I have a pair of MK Orig. Mtn Pant in yellowish color that are my favorite pants, bar none. I bought two more pairs in gray and dark. Both of these pairs of pants fit nicely on the first wearing. I then washed them and wore them, washed-wore, washed-wore and increasingly the fit of the pants became more and more miserable. They shrank in weird ways, especially in the waist and thighs, until I simply could not wear them. The dark color also turned purple. In the end, the good people at Backcountry took them back. I am baffled, since I am, at this moment, wearing my 1-year-old yellow colored pants and they still fit great. I bought my good pair on sale and think the pants are overpriced. Despite that my yellow ones are increasingly stained and worn, and I could stand to get another pair, I am reluctant to purchase MK pants because of the apparent lack of quality control or consistency of manufacture.

I find these shoes to have an awkward fit compared to the Hedgehog by The North Face. These ones are a bit "pointy" and pinch me over the top of my foot behind the toes and across the
tops of my toes. I have owned several pairs of TNF hedgehog shoes and I will stick with that model, as I find them sturdier, better cushioned and roomier over the top of my foot.

My wife is happy with the Greenland Jacket. Note that I did not say "extremely" happy. The jacket meets her expectations except in one regard. The fatal flaw committed by TNF is that they use a stylish but very cheap buckle on the waist strap. The buckle has a shiny metal female portion and a horribly brittle, flimsy plastic male portion. TNF is, I am sure, using the metal buckle to impart style to the jacket, and I have to agree, the buckle looks attractive. However, they have purchased what has to be about the lowest quality buckle on the market. The plastic male portion broke after a few weeks. Now my wife wears the jacket without the waist strap and she is less happy with the jacket as a result. Like I say, the jacket otherwise meets her expectations. I have seen these metal/plastic buckles in use elsewhere as well. I had some REI brand luggage last year that used several of these very fashionable, crappy metal/plastic combo units and two of them snapped after the first airline flight. I returned the luggage and will steer clear of anything that uses these buckles in the future. Without a better buckle, and unless you intend to wear the Greenland Jacket without the waist strap, I would insist that TNF either supply a better buckle, supply an ample supply of spare plastic male parts for they will inevitably break, or steer clear of the Greenland parka. Without this flaw, I would seriously consider giving the jacket a 4 or 5 star rating.

I bought these pants for my wife because I own two pairs of my own. This is the only softshell type pant she has ever used and she loves them as much as I like mine. i am always hot and she is always cold. I appreciate the pants because they are not exceedingly warm or insulated. i wear them all winter without long johns except on the coldest days. She wears tights under them and she was warm on cold days this winter. The ATV is a great-fitting pant, reasonably water repellent, with the proper level of warmth to satisfy us both.

This set of poles is fine for anyone who needs a good ski pole. My kids and wife tend to trade around their poles when snowshoeing depending upon steepness of terrain. My son uses them for skiing, as does my wife. This is a good pair of reasonably priced poles. Purchasing them was easier than going to the ski swap.

Newer model improved slightly by adding an extra belt loop at back. Interior of pant is comfortable. Fabric quality and function is good - seems to shed water pretty well. Critical for my comfort is that the pants are not excessively hot, even in warm spring-ski conditions. I wear them without an under layer in all but the coldest ski conditions.

The quality of other North Face shoes is better than these. This is the 2nd time I fooled myself into buying the Blaze when it went on sale, and I am again kicking myself. This shoe does not fall apart immediately, but they last me only a couple of months of city-wear. The fabric and stitching at the fabric-leather interface are as bad as you see on shoes these days.

This shoe is better quality than the Blaze, but the fit is worse. If you want a tighter fit, narrower toe box, then this shoe is better for you than other The North Face shoes. I have a pretty wide foot, but a buddy of mine has a normal foot, and he complained about the fit in the toe region when he got some of these too.