MTB Outerwear

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Originally Posted by AK47bp

All I know is I did my first Tiger Mtn summit in pouring rain in June and was shivering and waterlogged by the time I made it back to the lot. If I could at least keep half my body somewhat dry I’d be happy.

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MTB pants are for making cleanup easier. Thats pretty much it. If you are expecting to stay dry in the rain here, you are on a fools errand. A couple things to consider: first is that the pants will be subjected to mud and grime constantly which will nuke the DWR in a matter of rides- remember how quick your skiing outerwear loses its DWR, now realize you are going to splatter it with mud, rub the mud into the material for a couple hours and then wash it after every single ride. Second is that you are going to be sweating aggressively on the climb and will wet out the inside of the pant with sweat, guarantied. third is that riding with waterlogged pants in 44 degree drizzle fucking sucks- it makes you cold, and makes the pants heavy and feel cumbersome.

Riding pants are great for cool-cold weather dry riding not in the rain where you just want the extra warmth, or ringing wet trails without rain and want to be able to just strip of the muddy pants at your car and be immediately clean. They are NOT for rainy weather riding. I would highly suggest just wearing normal MTB shorts with a legging underneath and embrace the fact you are going to be utterly soaked in only a few minutes.

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Originally Posted by californiagrown

I would highly suggest just wearing normal MTB shorts with a legging underneath and embrace the fact you are going to be utterly soaked in only a few minutes.

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Yup. When I lived in Vancouver we would still ride on rain days. None of us had any real wet weather gear, we'd just wear an extra layer if cold. And just accept that we'd get soaked. We wouldn't usually go out if it was already raining heavily. But light rain, no problem. You'd get soaked anyways in winter from wet brush, mud and stream crossings, or sweat. If it started to rain heavily while already out, it wasn't a big deal. We just wouldn't stay out as long as when weather was better.

Yeah, here in NorCal we only get maybe 3 months of the year when it rains, and that's our only opportunity to do any real trailwork. In summer the ground is either dust or concrete. So in the winter if it's actively raining, we're digging, and if it's not, we're riding the fresh trails. Plus, when it's actively raining is the best time to see drainage issues and address them before they create ruts or lake-sized puddles.

I’ve decided to just buy an E-bike, this way I can just wear my rain gear and not worry about breaking a sweat on the ascent.

Problem solved.

actualy you still get into zone 2 and perspire

and if its wet out you will be electrocuted

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Originally Posted by dannynoonan

My review: I have used those dirt roamers for I think two winters in pnw, they are really good at keeping dry. They seem durable. They suck ass at pocket placement tho, there are no traditional front/hip pockets like in the spot where basically all pants have them. Like where you'd rest your hands in normally.

Instead, these pants have pockets way down on the side of your thigh. So if you put a phone in there, it's flopping against your hamstring on every pedal stroke ... It kind of drives me nuts.

If you have plenty of other gear/shit storage options on you, they are awesome. If you like to put your keys and phone in your pants pocket, they suck.

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My experience with the patagonia dirt roamer storm pants is the same. Great waterproofing and fit, but the pockets suck- I end up just reaching under the waist band to my shorts pockets, which is awkward. I wouldn't want to go on a long ride in them but they're great if I'm caught out in the rain or for my short commute.

I have a neoshell ski jacket that I love- would be nice to find a light weight one with vents that worked well for biking.

For late fall/early winter riding, I'm going to experiment this year with a pair of nordic ski pants that are windproof in the front and super breathable in the back. For this kind of riding I wear very little for the climb then layer up and descend. Definitely only when it's dry because it's usually at or below freezing.

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Originally Posted by davjr96

Wild (and expensive when not on sale) suggestion: Waterproof shorts

I have a pair of these https://7mesh.com/products/mens-revo-short as well as the Patagonia pants. These shorts are long enough on me that they go down to my calf. I find stay 75% as dry as when I am wearing pants but don't get sweaty because there is way more airflow. Not a solution for all people of course but could work for some.

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I like the shorts, they are $50 off right now so I ordered them. I also bought the Patagonia Dirt Roamer pants, hate them, returning to REI today. Fit is weird, pockets suck, they seem really warm and not breathable, and no belt loop.

On my ride last night I realized I’ll never not sweat my ass off on the ascent and the thought of MTB riding in pants just seems like misery. I’ll throw a thin synthetic thermal layer under my shorts.

I really like Backcountry Slickrock pants for MTB pants. Simple, breathable, but do an alright job at keeping the elements at bay. Not really a rain pants as theyre a softshell. I also use them to xc ski in the winter

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After building my riding wardrobe out of random sales, I've become a major NF fanboi. I almost exclusively wear their lightweight trail pants for pedal days, and their DP4 pants for racing and lift days.

I got all my crap on sale which brought the price down to almost reasonable, but it's made in Canada and I actually want to wear everything that I have from them

REI has a sale right now. Picked up these synthetic lightweight base layer pants for $27.

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I agree with what’s been said about waterproof mtb pants not being great in most circumstances, but I do still think pants are better than shorts in wet weather for the cleanliness factor. Also, they can help quite a bit in the misty drizzle that’s common in the PNW. Shorts with leggings suck and wick all the water and dirt into your shoes I really like the Rapha pants. Not 300 dollars.