Flylow Dropkick Pro Ski Pant Review

It was two years ago when I once again found myself in the market for some new pants as I had developed a knack for destroying mine on a seasonal basis. It was early December and I was up at Jay Peak pillaging an early season powder day in conjunction with the Vermont Telemark Festival. Flylow had a table set up, so I decided to swing by and see what this new company I had been reading about on the internets was all about. I was really impressed with how rugged and well thought out all of their designs were, especially considering they were still a relatively young company at the time. They had the original dropkick pant on display but I had read about a new variation the Dropkick Pro which was a soft shell pant in a lighter weight design that was better for touring. I ended up walking away that day with a discount code for their website, and that was pretty much all I needed to push me over the edge and pick up a pair for myself.

Flylow Dropkick Pro

I am 5′10 with a 33″ waist and a 31″ inseam and I found that the sizing chart was dead nuts on. The medium was a perfect fit for me – like your favorite pair of loose fitting jeans. They were slightly baggy in all the right places, to allow the total freedom of movement that a telemark turn necessitates. The windproof and water resistant soft shell stretch material used on this pant is every bit soft and pliable as I had hoped it would be. Its so nice to finally have a ski pant that moves with your body, and doesn’t feel and sound like you’re wearing a trash bag as do most hard shell pants. The soft jersey backing on the interior adds to the pant’s comfort. On warm days or touring I would wear only a lightweight or thigh-length base layer, and on cold days, a mid to heavyweight base was all I needed. I have comfortably skied in my Dropkick Pro’s in temps as cold as -25 F. Also, if you love apres as much as Flylow apparently does, they you’ll be pleased to know that the Dropkick Pro is also the most stylish ski pant I’ve ever worn.

Stopping right there, I would say this pant is a winner, but we haven’t even scratched the surface in terms of features and functionality. Style and fit aside, it is quite apparent the this pant was born from necessity by real skiers. The adjustable elastic waist band is all I need for a perfect fit and the four zippered pockets are good sized and placed correctly so as to not have their contents swaying wildly during activity. Articulated knees – why had no one thought of this before? Heavy duty cordura protects the knee which is stitched in place with a slight bend. This has the benefit of preventing the pant legs from sliding and moving upward (i.e. no high-waters) whenever you drop a knee. One either side of the knee protection are two zippered vents (18″ on the outside, and 9″ on the inside.) The vents are wide open and lack any mesh lining that is often found pant vents which permits easy hand access to adjust knee pads. I personally don’t wear any, but I found the dual sided open vents helped promote excellent cross ventilation when touring. This is key as the soft shell fabric is not as breathable as some traditional hard shells. I tend to run hot on the uphill and I have never had a problem overheating in these pants with the vents open. Moving down to the cuffs we have what appears to be multiple layers of reinforced cordura providing wear protection in the Achilles heel of almost every ski pant. Whether skiing alpine or telemark, I have always managed to tear my pant cuffs to shreds, and after two seasons of abuse I only have a single dime sized hole in one of the cuffs on my Dropkick Pro’s.

Small hole in the cuff

Despite all of the positives, the Dropkick Pro is not without its flaws. The soft shell fabric could use a better DWR treatment. It was highly effective through the first season but tapered off after that, and washing with Nikwax soft shell treatment did little to improve the situation. I also noticed that over time, the fly would creep open when I used the elastic bands alone to keep the pants up. This lead to epic shrinkage on cold days. Using a belt fixed the problem, and is likely why Flylow sells their own. Also, if you ski a Garmont Ener-G like I do, the pant cuff sometimes likes to get caught and send you into walk mode.

The Bottom Line

The Flylow Dropkick Pro is the best pant I have ever owned. I love the fit, feel, function and durability so much that I can easily see past any shortcomings.

GS Rating: 4.5/5

Its worth noting that Flylow has stopped producing the Dropkick Pro and for the 2009/2010 season they have replaced it with the new and improved Magnum. According to owner Dan Abrams, “the magnums are 1/3 lighter, are seam taped (water tight) and have a tricot backing on the fabric, instead of the jersey backing.” It sounds like they’ve addressed the waterproofing issue, and the weight reduction will be welcome for touring days – I can’t wait to get my hands on a pair.