anomaly

What is Gravity Anomaly clothing in one sentence?

Brendan Miller: “American made, direct to customer, all-mountain MTB riding apparel”

Tell me about how you started Gravity Anomaly.

Brendan Miller: “I was frustrated by the lack of clothing options/sizes I would find in local shops, and when I went online to buy a pair of shorts I would have a hard time getting a pair that fit right and then you’d have to deal with the hassle of returns and exchanges. Not to mention it seems everything out there these days is Easter egg colors and made overseas. I started to think that there had to be better way.”

Is GA a one man show or are there others involved?

Brendan Miller: “It’s a family affair. My wife (Valeria) and I are the two principals. She’s the COO running customer service, shipping, operations and the books. My focus is on design, development, marketing/sales.”

What is your philosophy about designing riding clothing for MTB riders?

Brendan Miller: “Keep it simple. With all the fancy performance materials that are out there now I find they haven’t made any of us that much faster. I want materials that stand up to the rigors of riding, but also easily move with you and are comfortable. The best compliment that I get from riders is when they say they don’t even notice the clothing when they are riding.

Shorts have to be purpose built too. You can tell when you’re wearing a pair of shorts that we’re not designed by a mountain bike rider. Finally, our clothing is for the everyday rider. We’re not into sponsoring a race team, although we’ve got a lot of racers stepping up and putting down their hard earned money on our clothing. I’d rather sponsor that “Tuesday After-Work” ride group that and hits the trail hard and then goes and drinks beer afterward.”

What details about other MTB clothing have you had problems with that you’re trying to eliminate with GA’s clothing?

Brendan Miller: “Where do I start…not enough “give” in the waist area. I seem to always start a few pounds heavier in the Spring and if it is a good season I’ll need to cinch the waist up by the end of the season. I need a pair of shorts that did that for me. The other big complaint I had is about those MTB padded liners. They never fit right, the chamois pads never lasted or stood up on long rides. I always opted for a nice pair of road cycling chamois. That’s why we don’t sell them with the shorts. The other big one was the fit of the jerseys. They always seem to fit like a running shirt or tee shirt. Our new line of jerseys you’ll find plenty of room in the sleeves and shoulders with extra length in the body so we don’t have the plumber butt issue. It’s the details that count. You’ll find detail in our clothing that you won’t find anywhere else.”

What is important to you about American made products?

Brendan Miller: “I own too much crap that is made overseas. For me this is not just about helping keep American jobs and helping the economy or a marketing tag line. It’s a strategic business decision. Having my sewing done in the U.S. allows me to be more nimble and responsive. I see my sew shop as a valued partner and want to support their success and they feel the same about us. I’m vested in their success and they are vested in mine. It really comes down to the fact that I can get something that is better made and I know they won’t take short cuts. It’s really comes down to a quality play for us.”

What are your future plans for upcoming clothing offerings?

Brendan Miller: “Riding shorts were our initial focus. Anyone can make a decent tee shirt or jersey. Its hard to make a really good pair of shorts and we want to be known for that first foremost. Next up are jerseys. We’ll be releasing 2 crew neck loose fit performance jerseys as well as a performance button down jersey in the next 20-30 days. Protos have been approved, fabric has been ordered and the fabric will literally be going into get cut and sewn starting in the next week.

Beyond that, we’ll be doing hats, hoodies, additional tees and shorts in 2014. Eventually, we’d like to have a full street wear line as well, but we’re focused on the performance wear for now.”

Will you be attending anymore events in 2013?

Brendan Miller: “I’m sitting up in Steamboat Springs as I type this right now at the EnduroX race event. August 23-24 we’ll be at the Outlaws of Dirt competition in Frisco, CO. We’re really looking forward to being at Outer Bike the first week October. For now we’re avoiding the typical industry shows and want to go where there are riders.”

Anything else you’d like riders to know about Gravity Anomaly?

Brendan Miller: “Finally, you won’t find anyone else dedicated to customer service and care quite like us. Our return and guarantee is second to none. It’s simple. If you are not completely happy, just send them back. To date we haven’t had anyone send them back. In fact the opposite has happened. Customers are placing second and third orders and the positive feedback has been overwhelming.”

Where can I buy Gravity Anomaly clothing?

If you want to pick up a pair of shorts and jersey for yourself. Check out Gravity Anomaly’s website to buy directing from them.