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RANTY THREAD: In a quest to talk about anything BUT US politics, I am so frustrated by how difficult it is to find good quality, me-sized hiking gear here in New Zealand. If you're lucky enough to find a pair in a *real* size, they're not designed to fit real curves of a body.
Despite hiking being *excellent* for the posterior chain, they do not allow for bums, nor hips and tend to increase size all over versus the reality of bigger bodies that tend to carry weight in the front of the body. No one wants baggy cut thighs and crotch-torturing inseams!
But the bigger thing I want to talk about is the homogenous colonial nature of it. These clothes are not designed for Māori or Pacific Island bodies, they are not designed or inclusive of many Asian and South East Asian bodies. Heck, they're not even inclusive of Scottish bodies.
Frequently I end up hiking in my workout tights which thankfully have side pockets (and I'm a huge fan of Hine Collection who have nailed size and body inclusivity here in Aotearoa) but they WILL NOT cut the mustard for the Routeburn or Milford Track or Abel Tasman where I want
water-resistant, quick-drying, odor-resistant high quality technical clothing that I can live in happily without feeling every pinch or restriction of *making do* as a judgment on why or how my body is *wrong* and therefore this activity that I love is somehow not for me.
I have not even begun to mention the assumptions that underpin some of these design decisions about which body types and ethnic groups do or do not participate in *tramping*... because let's be honest, it's seen largely as a white person activity.
Accessibility is so important here. In advertising, availability and assumption if the message is *you don't fit here* then why would people engage, explore or participate.
We have some of the greatest hikes in the world available to us and yet some of the least inclusive options for people to engage, explore, enjoy and participate. And while yes, I know you don't *need* technical gear to hike but I challenge you to any of the Fiordland great walks
without well-fitting merino or thermals and then disagree with me. If you've ever seen a larger person on a walk or in the park in jeans or otherwise and thought judgmentally about why they're not dressed for outdoor activity - this is why. Often there are no options.
All of which brings me back to this - in my pile of belongings back in the US are well-fitting, perfectly sized pieces of technical gear that are made by some of the same brands you see selling size 6 - 14 here - but over there, I can get them in my size, that fit my body well.
I have hiked and climbed all over Southern California, Colorado, National Parks and had a marvellous time. But can I find a range from Kathmandu or Icebreaker that works? Nope.
