A man in skin-close, anatomically-contouring athletic tights is a man with his priorities in the right place. I am going to stake that claim. There are haters of the body-hugging look, no doubt. But I say vanity and self consciousness about style — decency even! — must at times be abandoned in the name of athletic performance in the great outdoors.
Now, this is all just a long way to say that I am a bonafide and committed wearer of tights. (Tights for me growing up — the Midwest, 1980s — were reserved for dressed-up ladies and little girls in tutus, so maybe I have a weird stigma.) And to cut to the chase, I am an unabashed fan of two particular pair of athletic tights made by Salomon.
Salomon’s EXO III and WS II tights, two models in a line of made-for-the-outdoors athletic wear, have become my de facto pants for activity outside over the past year. After hundreds of miles of running, trekking, biking, and adventure racing in these tights, I can give them a special Gear Junkie Stamp of Approval. No shame at all.
What makes the EXO III tights, in particular, special is a funky honeycomb grid of rubbery overlay material that adds compression characteristics as well as durability. Salomon calls it the BODY PERFORMANCE concept, touting that “muscle support and recovery” properties are built in.
For me, the EXO IIIs, which cost a pricey $120, are the tights to wear for tough training days and on shorter races. They fit super tight — being a “compression” product that is par for the course — yet they are not restricting as you run or hike. The honeycomb overlay, as noted, does double duty to add rip-stop-like protection to the thin fabric of the tights underneath.
Even closer to my heart, the WS II tights are ultimate leg-wear for three seasons of the year. They are too hot for summer temps, but the rest of the year I wear these softshell tights almost nonstop.
