Gear Review - Black Diamond Dawn Patrol Hybrid ski trousers
There comes a time in every man's life when he needs a new pair of ski trousers. This was that day.
Specifically, a pair of ski touring trousers, as my old ones were both mis-sized and covered in blood stains.
Don't ask. It's a long story*
Therefore, a quick rummage around the internet later, and low and behold I have myself a pair of Black Diamond ski touring trousers that were not quite purple enough to match either Skiing Unlocked's plumb, or pink enough to match my boots. Alas, you don't set fashion trends by complying ...
Here is my review of the Black Diamond Dawn Patrol hybrid ski touring pants.
*It's not really that long; I took the skin off the back of my knuckle whilst transitioning into walk mode at the bottom of a skin track one time, and the damn thing did not stop bleeding the whole way up. I only noticed the extent of the bleeding an hour or so later, by which point my fluorescent yellow ski pants were no longer yellow ...
The Brand
Black Diamond are one of the brands I reckon you see everywhere, but don't really ever pay much attention to. Founded in Salt Lake City first some 70 years ago, then re-founded in 1989, it was the first attempt by Yvonne Chouinard to start an outdoor brand before he found success with Patagonia.
Since then, Black Diamond have grown to become the US's pinnacle outdoor gear brand, but not in the shouty, luxury way that some brands occupy the top spot of their national outdoor landscape.
They rely on producing a range of great quality gear for hiking, camping, skiing, running and climbing, the latter of which they are perhaps best known for.
But, after a difficult few years thanks to difficult transceiver recalls from sister brand Pieps, Black Diamond are firmly back in the game on the skiing side thanks to some kick-ass skis and well rounded ski clothing range.
The Gear
Enter the Dawn Patrol hybrid. These are a soft shell ski touring pant, so let's get one thing out of the way - they are not waterproof, and they are not intended to be waterproof. Instead they offer a highly breathable, high manoeuvrable outer shell layer designed to allow the legs to breath when climbing up hill, when you generate a lot of sweat and heat.
That being said, they are reinforced where you need them: around the arse and over the thighs in particular, exactly where you might sit on a wet, snowy chairlift, or face driving snow and rain as you climb up hill - or to fend of blower powder as you go back down!
Both areas of the pants worked really, really well. I took this primarily to Georgia, where we ski toured our way through some pretty wild conditions for seven days. I always fear how isolated I am heading out ski touring, how exposed I am to wind, to snow, and to fog; its one of the biggest reasons I overpack is to make sure I have everything I could want to overcome that fear.
With these, I needn't have worried. They played their part beautifully, keeping me remarkably dry considering the conditions we encountered, including two days of nothing but driving, driving wind and snow. At the same time, they passed my universal test of "can you feel them when you're wearing them?" with flying colours - you really can't, and not just because of the base layer I had on beneath them.
Later in the season, I took them with me to Les Arcs, and had an equally great time. It was warm here, really warm, and the soft, breathable material did a brilliant job keeping me cool and wicking the sweat away from skiing all day.
And what of the features? Four pockets, two on each leg, one up on the hip (hard to explain, it turns out, exactly where the "normal" pocket of a pair of jeans or slacks is ...) and one each on the side of the leg.
In the right hand pocket was the transceiver sleeve and, blessedly, the little clip to attach it to. I say blessedly, as in other trousers I these have been on separate sides - baffling I know, but what was that about noise from premier national ski brands? Looking your way Arc'teryx ...
Then there are two long vents down each side, both more than enough for just dumping heat when you need it.
Lastly, a minor point - the colour. Sure, it wasn't a perfect colour match, but I love a bright, bold, block of colour on my ski outfit, and this was perfect for that.
Drawbacks
There's very little to complain about here, but - if you have read this blog before - you know I still have to find some.
I missed not having either belt loops or braces; there is an adjustable clip at the top of the fly which does a good enough job, but anyone with a mildly over developed eating muscle (such as myself ...) will tell you that you have to cinch that up so tight to keep the pants up it becomes almost uncomfortable.
I also sized up to make sure they fitted, as far too often big and baggy freeride/touring pants are kept skinny at the waist - I probably could have gotten away with staying true to size, but I am glad I didn't risk it. It did mean that there were some interesting folds and the pockets seemed far, far too big for me and the pants, but I will never complain for having all that storage space!
Final Thoughts
Like most pieces of kit I buy these days, I buy things to perform a particular purpose - these fulfilled that purpose spectacularly well.
Maybe I wouldn't have them as my everyday ski pants, but that's not what they're for. But I would have them as my ski touring pants in a heartbeat, ticking off everything I asked of them with skill and style.
