Born in the mountains of Colorado, Ripton & Co. is a quirky and rebellious indie apparel brand founded by self-proclaimed dirtbag bike and ski bum Elliot Wilkinson-Ray. The company launched in 2019 with the first jean shorts to be dubbed technical mountain biking gear—naturally, they're cut-offs. In the two years since, Ripton has added jean overalls to the lineup, and most recently, a pair of denim overall ski bibs dubbed "Winteralls."
The brand definitely treads on the goofier side of outdoor lifestyle that's long contrasted with the hardcore, peak-bagging culture. But denim was the original outdoor fabric back when people went into the wilderness to mine and log, and Ripton plans on bringing it back, proving that jorts and overalls can look good and serve well in the mountains, too, thanks to new performance-oriented fabrics.
