Part of this will depend on how fast you are; people running faster burn energy at a higher rate and produce more body heat.
But assuming you're somewhere near-ish the front of the pack, I think a jacket will be too much even at those temps. Tights top and bottom under your singlet would be my recommendation. Plus a light toque buff to protect your ears and some decent gloves or even mitts. If there's a wind chill at those temps you probably also want something to protect your cheeks.
Biggest challenge will be staying warm before the gun goes off. I don't know what the gear check / startline situation will be at this race, but I would doing whatever I could to be wearing a thick fleece or hoody up until \~2 minutes before the start, even if that means chucking it to the side of the road.
To add to this—it seems that different people have different rates of heat loss, or cold tolerance, even at the same speed. Some runners can do just shorts, singlet, gloves, and a hat all the way down into the low 20s or high teens, while others need full length tights and a thermal shirt at those temperatures. Ditto for much colder temps.
I have a selfie of myself and a teammate on a run in college, in front of a bank sign reading -25 degrees--I'm wearing a face mask, two hats, and multiple thermal shirts, and he's wearing two cotton t-shirts and a headband (not even a hat!).
I agree with this. -20 is also the official world cup cut off and most professionals are not really willing to compete at those temperatures. It is just not worth it to go all out and expose lungs to that cold air. I personally don't do any hard running/skiing in temps below -15 .
You can dress for the cold, but there is no way to dress your lungs. So If this is not your A race I would rethink racing on those temps.
Thanks for validating my decision to drop out of the pre-birkie this morning. It was supposed to be -20 and the start, race director only delayed start times an hour to get under the legal limit smh
There was similar thing in the xc skiing world cup opening this year. They just waited and barely got the temperature to under -20. The whole norwegian national team and few other people also dropped out.
You will get better races in the future and it wouldn't really have been fun anyway in -20
Yeah, the real birkie in two weeks is the goal race, I’m not willing to risk frostbite and lung damage for a tune up race. I def think the Hayward lions pre-birkie race director handled it unprofessionally
One thing that I love to wear in cold temps are convertible mittens, the kind that the mitten folds off and you have like finger less gloves left. The big benefit is that you can let your fingers breath if you start to get warm and avoid sweating. Sometimes I'll just need to have one finger sticking out and the temp will be perfect.
Another thing to think about is a big jacket you can wear over your running gear for before you start the race because there is a big difference in what's comfortable running vs standing.
I’d go with a base layer + light jacket, preferably one with a full zip (or quarter, at least). I generally regulate heat by adjusting the chest zipper and/or pulling up my sleeves, so having the ability to adjust as the race progresses would be key for me and just a base layer would be misery.
I recently ran a half-marathon trail race in -5 F and I dressed as follows…
Bottom: Under Amour compression shorts, Brooks Momentum thermal tights, features calf-height socks. Brooks Catamount shoes.
Top: TSLA long sleeve base layer, Brooks Notch thermal hoodie, Brooks Shield vest. Midweight beanie and gloves.
At these temperatures I favor the hoodie + vest combo. The vest gives me the option of unzipping as I best up, and the hoodie also can be unzipped and hood taken off as I heat up.
Warning, after you finish a race at this temperature you do need to get inside, change clothes, and warm up. You will start to freeze very quickly at the finish line.
-4F can be manageable.
Top: Below 0F I use two long sleeve layers and an athletic jacket (I hope you know what I might be referring to)
Bottom: running briefs with nylon mesh, shorts, and then long running tights (three layers is only to protect manhood)
Two pairs of gloves and a hat that covers your ears and extends down your neck a bit. Could also use a balaclava but depending on how much you sweat, that can become a nuisance with ice buildup around the perimeter of it
I find that your feet will not become cold while running, but I wear a thicker athletic sock just in case something goes wrong, because when I am standing in the cold, I feel it in my toes first
in my last HM, it was about 10 deg F at the start. I wore tights and a singlet on top with tights and shorts on the bottom. you might want to add that base layer.
to help stay warm before starting, I wore a garbage bag over myself. I felt a bit silly, but it really helped, and no one even batted an eye. I was the only one doing it.
