Klim Badlands Pro A3 pants in vectran sage / black

The Badlands Pro A3 is the world’s first AAA-rated, Gore-Tex Pro Shell suit. Now the Badlands is far and away Klim’s best-selling adventure suit. It’s the suit that made the brand famous. But we have an admission to make. We don’t really understand it. Okay, we do understand it, but we think it’s neither one thing nor t’other. We love what Klim does, their philosophy, their attention to detail, and so on. But we don’t love the Badlands. And that’s because it purports to be an off-road/adventure suit. It fits large and loosish in both the jacket and the pants. And this makes sense because if you’re riding off-road you’re going to want to move about on the bike; and a tight-fitting road suit wouldn’t allow you to do this. But if you’re working hard on the bike, the last thing you want is a laminated membrane that’s going to stop cool air reaching the body, and that’s going to stop hot sweat escaping from it. Now I feel sure that Klim might protest that the Badlands has loads of venting; and indeed it does, but the two components are in essence fighting against one another. Far better, in our view to have a jacket that vents better because it has no membrane. If it rains, put a waterproof over the top. Again, some might say that the Badlands avoids the hassle of having to stop and put a waterproof on. And it does. But, in our world, the main role of an adventure suit is to provide protection and to aid breathability. And in that regard, we think the Badlands is a compromise. Now this is our perspective, and owners all over the world will suggest that we’ve got it wrong. But for every job there’s an appropriate tool; and we can’t quite see what the Badlands is a perfect tool for. This having been said, the new-for-2021 Badlands Pro A3 is the most technically advanced Badlands ever. And one of the main reasons for being able to make this claim is its AAA rating. It’s made from a new fabric called Vectran. Now meeting AAA is not, in itself, a major achievement. The problem is meeting AAA with a fabric that is comfortable to wear. But what is even more difficult is being able to do this and still meeting Gore’s demanding requirements on breathability. To date, everybody has failed to do this . Klim has succeeded. It is impressive, but in some ways not unexpected, that a niche player like Klim got there before the big boys. But, and we hate to introduce another note of dissent, but we think this new material, Vectran, should have been used on the Kodiak rather than the Badlands. And that’s because the abrasion resistance that forms a significant element of the demanding AAA rating is kind of wasted if you’re riding off-road. Off-road, you fall, you tumble, sometimes you hit things, but usually not at great speed. If Vectran had been used on the Kodiak, it would have given Klim the world’s first road suit with an AAA rating. And that is the Holy Grail. It is what Rukka, Stadler, Halvarssons and everybody else has been trying to achieve. Hopefully, Klim can do this next year, and hopefully they will still be the first. Having got all that off our chest, let’s talk about the Badlands Pro A3 pant. First thing; it fits baggy, as you might expect. On the knees you get Superfabric for abrasion resistance. There’s also heat-resistant leather up the inside of the legs and knees for protection and grip. D3O Level 2 armour comes as standard in the knees, hips and tailbone. As we’ve mentioned, venting is a big deal for Klim, and so these pants have four vents. You also get two zippable, thigh pockets. As with the jacket, the Badlands pant comes with a moisture-wicking, mesh liner. Whilst, for fit, there are adjusters at the waist, the hem and the knees.