Running stores don't carry any real running apparel anymore

The CW-X Pro short is all you need.

My local running store carries great (albeit ridiculously expensive) running clothes, tons of singlets and short shorts, as well as longer running shorts, and a bunch of great, light weight shirts.

They have mostly crappy shoes though. There is another running store a few towns over the carries great shoes but no clothes.

Aghast wrote:

I haven't bought much running apparel recently.

Is this what sells? Do people only care about fashion and not practicality?

Apparently people like you don't buy enough apparel or don't buy it frequently enough to make it worthwhile for the stores to carry the selection that you like.

Granted that this is probably true. But running clothes tend to last. When I say I haven't purchased in a while I mean maybe a year. But last time I bought it online.

My main question is why would anyone even want to run in these types of clothes? They are impractical.

Most running stores have limited floor space and trying to figure out what apparel is going to sell is tough. What doesn't sell this year is likely to be out of fashion by next year, so it can be a huge financial risk to carry much apparel. The large the store, the more stores in the chain, the less comparable risk as they have access to greater inventory for a given financial obligation to their suppliers.

If you know what you want, your local running store can probably order it and could provide it at a discount relative to want any individual can get it online. They may not choose to do so, but they can. It doesn't hurt to ask.

Aghast wrote:

The few technical shirts that they had tended to be made out of some extremely heavy material and were ridiculously big (like they were designed to be a dress). They also tended to be in dark colors for instance all of the nike tshirts were in black which seems very impractical for running in the summer.

The running shorts that they carried tended to be basketball type shorts that were down below the knee and once again made out of heavy material.

Is this what sells? Do people only care about fashion and not practicality?

Running stores cater to the moms and pops that decide they'll take up running. Or run a marathon in 5 hours. To the waddlers and penguins.

So their customers tend to have anything but a runners physique, hence the over sized shirts and shorts. They're fitting a 43 year old man who hasn't ran more than 3 miles since he was 18.

Aghast wrote:

Granted that this is probably true. But running clothes tend to last. When I say I haven't purchased in a while I mean maybe a year. But last time I bought it online.

My main question is why would anyone even want to run in these types of clothes? They are impractical.

The people buying them aren't real runners. Real runners don't wear "running skirts". All those bullsh!t clothes are for people who want to just lose weight or look like they're working out.

Gone are the days of new Zealand splits and carrying track and field news monthly...

Knee lift wrote:

My local running store carries great (albeit ridiculously expensive) running clothes, tons of singlets and short shorts, as well as longer running shorts, and a bunch of great, light weight shirts.

Ditto on this. Especially the expensive part. Our local store has great shoe selection too though.

Cotton T-shirt? What's the problem?

try usatf.org/store

RealTalk wrote:

Running stores cater to the moms and pops that decide they'll take up running. Or run a marathon in 5 hours. To the waddlers and penguins.

So their customers tend to have anything but a runners physique, hence the over sized shirts and shorts. They're fitting a 43 year old man who hasn't ran more than 3 miles since he was 18.

I work at a running store, and am sad to say that this couldn't be more true. Who has more disposable income, the middle aged housewife shopping for the 5k she's hoping to complete, or the fit post-collegiate just trying to find a job to pay off his student loans?

My local running store has a great selection of trainers, flats, and apparel for real runners! Mizuno, Nike, Asics split shorts in addition to the longer ones. I will admit that there is always a better selection of women's stuff compared to what us guys get to choose from.

That's because fast Eddie knows what he's doing!

I agree the shorts are too long real men show some thigh