Gear Review Used December 31 at New Year’s One Day
In addition to each episode being published on the website, I’m also going to add a weekly blog entry that will cover some part of running that I am not able to cover in the podcast. This is the first entry and this is about the gear that I used last Saturday, New Year’s Eve for my 6-hour New Year’s One Day race.
Northern California was hit with a massive storm on New Year’s Eve, Dec 31, 2022. 5.46 inches of rain pelted San Francisco on Saturday and let me till you, from early morning until eight at night, the rain did not stop. Not since 1849 had SF seen such a massive rainfall in one day!
We do not get rainstorms like this every year. In fact, there are some years when we hardly get any rain, or if we do, it will blast us all at once and then it will be dry for most of the winter, until a brief rainfall in the spring. But this recent storm is a once in a few decades kind of thing.
And for runners, being dry and warm in this wild weather is the most important. Now, there is no gear in the world that’s going to be 100% if it’s intense rain for hours. But there are better brands than others. I can only talk about what I wore and used.
BROOKS FUSION GLOVES
I had one pair of running gloves I loved for years. And I mean over 10 years. Then, I couldn’t find them. I have no idea where I lost them, a MUNI bus, a grocery store, somewhere. I bought them online, sight unseen from Sports Basement, a local sporting goods company with many locations in the San Francisco Bay Area.
I lucked out with the sizing. My hands are quite small and they fit perfectly. But how with they do in a torrential rainstorm?
They did well for most of the time I wore them. I had them on for the first two hours. Yeah, they got wet, but surprisingly, even wet, they kept my hands and fingers warm. It wasn’t really cold out, but later one without wearing my gloves, my hands and fingers felt very cold. After two hours, they were ridiculously soaking, so I took them off. For the last half of my time out there, my hands were very cold. In fact, I could barely move my fingers and it took quite come time at home before they warmed up.
COLUMBIA RAIN JACKET
This was the star of the day. This is a thin, not expensive jacket I got at Sports Basement, around $50. Throughout the entire time I was out in the downpour, my shirt underneath did not get wet at all. That is huge!
Granted, I think one of those giant, inexpensive ponchos I saw a few others wearing would probably have been the best choice, but other than that, my jacket was a superstar. And, it was dry an hour after I was home!
BALLY TOTAL FITNESS LEGGINGS
I bought these leggings off Amazon for around $30.00. They are thick and great in cold weather. And although they did get soaked, they still kept my legs feeling warm the entire time. I really like them a lot. I’ve worn them on walks and runs and they always feel comfy. They are in black, which is about the only color leggings I wear. They have pockets with zippers even. The only drawback is if you have a big phone, it won’t fit in these pockets as they are a bit smaller than the usual pockets.
The things that I wish I had:
I wish I had worn trail running shoes instead. My poor Altra Torins took a beating. Usually, they’re perfect for this event, but not in this weather.
I also wish I had worn gaiters, as the dirt and pebbles from the puddles and lake I had to go through caused a lot of debris in my shoes.
I was unprepared for the weather, but as I stated earlier, we don’t get this weather often. I’m happy with what I had. If I do have a race in inclement weather like this in the future, I’ll definitely know what to expect.
Check out this week’s podcast episode with the wonderful Shawanna White for my full race write-up! You can hear it right from this website, or on your favorite podcast player!