bad advice on the web

“I see lots of dumb ideas and bad advice on the web, but this piece moved me to start the thread:

http://www.outdooreyes.com/snowshoeingwear.php3

It shouldn't take more than a few seconds to spot the idiocy.”

“Blue jeans!

The first time I ever went snow skiing my friend wore a brand new pair. Left a 20' blue mark in the snow whenever he fell..the 70's”

“That picture looks like something out of the early 80s.”

“Everything else seems reasonable, but I wouldn't hike in the mountains in winter with someone wearing blue jeans.”

“Ha! I found a bunch of old Backpacking magazines from the 70's in my MIL's attic and they all wore jeans. Heck, their hair looked like it weighed 8 lbs!”

“Yeah -- but back in the 70's.. were they many alternatives?”

“I like the part of wearing a "weatherproof" jacket and blue jeans or fleece pants.

Nothing like having a dry torso and wet legs.”

“In the 70's a bunch of us (19 and 20 yr old s) skied the Zugspitz in Germany, from the top down into Austria.....many of my friends wore Blue jeans then, and looked like frozen marsh mellows by the time we arrived....once inside they melted and squished for an hour before they got dry enough to quit squishing...me?..I wore a HUGE insulated snowmobile suit...I was dry, but got huge laughs from the Europeans....didn't care..warm and dry rules.”

“I agree Chili - the contrast is funny.
"A good pair of gaiters worn over your boots and pants will add to your snowshoeing comfort by keeping the snow and moisture out of your pants and boot." All this waterproofing and then blue jeans.

I was tempted a while back to get blue jean imprinted ski pants - but the price isn't worth it for the joke:
http://www.the-house.com/bt4jea02bld12zz-burton-snowboard-pants.html?utm_source=shopzilla&utm_medium=ppc&utm_campaign=shopcomparefeed”

“my buddy Frank hikes in jeans. I can't imagine how, but he'll put in some serious miles in hot or cold weather wearing 'em, and never complaining once.”

“I would never ski in jeans because I fall down. But I'd snowshoe in them with gaiters and good boots. I'd do it in conditions that didn't warrant a waterproof shell, so that actually seems goofier to me than the jeans.

But then I always hike in cotton or cotton blend pants. They are durable and comfortable. I've never gotten wet or cold as a result, so it's never been a 'mistake' to wear them.”

“It's the contrast between the gaiters, the waterproof shell and the jeans that is most telling - but where I hike, your knees and butt are definitely going to make contact with the snow and the chance of a couple falls is pretty high - there are also scrambles where you mey need to have knees on ice and snow - which could be wet and slick. To my mind, if you are wearing jeans in winter and there is no real risk of them getting wet, then the hike is not "Xtreme" by any chance. Even amongst the puny mountains I hike (only one peak above 6K) hypothermia can be a risk in every season.”

“Also, it's one thing to take risks for yourself when you know what you are doing and another to advise people when you don't know them or the trails they will be hiking.”

“They're going to get some cold legs in those jeans....more cold when the pants get wet from their sweat or rain/moisture.”