Friday, February 12, 2010

What to wear running in 20 degrees, sunny & snowy

Temp: Mid-20s & sunny
Wind: Gusts up to 18 mph
Precip./Humidity: Moderate
Terrain: Mostly flat, often covered in several inches of snow
Distance: 8 miles

What I Wore: Knit hat & gloves; neck gaiter; Road Runner fleece-lined tights; Nike dri-fit tank top under an Asics 1/4 zip, wick-away, long sleeve, mid-weight top under a Nike heavy-weight, dri-fit running jacket; thick socks; and my 2nd best pair of shoes (my ING NYC Marathon Asics). And, of course, sunblock.

Did It Work: Yes, and based on my comfort from the start, would work for almost any distance.
On the out bound, I was running into the wind. I was glad to have the gaiter to cover my nose and mouth. On the return, I was facing the sun and the wind was at my back. It practically felt like spring! I partiallyunzipped the jacket and Asics top, to let a little steam out, and stayed comfortable.
And, I was glad to have worn the Asics because they still work great but I didn't mind getting them wet in the snow and slush.

Note: A male friend on Twitter pointed out that he can't relate to one of the items I wear on a run being a "regular sports bra." Good point, so from now on, let's just assume I'm wearing a sports bra and, unless it's remarkable in its length, or all that I wore, I include it.
I do think a good sports bra is key to a happy run (for women) though, so coming soon: my thoughts on the least seen, most worn (by women) piece of gear.

Weird Science: Today I experimented with making a knit glove wind proof by wrapping it in tape. I had recently read in Runner's World that you can make running shoes a bit more winter friendly by wrapping the tops of them in duct tape. This made me wonder if I could do something similar with knit gloves and packing tape. If you don't have the money or the space for multiple pairs of autumn and winter gloves, converting a knit pair with tape seemed like a solution.
It didn't work. My hand that was wrapped was no warmer than the unwrapped hand AND as I started to sweat, the glove got damp. With the tape wrapped around it, the fabric couldn't dry and, as we all know, wet clothes and cold weather don't mix. I had to unwrap the glove after less than 2 miles and suffer the cold as the wool dried.

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