Patagonia M10 Storm Pants - Short Term Review
For Colin Haley fanboys like myself, the M10 pants have been the source of much anticipation, having been consistently hinted at in many of Colin’s videos, interviews, and blog posts since 2019. After 5 years of teasing unnamed protoypes, I thought the mythical alpine jiu jitsu pants (more on this later) may never be released to the general public. After finally trying a pair, I can confidently say that they’re worth the wait.
Fit:
Those who frequent Colin’s blog may already be familiar with his philosophy around softshell pants; his contention that relying on stretchy fabric for freedom of movement comes at the cost of more energy, and that stretching the fabric thousands of times over the course of a big alpine climb is ultimately a net loss. Of course most hardshell pants, which aren’t stretchy, are a similar cut to regular ‘walking around pants’ and thus don’t offer the best freedom of movement (which is why people prefer softshells), and so the trade off becomes a trickier one — this is where the jiu jitsu pants come in. During an ongoing email exchange between Colin and Eric Noll (who works within Patagonia’s infamous ‘Forge’), Eric began drawing inspiration from the cut of jiu jitsu pants (gi pants) which offer exceptional mobility without the use of stretchy fabric (at the cost of looking a bit weird). Colin loved it, and the ball kept rolling, eventually leading to a baggy cut hardshell with a pretty unique look (total fashion disaster) and unparalleled mobility.
This can mostly be attributed to the unique 4-Point Gusset and knee articulation, which allows for total freedom of movement while high-stepping, stemming, and even doing the splits – if you can! While I don’t like to make general sweeping statements about fit given how vastly individual morphology can differ, I’m confident that most climbers who try these will find them to be best-in-class for freedom of movement while climbing.
Features:
In addition to Colin’s “to hell with fashion” request regarding the cut, he also wanted a super simple ‘no bullshit’ design to keep things light – he initially didn’t even want pockets! In keeping with this request (mostly) the M10 pants are very no-frills, featuring just an elastic waist, offset zippered fly, elastic cuffs, and a zippered single pocket on the right thigh (which I’ve found to be the perfect spot to keep my phone sufficiently distanced from my avy transceiver). The fabric and membrane consists of Patagonia’s in-house 3-layer H2No Performance Standard membrane, a 3.4-oz 30-denier ECONYL® 100% recycled nylon fabric, slick jersey backer, and DWR finish – all made without intentionally added PFAS chemicals.
The elastic around the waist and ankles is very accomodating and has a grippy texture inside that keeps it in place against your baselayer and boots. Even while post holing, the ankle cuffs hung on tight and prevented any snow ingress (though if you’re doing some sustained plugging then there’s small tie down loops that can be threaded with some shockcord). This barebones approach brings the total weight of my Size M down to a mere 230g, and frankly it feels like all the correct trade offs have been made to achieve this. The one thing I find myself missing is a drawcord (or some other option) to help cinch the waist. Whilst I have complete faith in the grippy elastic around the waist, I’ve found having some weight in the thigh pocket (a phone) can gently tug the pants down if not wearing a harness during approaches.
Function:
The best compliment I can give the M10 pants is that for the majority of my time spent in them, I forgot I was wearing them. Regardless of what I was doing; high stepping, stemming, attempting to do the splits for a funny review photo (unsuccessfully); they never restricted my movement or felt “in the way” like every other hardshell pant I’ve tried on. The ‘slick jersey backer’ makes a small contribution to this by ensuring the inner glides over baselayers while moving. Clearly the cut is the real special sauce, but I have no complaints about the rest of the M10’s performance.
I’ve generally had positive experiences with Patagonia’s H2NO membrane – yes, “even though it’s not Gore-Tex” – and the same is true here. Boring is good when it comes to being windproof/waterproof, and I have nothing exciting to say; at no point during testing did they wet out or wet through. Considering the absence of any side zips, the breathability on the uphill approaches was very much up to scratch. There is one elephant in the room given the M10’s Bantamweight status…Durability. Durability and weight tend to exist on opposite sides of a sliding scale, but these are surprisingly durable! I’ve managed to poke a few holes in them with crampons, but they’ve held up well to general abrasion from rock. A word to the wise, a bit of quality flashing tape with a backing (Betrafol, Siga Rissan, 3M 8067) goes a long way.
Final thoughts:
I’m yet to hear or read any negative comments about the cut of these pants, and subsequently how they climb. With ringing endorsements from the ranks of hardcore alpinists like Josh Wharton, Sean Villanueva O’Driscoll (who wore them on Riders on the Storm), and Colin Haley himself (who wore them on everything), this should come as no surprise. If you just want something light, then the Arc’teryx Alpha pants offer a few more bells and whistles (full-length side zips, internal belt, reinforced patches) at an even lighter 220g, and a slightly higher price tag of $580. For those wanting a more durable ‘workhorse’ pant or bib, there’s plenty of options out there. But if your priority is complete and utter freedom of movement while climbing in the mountain, then I truly can’t think of any hardshell pants on the market that even comes close to the cut of the M10, and so in that regard there’s just no competition.
Overall, I’d rate it 4.99 out of 5 blue offsets
Overview:
RRP: $479.95 AUD
Pros:
- Unbeatable freedom of movement (seriously!)
- Lightweight (230g for Men’s M)
- Built-In RECCO®
Cons:
- Lacks loops for belts or suspenders
Best suited for:
Those wanting a lightweight, no-frills hardshell pant that prioritises freedom of movement while climbing in the alpine.
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