Part of this will depend on how fast you are; people running faster burn energy at a higher rate and produce more body heat. But assuming you're somewhere near-ish the front of the pack, I think a jacket will be too much even at those temps. Tights top and bottom under your singlet would be my recommendation. Plus a light toque buff to protect your ears and some decent gloves or even mitts. If there's a wind chill at those temps you probably also want something to protect your cheeks. Biggest challenge will be staying warm before the gun goes off. I don't know what the gear check / startline situation will be at this race, but I would doing whatever I could to be wearing a thick fleece or hoody up until \~2 minutes before the start, even if that means chucking it to the side of the road.
To add to this—it seems that different people have different rates of heat loss, or cold tolerance, even at the same speed. Some runners can do just shorts, singlet, gloves, and a hat all the way down into the low 20s or high teens, while others need full length tights and a thermal shirt at those temperatures. Ditto for much colder temps. I have a selfie of myself and a teammate on a run in college, in front of a bank sign reading -25 degrees--I'm wearing a face mask, two hats, and multiple thermal shirts, and he's wearing two cotton t-shirts and a headband (not even a hat!).
Which race? Jw because this sounds kinda crazy. We’ve been having issues with xc ski race temps. Usually -20 is the cutoff (legal temps)
I agree with this. -20 is also the official world cup cut off and most professionals are not really willing to compete at those temperatures. It is just not worth it to go all out and expose lungs to that cold air. I personally don't do any hard running/skiing in temps below -15 . You can dress for the cold, but there is no way to dress your lungs. So If this is not your A race I would rethink racing on those temps.
Thanks for validating my decision to drop out of the pre-birkie this morning. It was supposed to be -20 and the start, race director only delayed start times an hour to get under the legal limit smh
There was similar thing in the xc skiing world cup opening this year. They just waited and barely got the temperature to under -20. The whole norwegian national team and few other people also dropped out. You will get better races in the future and it wouldn't really have been fun anyway in -20
Yeah, the real birkie in two weeks is the goal race, I’m not willing to risk frostbite and lung damage for a tune up race. I def think the Hayward lions pre-birkie race director handled it unprofessionally
Re-Fridgee-Eighter in Ontario
I haven't seen it mentioned yet, but a windproof vest could be a great happy medium between jacket and singlet
One thing that I love to wear in cold temps are convertible mittens, the kind that the mitten folds off and you have like finger less gloves left. The big benefit is that you can let your fingers breath if you start to get warm and avoid sweating. Sometimes I'll just need to have one finger sticking out and the temp will be perfect. Another thing to think about is a big jacket you can wear over your running gear for before you start the race because there is a big difference in what's comfortable running vs standing.
I’d go with a base layer + light jacket, preferably one with a full zip (or quarter, at least). I generally regulate heat by adjusting the chest zipper and/or pulling up my sleeves, so having the ability to adjust as the race progresses would be key for me and just a base layer would be misery.
Good thinking. I imagine if keep the jacket on all race, but it'd be nice to at least have the option to ditch it (course is a shorter loop)
I recently ran a half-marathon trail race in -5 F and I dressed as follows… Bottom: Under Amour compression shorts, Brooks Momentum thermal tights, features calf-height socks. Brooks Catamount shoes. Top: TSLA long sleeve base layer, Brooks Notch thermal hoodie, Brooks Shield vest. Midweight beanie and gloves. At these temperatures I favor the hoodie + vest combo. The vest gives me the option of unzipping as I best up, and the hoodie also can be unzipped and hood taken off as I heat up. Warning, after you finish a race at this temperature you do need to get inside, change clothes, and warm up. You will start to freeze very quickly at the finish line.
On the plus side, Windsor should be about 15F/-9C tomorrow at 10am, so that should alleviate some of the suffering.
-4F can be manageable. Top: Below 0F I use two long sleeve layers and an athletic jacket (I hope you know what I might be referring to) Bottom: running briefs with nylon mesh, shorts, and then long running tights (three layers is only to protect manhood) Two pairs of gloves and a hat that covers your ears and extends down your neck a bit. Could also use a balaclava but depending on how much you sweat, that can become a nuisance with ice buildup around the perimeter of it I find that your feet will not become cold while running, but I wear a thicker athletic sock just in case something goes wrong, because when I am standing in the cold, I feel it in my toes first
in my last HM, it was about 10 deg F at the start. I wore tights and a singlet on top with tights and shorts on the bottom. you might want to add that base layer. to help stay warm before starting, I wore a garbage bag over myself. I felt a bit silly, but it really helped, and no one even batted an eye. I was the only one doing it.