Looking for a Hiking Kilt

[Knight]

I'm a huge fan of SportKilt. I'm no purist at heart: I'm active in my kilts. I have three SportKilts in the Loch Ness, Ancient Hunting, and Jolly Roger "tartans." (I don't think they're real tartans. Registered, anyway). I absolutely love them--enough to have bought one for my wife and two brothers. I have a friend who swears by them as well, and wears them hiking, biking, and to D&D.

All of mine are the "original" SportKilts. The microfiber lightweight material seems to me, with admittedly no firsthand experience, too flimsy and light. I use my kilts for walking, hiking, and at my most active, fencing in the HEMA German form. Because of lunges, jukes and other rapid movements, I can't afford to worry about having it "float" around me, which is my fear with the microfiber. SportKilts, with the elastic back and their design, allow for a great degree of adjustability. The concern though is that they pill, and can fray if not taken care of.

My Loch Ness kilt, my first and most-worn, now lives belted to my Camelback water backpack for long-distance rides. I get out of the saddle periodically to walk or sit for a rest, and when in public, I'm a bit ashamed of the goofy biking shorts I wear. The kilt is way more stylish, easy to put on and take off, and keeps grit and dirt off the more sensitive cycling shorts. So far, it's wrinkled, but it's held up all summer as my riding kilt. I also imagine it makes for a curious sight: a cylinder of navy and yellow plaid strapped to my camelbak, which is tiny in comparison to my enormous frame. Probably looks like a sleeping bag.

My "ancient hunting" kilt seems to have come out as my "nice kilt," which I wear to BBQs and dinners. My "jolly roger" is a catch-all, being matchable with damn near everything I own. I wear it in lieu of cargo shorts, which I find deplorable. SportKilts are my go to, except when the occasion (and/or such weather as happens) calls for my wool kilt.

However, I've also used UT Kilts for hiking and fencing, as well. They have an excellent "gravity" to them that keeps them where they should be. There WAS a video of my friend and I fencing kilted, but it was removed for a variety of reasons. I can PM it to you, should you chose. It's also on UT Kilt's media page.

You can't go wrong with either, and I have a lot of respect for both companies: they've come through on custom requests with no issues at all. ALL of my SportKilts have been tailored to fit my frame, which lies *right* between L and XL, and they did it for free each time. Brice at UT didn't tailor my gray, but he did help me select the right one. It's not perfect--the sewing is a bit rough in places, and it lacks any adjustability--but it fits, and it looks good. Very grateful.