MUSA Pants 2025 - Black

MUSA Pants. Made in the USA.

PFAS-free,* Light-weight, Tuf-e-Nuff Military Spec MUSA fab for this run-o-pants.

Cut: They seem to fit like normal pants, thank god. We relaxed the elastic in the waist because I/Grant was getting depressed at having larges feel too tight. The actual waist size is unchanged, but the elastic is looser. They’re skinnier in the leg than old MUSA pants, but still baggy enough for chunky thighs. They're on the long side, but we've made longer ones. If your legs are short you'll want to take'm to a tailor or hem them yourself. This is not Savile Row here, my friends.

Below the knee they’re tapered more than Dickies, for chainring clearance. Dickies don’t stretch, neither did the old classic MUSA pants, but these do. The slightly slimmer leg cut required that, for riding, and the result is pantalone perfection. If you can’t ride a bike in these, if they don’t seem plush while pedaling, your sense of sensory feedback is off. They are so freeing, so light on ye olde knee-up, that you can climb any hill in one gear higher.

Summary: Really nice riding pants. Light, slight stretch, fast dry.

You can get more detailed pants (phone pockets, zippers, zip-off bottoms to turn them into Bermuda shorts) for half the price online. You can’t get better riding pants anywhere.

Smalls have a 29" relaxed waist ( 29 to 32 waist ) - 29 3/4" inseam

Mediums have a 32" relaxed waist ( 32 to 35 waist ) - 31 3/4" inseam

Larges have a 35" relaxed waist ( 35 to 38 waist ) - 31 3/4" inseam

XLs have a 38" relaxed waist ( 38 to 42 waist ) - 31 3/4" inseam

    •     MUSA military fabric*, slight stretch, Berry-compliant (google it).  Instead of the all-nylon, they’re like 98-2 nylon and spandex.  I know this veers off our tweed-and-orgo cotton vibe-theme, but these are better for riding.

    •    The belt-elastic is also Berry/Military spec.  The best in the world, or at least the country. It doesn’t have to be, but it really is. It’s not stitched in, so it’s what we here call “theoretically replaceable.” You could get your own ¾-inch elastic and buckle down the road.

    •    Mesh on the inside of the pockets for good water drainage.

    •    No buttons on the rear pockets.  I never used mine, so I made this unilateral call. I doubt there’s a person in the world who’d put a wallet back there and take the time and develop the dexterity to button it, so we have button-free pockets.

These are made locally, about 19 miles from here. From the knees up, they're cut like Dickies. We bought Dickies and copied them because Will wears and even rides in them, and I/Grant wanted him to ride in our beloved MUSA pants.

*PFAS is an acronym for polyfluoroalkl substances—person-made chemicals used to slough off water and stains and food from frying pans. To keep stuff from getting dirty or stained or grungy with fried foods. Teflon, Gore-Tex, lots of others. It’s in food, in air, it’s probably on the keyboard condom I used to keep the crumbs and fizzy water of out of my computer. They’re all around, it’s a sad story, they were scientific advancements with unintended and unknown consequences. They’ve had their day, every one of you reading this has a closet and kitchen and pantry full of PFAS stuff, but just hang in there.

The ”good” (?) news is, manufacturing them is worse for the environment than wearing or using them is for you. If you have to make that distinction.

But even the conservative gov’t is taking action against them. It seems to be up to the states for now, but a nationwide ban is in the cards within a few years, except maybe in Florida and Texas.

Most or all MUSA clothing has had PFAS. The knickers I wear everyfriggin’ day have DWR (durable water repellant) treatment that relies on it. After more than 200 washes, maybe it’s mostly PFAS-free now, but the chemicals from them are out there.

Starting as soon as we realized all of this, and effecting all MUSA clothing made for the 2025 season and onward, no more PFAS. A big fabric supplier, Milliken, has been, as they put it, “PFAS-free since ’23,” but we learned of them just about 7 months ago, and the new MUSA shorts and pants, and all future ones, are made the USA-made Milliken PFAS-free fabric. It’s still not as green as organic cotton or hemp or linen, but this is a step toward that, and at least a pair of our MUSA bottoms will likely last 10+ years. That’s something.