I’m looking for a shirt to wear for the run portion of Ironman Canada. In other races, I’ve worn a short sleeve Coolmax t-shirt. While the comfort was OK with that shirt, I’d like to find one with a couple of additional features:
Pocket(s) in back for a few small items such as ibuprofen, gel packets, bandaids, and a small lube container. I’ve done this with a pouch on my race number belt but pockets might give me less bouncing.
a zipper in front for temperature regulation - it will probably still be quite warm when I start the run, but I expect to go well into the night and I’d like to be able to go a little warmer until I can get a long sleeve shirt at the turnaround.
I’d like to stay with short sleeves - a little more sun coverage during daylight and a little more warmth after dark.
Does anyone make a shirt for running that has those qualities? My local running stores don’t have anything like this.
This sounds rather like a bike jersey - is there any technical reason not to wear a bike jersey for running? (I’m not worried about the rules of style - at my speed it’s hard to be stylish anyway)
I’ve seen a fair number of people wearing bike jerseys for the IM run, just not me. I couldn’t stand the sleeves for anyhting longer than a sprint du in the winter. Other than that, i need the free flowing feel of a singlet or tri jersey with no sleeves.
I like a very tight lycra and coolmax combo, sleeveless, with pockets in back. I like them to fit just like skin so they don’t bounce when pockets are full, and no chafing.
One I bought a few years ago at IME w/ 2 pockets, and one I bought at IMC 3 or 4 years ago it think made by Humpy Wear or something like that.
Sounds like you want a Desoto Zipper Tri Jersey. Check out their websight. They have had everything on sale all winter and you may be able to still get a really good deal. I find this top with their long legged shorts to be the most comfortable combo for all races, much better that a one piece tri-suit.
Sweeny mentioned the Desoto jersey, but I prefer one of the Zoot tops. (In all other things, I love Desoto). They have a tank that has a pocket on each side, a zipper (I’m guessing about 8 inches), and dosen’t cover the entire shoulder. Many prefer the Desoto type tank that does cover your entire shoulder (it’s more of a sleeveless), but I just prefer the Zoot. I haven’t used one in an IM, but one served me quite well in 1/2 IMs and I’ll be wearing one at my first IM this season.
There are quite a few new short sleeve shirts on the market with rear pockets. Most are in companies trail running line. I know that Nike has at least one and I believe more shirts that would work this season. Pearl Izumi has a top or two that might work as well. If for some reason you don’t need the pockets, check out the new Asics Verdict run series shirts, they are some of the nicest shirts i’ve ever run in or sold before, but no rear pockets… On that Desoto reccomendation earlier, it’s a killer product but sleeveless and the pocket bounces a bit. Better to go skin tight if you are planning on carrying much.
I like the Rip N Hammer long course singlet. It has wide shoulders to protect from the sun (no sleeves) and pockets on the back and a zipper on the front. I’ve used it from the swim (under the wetsuit) to the finish at ironman Canada and a number of halfs and like it a lot.
This is probably going to become a thread where everyone throws out the name of every tri clothing manufacturer until they’re all covered, but…
…no one’s mentioned Orca. They have several different tri top styles, a looser type with wider shoulders for long course and a more tapered style with slightly narrower shoulders for short or long course. I love Orca’s stuff. It feels nice and looks sharp, and they’re nice Kiwis!
My favorite all-time run top is by Sugoi. It’s a short-sleeved top in their Technifine material. No pockets, but for long course I use a Fuel Belt. It’s still my best running top after four years of heavy wear and frequent machine washing.
On the negative side, I really dislike RNH stuff. Very sub-par IMHO.