A Real Socker?

"There is one item of G.I. gear that can be the difference between a live grunt and a dead grunt - socks."
- Lt. Dan Taylor, Forrest Gump

That was one of the first things Lt. Dan said to Forrest Gump when he and Bubba jumped off the helicopter in Vietnam.

The lieutenant urged the two to take care of their feet - keep them warm, dry and comfortable.

Does it all translate to snow sports socks? Absolutely. The last things anyone wants out there on the mountain are wet feet, which turn into cold feet, blisters and an uncomfy feeling inside the boot.

One company has emerged as a leader in making socks that are top-notch in terms of comfort and performance in just seven years on the market: Darn Tough.

I have tested about 10 different types of Darn Tough socks over a four-year period, but I discovered how good they were by chance. It was the final day of a five-day conference of the North American Snowsports Journalists Association at Bretton Woods, N.H. I thought I had packed enough stuff, but Sunday, originally an early travel day, became a ski day when the sun came out after a decent snowfall the night before.

While rummaging through the bag, it became obvious rather quickly that the previously worn socks just were't going to cut it. They were just a little bit too, let's say, pungent.

What to do?

I remembered there were a pair of socks in the goodie bag, so I took them out. They were cut at the bottom of the calf for Nordic racing, but they would have to do. They didn't smell and that was the key.

Turns out, they were some of the most comfortable and warm socks I had ever worn and their performance inside the boot was superb.

If the low-cut socks were good for downhill skiing, the full-length socks have to be good, I reasoned.

And they are.   

The company takes it heritage and business model seriously, so if outdoor sports were the Super Bowl, Darn Tough would not forget the words to the National Anthem. Stamped prominently on all packaging is "still made in the USA."

Darn Tough is the offspring of the Cabot Hosiery Mill in Northfield, VT. In 2004, Executive Vice President Ric Cabot created it in an effort to create a line of sports socks. Darn Tough now offers socks for not only Nordic and alpine skiers and snowboarders, but for hunters, hikers and warm-weather athletes.

What sets Darn Tough apart is its base of Merlino wool, high-density stitching, ribbed ankle, sculpted heel, elastic arch support and a reinforced toe box.

The socks range in price from $14 to $24, except for one model of hunting sock that retails for $29.

The full line can be viewed at www.darntough.com. To put it all simply, the socks are darn warm, darn comfy and render darn good performance. Well, that makes them darn tough to beat, I suppose.

Psst … next season, the colors will get a little brighter, as Darn Tough has commissioned Poppy Gall, a Stowe, VT.-based outdoor gear designer to work on the new lines. Stay tuned.

The socks are available at in Manchester and at Bob's Stores in and .