Running tip #40 … is brought to you by my husband, Dave, who is {finally!} turning 40 this year.
Joan doesn’t watch the news. She also doesn’t regularly look at the weather forecast. When she is deciding what to wear for her run she opens the front door and sticks her hand out to gauge the temperature. For my analytical mind this seems like absolute insanity. In the morning the sun beats down on our front stoop making it the hottest location within a 100 mile radius so there’s no way this is a reasonable way to gauge the weather. I have what I think is a pretty good system for determining the clothing required for my run given the forecasted temperature.
First I consult my favorite weather site, WeatherSpark, to view a graph of what the temperature is going to be when I’ll be running. I like that site because you see a line graph with temp on the y axis and time on the x axis. The temp at the start of the run is what I’m looking for.
Here’s a table showing the temp and what I’ll wear:
- > 70 degrees F: shorts and no shirt.
- 60-70 degrees F: shirt optional and shorts.
- 50-60 degrees F: short sleeve shirt and shorts.
- 47.5-50 degrees F: a tiny window where I might wear a short sleeve shirt, shorts, and gloves.
- 40-47.5 degrees F: light long sleeve shirt, shorts, and gloves with optional hat (when I do take a hat I know I’ll end up carrying it by the end of my run).
- 35-40 degrees F: regular (heavier) long sleeve shirt, shorts, gloves, and a hat (could be baseball cap but probably a skull cap that covers my ears)
- 27-35 degrees F: regular long sleeve shirt, pants, gloves, and a skull cap.
- < 27 degrees F: regular long sleeve shirt, pants, gloves, and a toboggan plus a vest on top.
Although this seems pretty precise (and probably crazy to Joan) there is plenty of room for adjustment. For example, if I’m doing a hard workout I will most certainly dress a little lighter since I know I won’t get cold (see post #28 about the Cheater Peel!). Also, if it is overcast, rainy, or I’m running in the dark I’ll err towards the warmer side.
That’s Dave running for Bull City ^