27 Jan 2026

Legs out, rain or shine: Just the Kiwi way?

From Nights, 8:30 pm on 27 January 2026

New Zealanders are famous for many things, but apparently nothing makes us stand our more than wearing shorts in the freezing rain or snow while out in the wilderness.

While the rest of the world bundles up, we keep our legs gloriously, stubbornly free.

So why is that, well that's a question Talisker Scott Hunter set our to answer in an article he's written for The Spinoff and he speaks to Mark Leishman about what he he discovered. 

Fred Dagg’s shorts 1973 Christchurch by Canterbury of New Zealand Ltd / John Clarke / Te Papa Photo: