Rabbit Run Fuel ’n’ Fly running shorts review: minty freshness and smooth comfort

Meet the reviewer

Berne Broudy

Vermont-based writer, photographer and adventurer Berne reports on hiking, biking, skiing, overlanding, travel, climbing and kayaking for category-leading publications in the US, Europe and beyond. In the field, she’s been asked to deliver a herd of llamas to a Bolivian mountaintop corral, had fat-biking descents in Alaska, helped establish East Greenland’s first sport climbing and biked the length of Jordan. She’s worked to help brands clean up their materials and manufacturing, and has had guns pulled on her in at least three continents.

Rabbit Run Fuel ’n’ Fly running shorts: first impressions

Unboxing Rabbit Run’s Fuel ’n’ Fly running shorts, I had a singular focus: testing out Polartec’s new mint-based odor-control treatment. These shorts were one of the first products available with Polartec Fresh Face, so initially I was less interested in the actual shorts than I was in the new tech.

However, within a few days of wearing these Rabbit Run Fuel ’n’ Fly running shorts for the first time, I found I was wearing them all the time. 

I’d grab them for a run, but also for a dog walk. I’d slip into them in the morning to sip coffee on my deck. I wore them for a walk or hike and then kept them on for a grocery store run. I jumped into the river in them after whatever sweaty activity I had just completed. 

They were soft and comfortable; they weren’t hot; and even after multiple days of wearing them, they didn’t stink!

They’re one of the best running shorts on the market, but they’re a whole lot more than that too.

Rabbit Run Fuel ’n’ Fly running shorts: materials and design

The odor control treatment in these shorts is what makes them unique and notable. It’s made from non-GMO, Oregon-grown mint. A lot of odor-control treatments use silver or chemicals to create an inhospitable environment for the bacteria that cause body odor, but they can also be destructive to marine life and the silver treatments use a finite and precious metal. 

Anyone who has had mint in their garden or yard can tell you that it grows like wildfire, and is by no means finite. The mint treatment in Rabbit Run’s shorts, called Fresh Face, is plant-based, sustainably harvested and steam-extracted. And it works. I wore these shorts for multiple runs before washing them, and without wearing anything under the built-in brief, which should go without saying. Even after three sweaty runs, the shorts still smelled fresh enough to put on for another outing.

Polartec’s in-house testing yielded the same results as my at home experimentation. They made a tee shirt, and treated one half with Fresh Face and the other side with Polartec’s previously best-in-class odor control. Some poor guy wore that tee for six weeks without washing it. Then the judges sniff tested, recorded their observations, washed the tee 50 times, and gave it back to the lab rat tester to wear for another six weeks before re-sniff testing. The universal verdict was that Fresh Face works better than whatever Polartec used before.

I have tested almost every odor-control treatment available for sports and athletic clothing and I concur. The mint-based stuff really works; I was seriously impressed.

I have been testing the women’s 4in shorts, but they also come in 2.5in length for women. My husband (who’s featured in the photos in this review) tested the men’s 5in short.

Rabbit Run Fuel ’n’ Fly running shorts: on the trails

These Rabbit Run Fuel ’n’ Fly running shorts are awesome. They’re smartly designed, with a seamless, quick-dry shell, and a non-chafing, low-profile liner. So you don’t bonk mid-stride, the shorts have energy gel-sized mini pockets inside in front, and pouches big enough for an energy bar folded in half, or an extra sachet of electrolyte drink mix or an old-style flip phone, in the back. 

If you’ve loaded your shorts with snacks, and stored a key or phone or both in the zippered back pocket, you’ll need to tighten the elastic drawstring that’s built into the elastic waistband and add a locking toggle, or tie it. I prefer to carry extra snacks and necessary electronics in a running vest or handheld water bottle holder, not my shorts, but I appreciated having options.

These shorts are made from recycled polyester with spandex for stretch. They’re soft to the touch. The fabric feels almost like an ultralight softshell. Welded seams let them move naturally and without restriction. The shorts are deliciously light with a mid-rise waist and a semi-relaxed fit. Laser perforations on the side in front enhanced airflow to clear sweat. The bonded hems, flatlock-stitched liner seams and bonded shell seams prevent rubbing and chafing. The fabric feels nice against the skin. The undershorts are well-vented and super comfortable too. The flat, stretchy waistband is fabric-covered, so I didn’t have sticky silicone gripper or elastic against my skin.

Now that I’ve worn these for a full season, they’re showing natural wear and tear. The seams are slightly fuzzy, and the liner is slightly pilled on the outside. They also look a little dirty, but that may be because I can’t remember when I last washed them!

For how much I’ve worn these shorts, the wear seems normal not premature. And the wear is visible only when I take a really close look at these shorts. Someone who met me on the trail would never notice the fuzz or the pilling.

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