Wanted to love them...but not so sure

By John Drollinger Ranked #313 - Men's Ski Pants December 29, 2008

A couple thoughts on this pant:
- First off, at 6'4" I am rather challenged by MHW sizing...Large means I'm Steve Erkel and XL means I'm a saggy snowboarder. I went for the XL to get the length, and figured I could make the waist work. The internal draw cord seems like a joke at first but works okay I guess. Belt loops seem weird for this high performance of a pant (interfere with harnesses, pack waist belts, etc.) and I think suspenders are preferred. I was able to bypass the first of a double snap to snug up an inch and a half. I called MHW direct to see if they would alter the L and add two inches length at my expense, which they refused, and tried to get me into a cheaper quality pant instead that was longer length, which I didn't want to do.
- Aside from the fit issues (I acknowledge 36w 34L is constantly a challenge for me), the pant is looser than i expected throughout the legs. Okay for snowboarding, but since this pant claims to be built for the harder sports (skiing, mountaineering) I expected a snugger fit with a more athletic profile, and to prevent cramp on snag, etc. I will say they provide great freedom of movement and the articulated knee means the ankle cuff barely moves up even when completely squatted.
- Andrew McLean's review at the MHW website was a big motivation for me to buy this pant. I had a chance to attend his slideshow at teh Seattle MHW store and asked him about this pant, he affirmed that he loves it and uses it over his Synchro pants. Ironically, the MHW store that he did his slideshow at did not carry the Vertical Pant nor the Synchro Pant, and the staff really had no clue what was going on (granted, they had only been open two weeks and had some bugs to work out).
- The material sets are great. The pants have a super clean, simple fabric and feature set which is important to me in all my gear. Side zips go all the way with an internal snap closure...very clean!
- not sure what I'll do to get the functionality of the gaiters...need to add some kind of cord or thin webbing to wrap around the bottom of a mountaineering boot.
- The zipper pulls on teh side zip were on the wrong zipper IMO (the upper one)...I moved them to the lower zipper as that is the one I use most often, especially with gloves on. It looks like MHW gives users teh option here, as these zipper pulls are movable while the pocket zippers are sewn.
- I really like MHW, and have a lot of their gear, but feel a little let down by this pant, especially at this pricepoint.

I'd still recommend this pant if you can get the sizing issues worked out for a proper fit, but there are a few things you need to do:
- add suspenders
- change the zipper pulls
- add cord/webbing if you want the functionality of the gaiters.

Peace!

View Details: Mountain Hardwear Vertical Pant - Men's

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