I bought this from a local gear store in my area as my first ankle gaiters, even as a really experienced hiker I had just never added them to my kit. I wore them with a pair of Hoka speedgoats. I went to do a 20 mile hike on Labor Day, with 18/20 miles being over flat non rugged trail, and 2 of the miles being straight up and down a granite slide. These gaiters got absolutely obliterated. With 5 miles left, I fully ripped one the grommets out of the gaiters, rendering it unusable for the rest of the hike, and I’m not sure I can ever repair them well enough to a point where I could take them any where that isn’t flat packed trail (maybe repairable with a tacking machine or sewing machine with a similar setting, but I’m not even sure). I couldn’t even tell what the gaiter caught on, snagging on something wicked tiny. Once I got home and inspected them, I realized I was both bottom foot cords where in bad shape, and were really torn up. I probably would’ve been breaking them on the next hike I went on. I get that our rocks and trails in NH are pretty rugged, but I was expecting these to last more then one hike. I gravitated towards these gaiters because they looked a bit more sturdy then other options on the market. They fit okay, and did a good job of keeping dirt and water out while they were usable, but I couldn’t imagine relying on these for longer distances or multi day pursuits. I love a lot of other Black Diamonds Gear, but these did not pass the test. If I hadn’t of bought them from a small gear shop that I don’t mind giving money too, I would’ve absolutely put up the stink to return them.
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