Yak are the kayaking/canoeing side of the Crewsaver company. In the past Yak have catered for the middle to lower end of the market with some fantastic hardwearing kit for centre and club use. Although functional and hardwearing they didn’t have the same appeal as some of the more well known brands. However I think that this is about to change. Having seen quite a lot of the new Yak range over the last couple of weeks I can safely say that I think they have come up with some great looking designs that appear to be very well thought out.
Just before the weekend a pair of Yak Chinook dry pants arrived and giving the once over and a quick try has shown that this piece of gear is extremely well put together.
The Chinooks come is very subtle yet practical grey colour. Both the outer waist and outer ankle seals have velcro adjustment. Knees and bum are re-enforced with a 500d cordura type material.
The inner waist band is taller than the outer and includes a deep elastic section with a series of silicon rubber strips, that should help keep everything in place. This twin waist arrangement should allow the Chinook pants to be paired with any twin waist dry top to create a pretty good two piece system.
The double fabric knees even have drain holes built in as does the re-enforced seat area. Great idea that has been well executed without compromising comfort by using a grommet/metal drain hole.
Inside the quality of the taping is very impressive. Underneath you can make out that all joints have been double stitched before being taped over. A series of very neat tape seal throughout and it looks they should keep doing there job for some time.
Overall initial impressions are very good. I’m looking forward to try the Chinook dry pants out over the course of the winter.
To find out more about the Yak’s new range visit their site for product info and list of local dealers.
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