BEFORE we begin our review of the ARTILECT Boulder 125 boxers, let’s deal with the elephant in the room – the price of these briefs is jaw-dropping.
In fact, waving a pack around a changing room during a recent group climbing wall visit and inviting attendees to guess the price raised quite a few chuckles. The words ‘astronomical’ and ‘ridiculous’ were even bandied about as the current £45 ($60) price tag was unveiled.
However, it wasn’t all ridicule. Some in the group were keen to find out why an expensive pair of merino boxer briefs were better for outdoor pursuits than their ten-quid supermarket three-pack.
It’s a hard sell, and one which the Colorado-based industry stalwart excels in. Despite a difficult business model, ARTILECT manage to produce some of the best unseen apparel in the business – undergarments.
Potential customers rarely see the products on their fellow adventurers, so introductions to this decades-old manufacturer will, more-often-than-not, be via word of mouth. And what better endorsement could there be than hearing from someone who’s experienced the gear at the coalface?
And, in true Everwild style, that’s what we like to do with our reviews, and why we like to take our time. So, we did.
First up, a multi-day hike in the Cairngorms in February. A suitable frigid climate where, frankly, your undercrackers are often the last thing on your mind.
Now, to put some colour on this black-and-white, blizzard-addled image, this was the sort of Munro-bagging where you would barely consider changing your outer clothes, let alone your undies. You just get back to your digs at the end of the three-day route and consider incinerating the reeking outfit you discarded ahead of a well-earned shower.
However, hold the phone. There’s some witchcraft at play here. Put the matches and the lighter fluid away. There’s no great stench or green cloud emanating from a pair of underpants that have just hiked nigh-on 63 miles without so much as a gypsy wash.
Not sure your ten-quid-for-three pack of ‘gentlemen’s briefs’ could cope with that.
Next up, it was a dramatic drop in temperature, and off to northern Sweden for a few days of bushcraft in the forests of Skelleftea.
This part of Sweden is a wonderous but potentially brutal place to exist. Most of the time throughout winter you will rarely see the mercury pop above zero. Yet despite the constant freeze, there’s a curious humidity and dampness about the place that permeates every layer. The lesson here is, get your clothing wrong, and the mistake may not be recoverable.
Again, this is another classic example of where preparation is key, and spending a little more on the essentials – such as your base-layers – is vital.
The clincher here was sitting on a rock while trying to feather some wood for a fire, then realising none of the -6C stone was transferring its icy soul to the buttocks.
Skiers take note – if you’re the sort of person on the piste who spends a lot of time on your backside, then these are definitely the undies for you.
Now, let us not fall into the trap of believing merino underwear is purely designed to perform in the cold. And let that proof in the pudding be our current location – the middle of Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands.
We’ve just completed a pretty epic coast-to-coast hike, and are now relaxing near the stunning village of Pajara.
As I type, I can see the laundry bag over by the bathroom. And yes, the same pair of shreddies that carried my butt across the Cairngorms and Sweden are poking out the top of the pile.
I’ve just had days of high winds whipping dry dust at me, searing heat when the wind dropped, and that sense of salty sweat getting into the cracks and crevices where it would normally claw at your moving parts as if you had course sandpaper tucked into your nethers.
Well, not this time. The high-performing wicking properties of ARTILECT’S A/SYS-1 clothing foundation that has years of tried and tested experimentation in perfecting its “next-to-skin interface” made the gruelling hike a much more comfortable experience.
Here’s the thing… prior to any of these trips, I would have shuddered at the prospect of paying that amount for briefs. But once you realise what you’re being saved from, I know plenty of outdoors folk who would quickly pay more to have that pain and discomfort removed.
Doff of the cap to ARTILECT here. It turns out there is a definite use case for spending big on underwear.
Find yours here… ARTILECT Boulder 125 Boxer.
Also, currently available via Ellis Brigham at £39.99.
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