Kuiu Attack Pant Review

Kuiu Attack Pant Review

Editor: Utah Mark Brewer

Just the Facts
The KUIU Attack pant is made with a Primeflex® 225g/m2 4-way double-weave stretch woven fabric. This durable fabric is treated with Toray’s industry leading Kudos® DWR.
The technology in this pant is impressive. The innovative Primeflex yarn is 4 way stretch to increase fabric durability and decrease weight and drying time. Primeflex fabrics feature a patented spiral yarn technology that allows the yarn to stretch and recover without using heavy, water-absorbing elastics such as Lycra. Primeflex fabrics weigh about 40 percent less than comparable traditional fabrics.

Here are some additional details about the Kuiu Attack pant:
• Comes in 4 colors: Major Brown, Verde Camo, Phantom (slate gray), and Vias Camo
• Is a mid-weight pant meant for the outdoors.
• Weighs in at 18.5 ounces
• Water repellent-treated with Toray Kudos® DWR finish
• Brushed inside to eliminate chaffing

My Story:

Growing up in N. Arizona, I was always kicking around the mountains and canyons near home. I learned at an early age that some gear is just better than other gear. Fast forward 40 years. Here I am with a pair of Kuiu Attack pants, going on yet another outdoor adventure. I’m rappelling into a slot canyon in S. Utah and then hiking out with my waaay cool son in law (he’s guiding us) and some other family members. More about that in a minute.
This is not my first escapade in these pants. I have worn them on several long hikes, sometimes going light with just a fanny pack or daypack, sometimes fully loaded with backpack and a week’s worth of food and gear as I hit the trail. I will tell you right from the start, the Kuiu Attack pant is in a class by itself. If you hike, and especially if you go on long hikes carrying your gear on your back, this is the pant you have been looking for.
The physical exertion of a serious hike, whether loaded down with gear or not, stresses the body and creates a lot of perspiration. Something I am always looking for is a pant that wicks away the moisture, breathes fully, and does not rub or create chaffing. Where I go on my summer hikes there are usually mosquitoes I want protection from these and other little critters and from brush and rocks along the trail. This pant performs superbly in each of these areas. I have simply never worn a more comfortable and functional pant.
It takes about an hour off the beaten path to get to the slot canyon. It’s a beautiful Spring morning, the trademark tan and ochre sandstone cliffs of S. Utah are set against an endless sapphire sky. We make a short hike to the drop-in point, where we quickly rappel the 140-foot drop to the canyon floor.
Over the next two hours we bound, scoot, and scuttle our way along the rocks, never going more than 50 yards or so before we encounter yet another boulder wedged into the canyon walls, necessitating our best freestyle climbing efforts to negotiate the drop.
There were several places along the way in which we had to wedge our bodies into a crack—feet on one side of the canyon and rear end against the opposite wall. In these precarious positions we sometimes had to crab along for 20-30 yards. Two of the people in my party wore holes in the seat of their pants doing just what I’ve described. My Kuiu Attack pants weathered the wear nicely. At the end of the day I did notice a couple of places where the fabric had been stressed a bit, more of a scuff than any real wear. Seeing this pant go head-to-head with some of the other climbing pants that were worn by members of our group, meant my appreciation grew as I recognized just how much this pant can take a beating.
What we did not anticipate on this particular hike were the chest-deep pools of freezing water trapped in the canyon. We had to skirt or ford probably 10 of these pools. Some of them were just too large to evade and we had to hike through. In 60-degree weather, deep in a slot canyon with no sun reaching us, I came out of the first pool shaking like a kitten. I wondered how these freezing conditions were going to affect the rest of my hike. Not to worry! My Kuiu pants felt dry (and warm) almost immediately. A couple of those in our party were in jeans and in serious discomfort most of the time. I felt bad as I watched them struggle along (but not bad enough to trade pants!).
I had my knees in my chest all day, spread eagled and rock hopping, and finished the jaunt without one hot spot, no rubbing, no chaffing, no discomfort of any kind. These pants moved in every direction I asked them to go and even then some.

What They Could Do Better
Honestly, I don’t know how you improve this pant. It is made from high-quality materials and processes. It’s elasticity and durability are off the charts. It is probably the most comfortable pair of outdoor pants I have ever owned. Grab a pair and see how quickly they become your go-to pant!