New York Times and Running Skirts

I'm not a cross dresser, but I do like to purchase running gear and check out the latest running fashions. And by and large, the running clothes designs for women are much nicer and offer more variety than the ones for men.

In my opinion, today's technical clothing has been one of the great advances in running. I no longer have to be weighed down by a sweat-drenched, heavy cotton t-shirt. This is huge since I usually sweat up a storm, even in colder temps.

Unfortunately, the new technical clothing comes at a cost. It can be expensive, which makes it harder to satisfy my need to acquire more and more running gear. This is why I end up spending more time looking at the RRS catalog than actually purchasing stuff.

Today's The New York Times (click Next in upper right corner to see more skirts) Thursday Styles section has a nice pictorial gear test on the back page of women's running skirts. It features Ceci St. Geme (nee Hopp) and her daughter Annie.

Ceci was a standout high school runner back in the early 80s, an All-American at Stanford, and the U.S. Champ at 5000 meters in 1994. Now the mother of six, she is a one very fast momma and masters runner down in Southern California.

It seems her daughter Annie inherited some of the running talent as well. She was one of the top high school distance runners in the U.S. this year, and will run for the Stanford Cardinal starting in the fall.

On a side note, I actually got Ceci Hopp's autograph when I was in high school. I was running a relay indoors at the New Jersey Meadowlands in '82, and Ceci was competing for Stanford in one of the distance events. Being a dork with a competitor's pass, I went around asking for autographs from as many of the top runners as I could, and she was a big hit, especially with the high school boys.

Back to the NY Times gear test, I'm not sure I get the whole running skirt thing. Are they for fashion and/or to provide more coverage? You see, guys just wear shorts. Some are short, some are long and some are half-tights. Not much thought goes into the process.

Women have more options with the shorts and tights, plus the bunhuggers and now skirts. I'm not complaining, just wondering what's up with the skirts???

Photo via The New York Times