686 and Rude Girls just dropped a brand new collab pant, the 686 x Rude Girls Surface Cargo Pant. Low-key style, cinched cuff, RG patch–these are fire. You can get a pair of your own on the new Rude Girls website or if you’re in Alberta and can stop by the RG brick and mortar. These are likely to get swooped quickly, We caught up with Rude Girls manager and buyer Abby Furrer and 686 vice president of marketing Brent Sandor, about the drop.
For both RG and 686, every partnership and collaboration is very considered and thoughtful. How did this collaboration come about and why was it meaningful for everyone?
Abby Furrer: Rude Girls has been in close partnership with 686 over the past few years. We’ve alway received support from them directly and through our local rep (Jordan Hall is the best) on any and all events, no questions asked. In our opinion, 686 has one of the strongest teams of female boarders that we all admire and look up to for style and riding inspo. Honestly, their team was one of the biggest attractions for working with them, as well as getting to directly collaborate with 686’s vice president of marketing (thank you, Brent!!!) which made the whole process pretty seamless.
Brent Sandor: The best collaborations come from organic relationships. Rude Girls and 686 share many of the same values of community, identity, and inclusivity, as well as a unique perspective on women’s snowboarding. Rude Girls is heavily active locally in their own community as well as in the larger global community online, nurturing the progression of women’s snowboarding and the associated culture and we are very much here for that and them.
Why did you select the Surface Pant? What was important to you in terms of style/fit/details/etc?
Brent: While I believe it was a Rude Girls team choice, Abby worked directly with us on this project. We followed her lead. Rude Girls and Abby came up with the concept and art and we fell in step with their vision. We then extended the sizing down so that this pant, in traditional men’s sizing spec, was truly gender inclusive.
Abby: For us the most important factor is definitely the fit. The majority of the crew at RG wear men’s pants, to accommodate for our knee braces, butt pads, knee pads, and strong legs from all the boarding we do. We wanted a pant that was comfortable enough that we could layer appropriately without sacrificing our style. That’s why we went with the Men’s Surface Cargo pant in sizes XS-XL, in hopes of allowing all bodies to be comfortable wearing these pants. Other small details such as having the waist adjustments on the outside, cargo pockets, and the adjustability on the cuff of the pant leg are important to us, but are usually overlooked or brushed off as not being “girly enough.” Maybe this is our statement to the industry as to what is actually working for women that snowboard.
What was the inspiration for the style?
Abby: Definitely the team over at 686. Taylor Elliott, Emma Crosby, Darrah Reid and Jacque Lammert are all big style inpsos for us. We went with a pant that we hope most people are hyped on, no matter their style.
How does this pant fit into the overall aesthetic for 686 and specifically, the brand’s offerings for women?
Brent: This pant is right in the wheelhouse of the Borderless Collection that we have been promoting for the last four or so years. A large portion of our female team chooses to wear pants that are in our men’s collection to achieve the fit and styling they prefer and we are 100% supportive of their choice.
Favorite feature or detail of the pant?
Abby: Besides the Rude Girls logo above the right knee, definitely the elastic boot cuff.
Brent: Same. Besides the Rude Girls art, it has to be the elastic gripper at the ankle. I think this really helps on a bigger baggier pant so that people with shorter inseams don’t have to roll the pant and it stays put over the boot.
When you first got the pants in, how stoked were you both (and the rest of the RG crew)?
Abby: Beyond stoked, there was some trembling of the hands with excitement, disbelief and a lot of rapidly tearing through boxes to find our sizes.
Brent: It is always an emotional experience seeing something that you are excited about for the first time. The first thing I actually saw was a sample for the Rude Girls patch with their new logo. You know I texted it to Abby immediately and probably included a few heart on fire emojis or something special like that. As exciting as that was, I think the most amazing part was when Abby recently shot me over the film photos that Rude Girls shot of the pants and the crew for the launch. They really breathed their own styles into them, and that is where the excitement truly begins. We are very grateful to have this opportunity to work with Rude Girls, their logo and their vision. I would say
Abby: Thank you Brent, Jordan, and everyone at 686 for making this happen and for always supporting us and the events we do!!
Pick up a the 686 x Rude Girls Surface Cargo Pant on the Rude Girls website.
