Pockets
The hip pockets are easily accessible, big enough for your hands, and lined with fleece. But, by far, my favorite feature of these pants is the two cargo pockets. They must have been designed by a genius, because no matter what you stuff in them, you can’t feel anything while skiing or skinning. And I tele-ski! The design seems to place the pocket in the interior of the pant and suspend it away from your leg so your gear doesn’t ever touch you. That means my sandwich, my phone, my wallet, an extra pair of gloves, my goggle case, my sunglasses, and anything else I may have felt inspired to bring along for the ride (like the kitchen sink) are all stashed safe and dry, and I don’t notice them at all.
One feature that is troubling, however, is the beacon holder in the right cargo pocket. First Ascent promotes this feature on their website, pointing out that it includes a stretch draw cord anchor point (which I have turned into my key/pass holder). It’s a standard, universal practice to wear a beacon on your chest, securely in its holster strap, so I find it surprising that First Ascent would encourage this non-standard method. While it might be a convenient place to stash your beacon when not in use or at the end of the day, I still recommend that beacons always be worn around the torso.
Durability
While I’ve mentioned that I expect the Heyburn 2.0 to last me 70-100 days, some of the features fall short of this mark, most notably the DWR coating not lasting much longer than a few days. However, the most consistent issue I have with ski pants is the durability of the ankle cuff guards.
The first problem is that, while the Heyburn 2.0 does have a Cordura layer around the inside of the ankle, they’ve covered this bomber protection with the same 70-denier nylon that the rest of the shell is made out of. Most ski pants provide a reinforced fabric to cover the ankle cuff where boot buckles and ski edges cause wear and tear.
I sure wish that the Heyburn 2.0’s ankle cuff guards were more well protected on the exterior because after only ~15 days in them, I have already shredded the 70-denier fabric, exposing the Cordura. Admittedly, I tend to tele-thrash cuff guards on my ski pants, but I can tell you with a good amount of confidence that this tele-skier will eventually destroy them.
Packability
The Heyburn 2.0 rolls up small and packs easily in my Osprey Kode 30’s dry compartment. At 1 lb., 14 oz., this is a super light pant, and one benefit of the 70-denier nylon is that its foot-print in my pack is super small.
Bottom Line
The Heyburn 2.0 has functioned very well for me in the dryer snow of the Intermountain West. It is breathable, warm, stylish, comfortable, packable, and has the best cargo pockets I’ve ever encountered. What they don’t offer are the most durable ankle cuff guards. The DWR also wore off quickly, and I experienced some leakage with the thigh vents, so if you ski in damp climates such as the Pacific Northwest or in the East, keep that in mind.
But if you are easy on your cuff guards, like to carry tons of stuff in your cargo pockets, and ski in drier climates, then this is a good pant for $199, which, depending on how many days you ride a season, I’d expect to last anywhere from several years to one season or more of heavy use.