In the spring of 2023, the apparel team made a mistake.

They ordered 10,000 extra yards of a fabric for the upcoming Dirtbag Short.

Instead of trying to return the fabric, BD Outwear Developer, Carly Anderson, saw an opportunity.

“I asked if I could make a wide-leg pant.” Said Carly. She felt like the Black Diamond pant line was missing something.

Three years later, the Dirtbag Pant is our best-selling style. 

We caught up with Carly and Brielle Nye,a BD Sportswear Developer,to learn more about how the Dirtbag Pant was made by accident, almost didn’thappen, and how it grew beyond a product, influencing the design process for Black Diamond apparel.

A CLIMBER'S IDEA

At the time of the extra fabric order, the apparel team was focused on making technical apparel for climbers to support the send. But Carly felt the pant line wasn’t serving climbers in all aspects of the climbing life.

Carly is a climber; she loves clipping bolts in Big Cottonwood Canyon and Squamish, and she recently started placing her own gear trad climbing. And as a climber, she wanted something that BD didn’t make: A stretchy, slightly wide-leg pant with 100% cotton construction and an elastic waist.

“It was kind of a selfish notion where I said, ‘I want to wear this,’” says Carly.

But at the time of pitching the idea, the apparel team was hesitant, thinking the pant was too wide-leg and casual for Black Diamond. If Black Diamond is a technical climbing brand, why would it make a lifestyle, wide-leg pant?

But Carly pushed back, forged ahead, and the first Dirtbag prototype was created and sent out for field and fit testing.

Immediately it was a hit. Once the product was in climbers' hands, it was clear that the Dirtbag Pant captured the soul of climbing. And climbers were stoked.

THE DIRTBAG (R)EVOLUTION

“Now it’s evolved into this magical pant that does everything,” says Brielle. “It’s a pant you can wear climbing or dress it up and wear it to a barbecue.”

This was what made the Dirtbag a success; it is a comfortable pant that any climber can wear through all aspects of the climbing life, from days in the office to after-work pitches, or weekend trips discovering a new bouldering area, or heading out to a ‘fancy’ dinner to celebrate a send on a climbing road trip.

Carly adds, “When you put them on, in a way, you forget you're wearing them; they’re a pant you don’t have to think about.”

The magic of the Dirtbag pant is that it can be worn by guides on their day off and a gym climber in their first week, all while supporting the climbing life on and off the wall, because it’s made for the dirtbag in every climber.

And its success was something noticed internally, reminding the apparel team that good product design is infused with the soul of climbing.

“I feel like the Dirtbag Pant was the entry point for Black Diamond to say, “it’s ok for us to do something different, compared to what BD is so known for; We don’t just have to make equipment for alpinists,” says Carly.

“It paved the way for the rest of our line,” added Brielle.

THE FUTURE

In Fall 2026, the Dirtbag franchise expands with new colorways and styles. We add the Dirtbag Corduroy, a cozy and classy style, and the Dirtbag Cargo, which adds pockets and a more barreled leg fit. And more styles are coming in future seasons.

Capturing the breathing heartbeat of mountain sports and distilling it into a product is a challenge our designers love tackling. And when they succeed in making a product that drips with pure climbing soul, that product can redefine what we do.

Carly leaves us with a bit of wisdom: “This is what the Dirtbag pants should be: worn down, washed down, used and loved.”

Molly climbs The Thumb on Lone Peak.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Molly Malone is Black Diamond Equipment’s copywriter. Her expertise in outdoor apparel and equipment comes from a decade-long love affair with backcountry splitboarding and climbing. She likes low-angle powder laps on high-avy days and sending long desert splitters.