Icebreaker Hot Pant
For those of you not familiar yet with Icebreaker, they are a company based in New Zealand that makes excellent base layers, outer layers, and even fashionable urban apparel. They are known for having very high quality products made with superfine merino wool from the Southern Alps of New Zealand. Most products have a BAACODE, which is a unique code that enables the wearer to look up online which sheep stations in New Zealand their product came from. Very cool!
The new addition to Icebreaker’s Nature line is called the Sprite Hot Pant. I tested them on several hikes and a backpacking trip…here’s what I found:
Pros:
- Comfortable. Just like the fabulous merino wool in other Icebreaker apparel, the softness and comfort of the Sprite Hot Pants did not disappoint.
- Top material quality. Unlike underwear made with synthetic materials, this is made with primarily natural materials, in this case 96% pure merino wool and 4% Lycra. Other technical underwear is generally made of synthetics to replicate the wonderful qualities of a more expensive fiber like merino wool at a lower cost.
- Dry quickly. They definitely wick moisture well because they are made with wool. They do not dry as fast as the ExOfficio Give N Go briefs, but they dry out completely overnight, which is satisfactory.
Cons:
- Price! These are going to retail for over $20 each! I try to justify it knowing that the company is very environmentally friendly and their products last forever (almost!).
- Fit on rear. I found that the area around the rear got a bit stretched with wear. Perhaps I just have a big butt
Overall I would recommend this to the environmental purists out there who are willing to pay up to support companies like Icebreaker. Otherwise, cheaper options are available. Even “Patagucci” has their Patagonia Active Briefs priced at $20.
Check out the Hiking Lady’s search for the best hiking underwear!
Want to know more about women’s hiking underwear? Check out Hiking 101: Hiking Underwear.
