Trail Running Gaiters

I had several inquires and comments about the super cute little zebra gaiter that I was sporting in yesterday’s GoLite review. So, since you all asked, here is the low-down on the goods…….

The zebra gaiters and also these hot pink gaiters to the right are made by Running Funky. I bought them on Road Runner Sports.com but you can also purchase them from other online retailers. For those unfamiliar with how gaiters work, they are made of light weight, bathing suit-y type material and the collar is elastic-y. You really can’t tell they are on, not hot at all. There is a piece of velcro on the back of the gaiter and you afix a piece of velcro to the back of your shoe. Then there is a hook at the front of the gaiter that hooks onto the front of your laces. And, VOILA…..no more junk in your shoes!!!! Fabulous!!!!

I also have another pair that I won from the Filly Girl blog (go visit her!). They are from Dirty Girl Gaiters, you can purchase those directly from the lady that makes them. Of the two brands, I like Dirty Girl’s better. They are BOTH made really well, fit perfectly and keep all the debris out of my shoes, but the Dirty Girl’s are much easier to put on and take off. Nothing more annoying than to fight with your gaiters in order to adjust your laces in the middle of a run. The hook on the Dirty Girl’s slip off and on much easier. She also seems to have more designs to choose from, and you get a much more generous serving and much more adhesive velcro with the Dirty Girl’s.

But they are both AWESOME!!!! I won’t run trails without gaiters now. Such a simple idea that had never crossed my mind until my running bud “trail girl” Ashley turned me on to them. I was relatively lucky, keeping trail trash out of my shoes, until one day running through a field of high grass and tons of little sticky things got stuck on my socks and then found their way down into my shoes. OWWWWWW!!!! That was all the convincing I needed!!!! Not only are they functional, but they are fashionable as well. Just another way to express your personality and stand out in the crowd. We get comments on them wherever we go. And if I fall and pass out on the trail there is no way a passer-by-er could NOT see me in the bright pink gaiters LOL.

GoLite Skirt and Shirt

The nice folks at Outside PR sent me some stuff from GoLite a few weeks ago to review, and I have been testing it out on several runs. Being a skirt type of girl, I was super excited when I opened the package and saw a skirt (squeals with joy").

The “Wildwood Trail” shirt is just awesome!!!! The first thing I noticed was how light weight the materials are. The shirt is soft and gauzy, I couldn’t wait to put it on. It is super comfy and fits perfectly and pretty true to size. I am a S/M and this shirt is a M. There is a cute little pocket on the side of the shirt that would be perfect for a gel pack or two or small Ipod. Here is what the people GoLite say about the shirt. Using lightweight fabrics with extra fast dry times and a UPF of 50+, this shortsleeve top is built to protect from the sun without the risk of overheating. Materials: 80 g/m² 100% polyester body fabric; 86 g/m² 58% Minerale™ polyester, 42% polyester panels; UPF: 50+ (main body fabric)It is indeed a fast drying, super wicking shirt. The first run I tested it on was a super hot and humid 8 miler on the trail. Although it was soaked by the end, it was pretty much dry by the time I got home. I would have expected the shirt to stick to me with all the sweat, but it remained flowy and comfortable the entire run. Two Thumbs Up! for this shirt.

The “Tilly Jane Run Skirt”……I have to preface this review with the fact that I am a skirt aficionado and very (to a fault) picky about my skirts since finding “the one”. That being said, this skirt was up against some tough competition. Also made out of similarly light material like the shirt, it is quite light and flowy. A little shorter than the style I am used to, but still covered all the essential areas :) I will say after getting over the shock of the shortness, I did feel a little sexy in it, well as sexy as you can be drenched in sweat while running through the woods. I was skeptical of the boy shorts underneath, but they managed to stay wedgie free and stayed put for the duration of all test runs. This also fits pretty true to size. I was very impressed with its wicking and drying capabilities as well. The skirt also has a cute little zippered pocket on the size for some light weight items. Here is the description on the GoLite site. All trail, this skirt has a stretchy body fabric that moves with the athlete and doesn't ride up or get in the way. The boy short liner is made from Minerale™ which dries quickly and feels great. Materials: 164 g/m² 85% recycled polyester, 15% elastic; 86 g/m² 58% Minerale™ polyester, 42% polyester lining. So although I still favor a different skirt because I prefer a brief underneath (hmm, that rhymes) this skirt is top notch quality, super comfortable, and I would definitely recommend to someone who likes short boy shorts under their skirt.

Here are some action shots of me in the test gear. Before and after running…..I wish you could see how sweaty I was in the after shot……well, then again, maybe not, it was pretty gross!

Before (cute and perky) After (tired and not so attractive)

The one thing I am really impressed with about GoLite in general are their values and commitment to sustainability and environmentally consciousness in the making of their products. I wish I had some GoLite stuff to giveaway, but if you visit the GoLite site, they are having a “93 days of Summer Giveaway” giving away something everyday for the remainder of the Summer….go check it out. Thanks again Outside PR and GoLite.

Road ID

Carrying ID with you on a run is an important thing to do, but a fact that is often forgotten. I admit, I rarely carried ID with me on runs either out of laziness, forgetfulness, or out just feeling like I didn’t need it. I was recently asked to do a review on the Road ID Elite ID Band and, of course, I jumped at the opportunity.

I originally was going to order black but decided to get one true to my “style” and order pink. After I got it I thought the bright color may be functional as well as fashionable. The bright color might stand out more than a black band and alert someone to my ID more quickly….just a hunch. You get 6 lines worth of information to put on your ID. I put my name, city and state, two emergency contact numbers, medical history and the phrase “Jog 4 Joubert Syndrome”. You can fully customize it however you like with any information you feel pertinent. I love the silicone band because I don’t have to worry about it getting stinky and gross with sweat. It is very comfortable and after wearing it all week I don’t notice that I have it on anymore, in fact I don’t think I have taken it off at all.

After wearing this invaluable piece of running gear this past week, I really see the value of it. I think of how dumb I was to run alone without ID all those times. It was probably even dumb to run in my teeny tiny little neighborhood without ID, because I doubt if I fell out while running “the loop” a passing neighbor would be able to identify me because I don’t know most of the people in the neighborhood. I also think about what a horrible situation it would be if something happened to me while running with someone who didn’t know my contact information or medical history and I was unable to communicate that to them…..how freaked out would you be if something happened to the person you were running with???!! I think my new Road ID will be the running gear that I can’t won’t leave home without.

Sweaty Bands

The nice folks over at Sweaty Bands were kind enough to send me a two pack Sweaty Bands to review. I have been looking for something that was more suitable for summertime. Some of the other headbands I have used are great, but my head gets too hot with the mercury rising outside. I saw these on another blog giveaway and was intrigued, so I contacted them and they replied almost immediately. I have worn this super cute polka-dot number several times now. I have also tried a thinner band which is plain white and I like it equally as well as this thicker one.

I think I am becoming a big fan. They do NOT slip……AT ALL, which I am surprised by. It fits very snugly which took some getting used to, but you definitely don’t have to worry about it going anywhere. It absorbs a fair amount of sweat (hence the name)keeping what sweat comes from my hair line out of my eyes. I have recently changed hair styles and it works well with long hair in a ponytail or pigtails and works great with short hair. It has stood up to the test of a very wet and difficult 12 miles and don’t have to mess with it at all. I will definitely be getting some more of these bad boys and would recommend them to anyone.