When I was told I was to be receiving a pair of “harness trousers” I was interested to see exactly how they would manifest themselves.

Would they put an end to the slight discomfort of wearing a harness all day?

Exactly how terrifying would it be tying in to a pair of trousers?

Would they be the next progression in harness development?

Soon enough they arrived and I curiously opened the packaging to see exactly what they were like. Upon first acquaintances they seemed like a normal pair of trousers with a harness waist belt and two tie-in/belay loops and a gear loop on each side. Mildly worried about getting castrated if I fell off, I was relieved to find a mesh inner much like a pair of swimming shorts with leg loops sewn into the ends and then attached up to the waist belt as per a normal harness. With my mind eased somewhat, I threw them in my bag and took them to Spain to see what they were like and how they performed whilst sport climbing.

On first usage they seemed pretty normal, it wasn't too disconcerting tie-ing into your trousers but due to the fact that there is no buckle to fine tune the fit of the waist belt they were maybe not quite as confidence inspiring as a normal harness. I climbed the first route in them and lowered to the ground in comfort, and began to belay, which all worked out fine and the freedom of movement was great too. So far I had no grumbles so I decided to look closer at the two components of the garment:

Trousers

The trousers are a really nice cut, and made out of a stretchy, wind-resistant, fabric that isn't too heavy but seems as though it would stand up to a fair amount of abuse. One feature I really liked about the trousers was a simple one; the draw cord on the bottom of each leg was a really effective addition that I have never had before on a pair of trousers and although not essential definitely made it easy to see your feet whilst climbing.

The trousers have quite a cool, flashy style to them, which makes them great on the crag, but they may not be to everyone's style. With the addition of the tie-in points and gear loops they are probably not something I would necessarily choose to wear to the pub, though fortunately they are subtly styled so the trousers don't shout out "Look I'm wearing harness trousers!". 

Harness

The harness side of the trousers actually works well and is comfortable to use, I was a little unsure when they arrived, but the belay arrangement works absolutely fine. The Realization pants have just two gear loops which are well positioned and large enough to carry enough quickdraws for most sport routes and to carry a small trad rack for short outcrop climbs.

However, it is difficult to fit a trad rack for longer trad climbs on them, and it would be almost impossible to fit a 'Gogarth rack' onto the gear loops without employing the use of a bandolier or a 'Yosemite' racking system. In addition to this, the tying in system is a little awkward with two half ropes. These are understandable limitations though, as the Realization pants were designed for summer sport climbing, not for the British trad climbing market.

Harness Trousers

When you add these two good things together you do get a number of advantages:

- Once you arrive at the crag you are ready to go whilst everyone faffs around putting their harness on, you are all ready to go.

- If you are travelling light on a budget airline you can wear the Realization Pant on the plane and save hold luggage for other essentials.

- In order to see your chalk bag and gear loops you have to tuck your top into your trousers which on cold days means you don't get that annoying cold patch where your t-shirt rides up.

- There is no metal parts to corrode, making them perfect for DWS where you have to abseil into the base of the climb.

- The Realization pants are really nice to climb in, giving a great freedom of movement. 

However I also found a few disadvantages:

- At the end of a long day climbing you don't get to experience the relief of taking your harness off until you take your trousers off.

- Although there is less wear points on the harness, the trousers are likely to wear out before you would retire a harness.

- With only two gear loops and being trousers the Realization pants aren't massively versatile.

In conclusion I found the Realization Pant to be a great concept with some good design features, and the individual components of the harness and trousers to be very high quality. For sport climbing and DWSing routes that you have to abseil into they are perfectly suited to that job, but for the British climber who wants to do a variety of activities they are less suitable for trad climbing as it is not possible to fit a large amount of equipment onto the two gear loops. They are also great to climb in due to the freedom of movement from the stretchy fabric of the trousers and a harness that fits well. So what are the answers to my original questions?

Would they put an end to the slight discomfort of wearing a harness all day?

 - Unfortunately not, though the freedom of movement really is excellent.

Exactly how terrifying would it be tying in to a pair of trousers?

 - Only minor the first couple of times, after that it begins to feel more normal.

Would they be the next progression in harness development?

 - Yes, I think they are a progression, though there are still improvements to be made. Who knows what the future holds for harness development. 

Mammut Realization Pant

Exceptional freedom of movement and maximum comfort - the feedback from Mammut climbing aces Jakob Schubert and Sean McColl on the realization pants were full of superlatives. When climbing with the first pants to have a fully integrated harness, it feels as if you are not wearing a harness at all, and thus you appear to fly effortlessly past obstacles on your climbing project. 

Features:

• Meets the climbing harness standard: EN 12277
• Innovative split webbing technology
• Two gear loops
• Robust and abrasion resistant outer material
• Elastic insert for maximum freedom of movement
• Two front trouser pockets
• Two seat pockets with velcro
• Chalk bag attachment at the back
• Slide-in pocket for brush on the right leg
• Machine washable to 40ºC

Price: £199.99