My Gear

I think I finally have the perfect gear set-up, especially for pack runs. If you’re a gear-geek, read on. If not, you might wanna pass on this post =)

If you’ve followed the blog for a while, you’ll know that gear has been a constant factor in what we’re doing. From the early days we stressed about packs being too large, packs being too small, what fits right in the pack to add weight, the proper footwear (shoes and socks), shorts rubbing in the wrong places, rain-gear, head-gear, gloves, etc., etc. We’ve been through many iterations of the overall gear set-up.

I was thinking about this yesterday, and realized that my current gear set-up is about three generations beyond what it was on day one, and that I haven’t talked much about gear in the past year or so. So, here it is…the rundown on my current gear, and I think it’s just about perfect.

Shoes: I’m running with Vibram Five-Fingers KSO Treks. These are perfect for what I’m doing. Despite what you may read, the soles have plenty of flexibility for running, my feet do not feel constrained in free movement at all. Plus, the Treks provide plenty of protection from rocks and whatnot while trail running and transition quite well to the road for limited distances. These, of course, are exactly the conditions to be found at White Sands. WARNING: You cannot throw Fivers on on day one and go run your normal distance. I spent six months specifically retraining my feet and lower legs to the Fivers, and even so ended up with two minor running injuries in the process. You MUST ease into the use of these. On the upside, I have had zero pain in the feet and lower legs since fully acclimating to them, and this lower extremity pain was a very significant problem for me through the first year or so of training, almost causing me to quit multiple times early on.

Socks: Injinji Performance Mini Crew Toesocks. Warm, comfortable, and required extra padding for long distance (15+ miles) hikes and runs while wearing Fivers. Love the socks.

Lower Body: Underarmor Compression Briefs and standard high durability hiking shorts. I got away from running shorts early on, mostly due to where packs tend to sit on the hips causing problems around the waist. Moving to the hiking shorts through caused some issues with too much free-space in the crotch area resulting in rubbing issues. Hence enter the compression briefs. I like them so much I wear them almost all the time now even in street clothes. They’re comfy, and best of all keep everything in the right place so no rubbing. Just as important, the underarmors specifically are the right fabric to create some free movement between the fabric of the briefs and the fabric of the shorts, resulting in no “bunching” of material. Doesn’t sound like a big deal. Is a big deal. After 20 miles, a “roll” of material trapped between layers of clothes with external weight pushing the roll into your skin becomes an agonizing experience right up there with 5 minutes in the gas chamber of Parris Island.

Upper Body, Underarmor HeatGear (ColdGear in winter) Longsleeves. Alternately, Champion Brand Wicking Longsleeves (while lower durability, they’re less expensive and do the same thing). Yes, you have your moisture wicking which is incredibly important…but you also have the sheer material which allows non-friction between the shorts and the shirt around the waist and critically between the pack and your back (upper and lower). I literally wore bloody holes in my shoulder blades learning this lesson. Do not run with a pack in a standard cotton T-shirt. As much as I love wearing my Trappe Fire and Ambulance Company and my 2010 Bataan Memorial Death March T-shirts when I run, doing so is the equivalent of saying “I’d like to carry an extra liter of water with me to make up for the blood loss.”

Head: Marine Corps Boonie Hat in the summer. Just cuz. There actually is a practical reason, that being the sun protection for the face and back of the neck in desert conditions. That said I usually wear it with the sides strapped up anyway simply because it looks better. I’m vain, sue me. In the winter I just wear a standard close-fitting knit cap.

Pack: Modified Osprey Raptor 14. Very modified. The pack is probably the single thing that has changed the most over the past couple of years. We’ve done everything from 65 liter packs to 14s, and most of the in-between. I’m currently in love with *my* Raptor 14. Its compartment is the perfect size for three 10 lbs. dumbbells (with plastic coating on the dumbbells and their shape and size they fit snuggly into the pack and nearly fill the whole pack which evenly distributes the weight and provides for zero movement of the weight inside the pack) and a 5 lbs. plate sitting on top. The pack “wears” in the center of the back, between the shoulder blades, allowing the shoulder blades to help stabilize the side to side movement of the weight when you run…which is very important. The hydration system is brand new this year, and provides awesome rigidity to the whole pack which adds to the stabilization of the weight for almost *zero* pack movement while you run.

My modifications: I added plastic strap holders to the shoulder straps down below the armpits. A constant problem with carrying weight in a pack, especially running, is the constant need to adjust the shoulder straps due to slippage. Doing that three times a mile for anything more than a third of a mile gets extremely annoying. No more. It does make it a bit of an issue to adjust the fit the first time, but once its right it stays right. Since I don’t use my pack for anything else (right now), I don’t need it to fit any differently than it does while running with 40 lbs.

I also added memory foam seat-belt pads to the shoulder straps. This was an ingenious idea offered up by a workmate, in response to my one complaint about running with a Raptor 14 with 40 lbs. in it. The shoulder straps are designed as any lightweight 14 liter pack should be designed…to carry next to no weight. My training is the opposite, I’m purposely trying to put 40 lbs. in a package that’s as small and tight as possible to minimize (no, to completely destroy) any and all bounce and side to side movement of the pack. No one out there makes a pack that’s that small and can carry that much weight. By design, the shoulderstraps on the Raptor 14 are lightweight and narrow, and with forty pounds in the pack while running they dig right into your shoulders with a vengeance and don’t let go. After about 5 miles the pain of this is intense, and after about 8 miles you tend to lose the feeling in your arms right down to your fingertips. I learned the hard way (several different times now) that when things go numb, bad things are happening to your body. Numbness is to be avoided at all costs. So, my Raptor 14 now sports custom shoulderpads which are wide enough to distribute the weight evenly across a broader surface of the shoulder.

And the last pack modification…carabiners, because carabiners look cool and everyone needs carabiners. The more carabiners you have, the more you look like you know what you’re doing.