Ah, the waterproof pants! I am often asked where to find this piece to go cycling around town with dry legs.
To date, very few brands offer “waterproof” pants that can be worn next to the skin. And again, each time they are careful when talking about “water resistant” pants rather than waterproof…
Often the reasoning is as follows:
But anyway, Benoît, we make waterproof jackets with welded seams, so why can't we make waterproof urban pants?
That's right, when will we see stylish cargo pants that can take the rain without any problem? Or chinos that could survive a torrential rain?
Alas, alas, it's not for now.
In fact, waterproof pants have existed for a long time in the outdoor, military or skiing world. Look for example:
Arc'Teryx LEAF pants.
Thrudark Pants
Beyond pants.
And you don't notice anything?
These pants are:
- With a wide enough fit for comfort,
- And above all, always worn with something underneath.
Indeed, and this is the terrible truth that prevents the existence of pants of this ilk for the city: a waterproof fabric, with a membrane, cannot be worn next to the skin , for two reasons:
Comfort
Despite all the efforts of manufacturers to create comfortable waterproof and breathable membranes, nothing works, these are fabrics with a very unpleasant "plastic" appearance next to the skin. Wearing it outside for a day, so in a well-ventilated environment, why not, but wearing it indoors, sitting on a chair, will quickly become uncomfortable.
The membrane may be breathable, but it still remains a plastic film around your legs, which needs a temperature and pressure differential between the inside of the garment and the outside to fully activate its properties.
Let me tell you, indoors, for a day of work at the office, you will sweat.
Durability
The membranes do not like sweat and especially sebum , which causes premature wear, and more precisely a risk of delamination. Delamination is when the membrane separates from the outer fabric, and it causes blisters. And believe me, it even happens on professional Gore-Tex.
It is for these two reasons that waterproof pants are a bad idea.
But then, what to do?
There are two possible cases:
1. I need rain pants because I'm cycling around town
In this case, the simplest thing is to have removable rain pants to put over or under your "normal" pants in the blink of an eye.
Or otherwise, you fully embrace the bias of urban techwear brands : take technical pants, in a stretch fabric, not waterproof, but which dries very quickly thanks to the heat of your body as soon as you enter a normally heated building . It's the flagship product of brands like Outlier or Mission Workshop (and we're preparing one for fall 2021).
For your information, this is also the "military" approach: we are seeing pants appear that are not waterproof, but very breathable and stretchy, which dry very quickly, even if there are still "rain pants" specifically dedicated to the military, the most famous (and most expensive) being the Arc'teryx LEAF model .
2. I need rain pants for the outdoors
There, you are spoiled for choice, there is no shortage of comparisons on this piece .
Personally, I would look at On Running (I like the design), UF Pro, Thrudark, Triple Aught Design , or Beyond (despite the lack of delivery in Europe, unfortunately).
Gore-Tex pants from On Running , one of the rare brands that tries a different design for this type of product.
But between us, I'm part of the clan of those who prefer to have pants (and underwear) that dry very quickly and are very breathable. Don't forget that I come from the Basque Country, a humid and mild place, where the slightest waterproof membrane can quickly turn into an oven...
As such, I am a very big fan of the Triple Aught Design pants.
But there is a “third way” which also deserves a little attention: Ventile pants.
Indeed, you know the love I have for this incredibly breathable material with quite decent resistance to a downpour. I talked about it at length in the article presenting our Ventile jacket .
However, there are not many brands that offer this type of product. The best known are Hilltrek and Country Innovation . The fairly wide cuts are intended either for lovers of loose cuts (and again) or for those who have real outdoor use.
Hilltrek Chino in Ventile . A somewhat “old school” design and not very suitable for the urban environment. Except perhaps for those who like workwear/vintage/outdoor influences.
Note, however, that Hilltrek offers a service made to measure , to see if you are ready to pay for the great thrill in Ventile “made in Scotland”…
Benoît, seriously, I really want pants that hold up to the rain and are urban, make an effort!
Once again, stretch pants that dry quickly are easy to find. But in urban brands, it’s almost an impossible mission.
I only see two brands that do this:
- his Indisce pant , which costs a fortune.
- and Acronym , provided you have a big budget, and you like design. Look for pant names that end with the letter "S" for Stotz (a material equivalent to Ventile) or "GT" for Gore-Tex.
Veilance Gore-Tex Windstopper pants, the most urban and sober in this article!
Let's also mention Vollebak, which prides itself on providing some "weatherproof" pants .
As you can see, these are unfortunately very expensive parts.
And finally, don't forget as usual to monitor the Gore-Tex Insta account , which regularly relays brands using Gore-Tex in the product. Small problem however: these are often limited edition capsules, and never permanent and/or regularly restocked clothing.
And surprisingly, only streetwear brands risk using Gore-Tex for pants. Recently, Stüssy, Palace and Supreme respectively offered this piece, and always in wide cuts.
So we're still a long way from having urban-cut chinos for happily frolicking in the rain... In a solution that's also very satisfactory: a long parka, which protects the thighs.
