The loud rip. The red face. The unexpected overexposure.

If this sounds familiar, then you’ve probably suffered the ultimate wardrobe malfunction—a crotch blowout.

Don’t be embarrassed. It can happen to anyone, no matter your age or weight. Experiencing an inseam blowout is fairly common indeed.

At TacticalPants.com headquarters it’s not unusual to receive calls every few months about seam tears in the nether regions. Heck, it’s even happened to some customers twice.

Once the initial embarrassment fades, there are a few options. You can either attempt to repair the seam yourself. Or you can try to return the pants. Our wonderful customer service department will simply ask you to return or discard the pants. From there, typically the manufacturer will replace the pant.

Most often seen in BDUs and ACUs, “crotch durability problems” was the reason behind a revision of U.S. Army uniform pants in 2007.

How does one manage to rip pants in that area? Kneeling, squatting, jumping, hopping, climbing, running—all the basic movements any operator endures. Or if you want to guarantee a giant tear, try a Chuck Norris-style roadhouse kick.

One way tactical pants combat these unseemly blowouts is through a gusseted crotch.

A crotch gusset is an extra piece of fabric that is inserted where all the seams meet in the crotch area of the pants. So, instead of the seams all coming to one point, a piece of fabric is sewn in its place—typically in a diamond shape. This gusset is thought to alleviate stress in that region. Blackhawk, EOTAC, LA Police Gear and Vertx tactical pants all contain such gussets.

While some designers stand by gussets, others don’t find them necessary. Beej Cronin, designer for Kitanica, believes his PNT X.A pants have the same effect of preventing blowouts without the extra piece of fabric. Additionally Propper tactical pants lack a crotch gusset because, according to the company, there has never been a tremendous demand for one.

Has it happened to you? Share your inseam blowout experiences below!