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This next gift idea is an easy one for me; I'm looking at the team equipment we order for the Untamed Adventure crew, and we're due for a fresh set of rugged -- but lightweight and breatheable -- pants. The Axis Gear Atak II Pant is what we've used for a couple years now, and they're a great balance of light and tough. The pants are light enough for most warm weather races, but offer enough protection for a tough bushwhacking session. These aren't bulletproof heavy pants that are impossible to tear; instead, they are just resilient enough to keep thorns and branches at bay while letting your legs breathe. There is a heavier material used on the pants from the front of the knees downward, and it's amazing what a difference it makes.
These pants reach a clever compromise, and I wore a pair of the Atak II Pant for 2 days straight while at my race in the French Alps this Fall (bushwhacking, rocks, you name it). I also wore these for a week straight at a race in Patagonia, where the conditions can be brutal (I usually had a pair of tights on underneath the Atak Pant while in Patagonia, if I recall).
The only reservations I have with these pants is that the waistband can get loose, and the absence of any front pockets. I think if Axis Gear made an Axis Gear Atak III pant, with a drawstring waist and a couple zip pockets on the hips, they'd improve upon their current design. That being said, their current Atak Pant is a very safe choice and bound to make an adventurer very happy. They can wear these to orienteering events, adventure races, biking, etc . . . these are the most versatile "adventure" pants out there.
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