I would have gone with a merino wool top and tights (not polyester tights) that covered my knee by left my calves exposed, thin neoprene gloves (like Castelli makes for cycling), and most importantly, a cycling vest - the type that is basically a perforated space blanket: light, blocks win and keeps heat in despite being wet. https://www.bikerumor.com/2008/11/12/castellis-new-space-blanket-radiation-jacket/
I haven’t tried the space blanket thing, but I’d have worn my Castelli Tempesta Race Jacket. This thing is amazing – it’s like baby angels are protecting you from water and wind, but yet it’s shockingly breathable. I’d have gone with Merino knickers on the bottom
I ran yesterday and it was the most miserable race I have ever run in my life. I was under the assumption that my body would warm up so I wore my usual race stuff, singlet and shorts, and I wore arm warmers and two pairs of gloves (thinking I would shed one pair on the course) and a regular hat with a knit winter cap over thinking I would shed it too at some point. I was so freaking cold the entire time. I was shivering throughout the entire race. I thought I would warm up a bit once I got to the hills, but no dice. My body was even colder from 13 to the finish. Truthfully, I don’t know what would have been ideal. Yeah a jacket would have been nice to keep my warm, but the 30mph headwind would have been ever worse with more layers. I can also see a nice tight fitting vest to keep the core warm. I don’t think there was a good choice due to the cold, rain, and wind. There could be positives and negatives with every choice. All I know is I hated every single moment of that race.
Jacket-wise I would have worn the Salming Abisko jacket. I’ve used that in epic freezing rain storms for runs, and kept my upper body bone dry (and it breathes well too). Shoe wise, I would have put a lot of body glide on my feet inside the socks and made sure to wear something that drains well. I would have worn shorts and probably compression socks (or regular socks and compression sleeves for a bit of warmth) but I tend to run hot, so I tend to err on the underdressed end of the spectrum… Glove wise, it would be something that kept my hands as dry as possible (I have a pair of 10 year old MS Tina Windtex cycling gloves that are honestly the best at that of any glove I have found).
I basically wore this. Had calf sleeves but they fell down.
Also had a light beanie with a hat over to stop rain hitting my eyes.
I froze the whole way. Coming from Australia and training in 30 deg (Celsius) heat didn’t help though.
One thing I thought I would never see. People running the whole way in ponchos.
Something I never considered I would ever see apart from someone dressing up…people running in a shower cap. That was genius really as their beanie stayed dry and kept all the warmth in their heads.
I ran in similar weather, CIM a few years back: (@ start, throw away sweats and space blanket) ri kit, arm warmers, visor, glasses, zoot shoes with no socks. Got thru fine. Finish is when the cold hit hard
Lightweight jacket, cheap long sleeve tech shirt that I would toss if I warmed up, singlet, arm warmers, waterproof gloves, tri shorts that came close to the knee, compression socks, regular socks, stocking cap, maybe a buff like Rapp was wearing over the face early. My biggest question probably would have been whether to cover the knees. The two Bostons I did were reward races for qualifying, not PR or re-qualifying attempts, so I would have been more likely to overdress than underdress. I live in Ohio and rarely train inside so I have plenty of experience trying to stay warm. Congrats to all who finished yesterday!
Ran yesterday and some people may not like hearing this, but I expected it to be a lil worse given the day before and how the winds were forecasted. That being said, it was cold!
I was in the start corral with goodwill sweats and sweatshirt with a poncho on 1 minute before the gun. It was chilly but not miserable. No gloves but once I got going didn’t feel it was an issue. Kept the sweatshirt on for the first two miles then threw it off the course. One thing I should’ve done was have plastic to cover my shoes as my feet were frozen in athletes village and the first 1.5 miles.
During the race my clothing was perfect for how I felt…shorts, singlet, and arm warmers.
San Francisco native who likes to run minimally then let the run warm myself up
exact exact same experience for me ystrday.
had a hat on, “waterproof” jacket the whole race - not once showed my bib -. chills came in mile 8 and it got worse and worse and worse.
was so envious seeing my neighbors grabbing fluids or slapping hands or talking. death march to the end. so many long looks at medical tents. unable to run straight line for last 5 miles. direct stop medical tent and stayed there for 40 min under heat fan to stop the shivering. 2:56 in december, 3:36 ysterday. says it all : )
again, immense respect for those who actually enjoyed the race.
btw, saw very skinny shirtless guy pass me early on. mile 9, i pass him back: only his legs were moving. no way he finished. coocoo : )
What strikes me is apparently how few people seemed to learn anything from the Breaking 2 project. You would have thought that would have been a primer on aerodynamics for people who otherwise might not be exposed to the topic.
I followed the advice of the BAA. I guess the elites didn’t read it. I wore a tight under layer, UA metal. They don’t seem to sell it anymore, but it’s tight and wicking. I bet craft or someone else makes a nice one too. Then a tech tee over and then a windbreaker that I got at the BAA expo a few years ago. Hat, glasses, convertible gloves, ear band for the first 5 miles. I’d get soaked through with a wind and rain gust, feel my base layer drain out , then repeat.
it was epic. A day to back door brag about for a lifetime. As in “oh it was hard out there today? well you should have run in Boston in 18. That was really wicked hard.”
I went with tights, a thin l/s Nike Pro shirt under a running jacket made for the rain. Wore a hat under the hood of the jacket. Regular running gloves with handwarmers inside. This actually worked well for me - really happy with the decision to use handwarmers (I get cold). I probably could have used knickers instead of the tights - but that’s the only change I would have done. Like Poon said, the wait for dry gear after the race was, by far, the worst. Athlete’s village before the race was ridiculous.
I haven’t tried the space blanket thing, but I’d have worn my Castelli Tempesta Race Jacket. This thing is amazing – it’s like baby angels are protecting you from water and wind, but yet it’s shockingly breathable. I’d have gone with Merino knickers on the bottom
Do you have any experience as to how it compares to any similar Assos products?