Is It OK to Wear the Official Race Shirt on Race Day?

No, wearing the race shirt is a rookie move.
By David E. Graf

I would like to start off by quoting the good book, The Runner's Rule Book, page 133, Rule 3.5:

"Wearing the official race shirt during the race is like wearing a U2 t-shirt to a U2 concert. Not cool. Don't do it."

Life has many unwritten rules, and runners, this is a non-negotiable aimed directly at us. You cannot wear the official race shirt during the race. Doing so is a rookie error that will make you look not only like a total noob but could also dramatically hurt your race.

First, the practical reason for not wearing the official race shirt during the race: You've never run in it before. As tempting as it can be to try out a new piece of gear, stick with what you know and what you've been training in. You never know when or if a new piece of clothing will chafe until you've tried it out on a run. After all your training and preparation, race day is not the time to experiment and potentially ruin a goal you've been working toward for some time.

Stay with me on this--I have supporting evidence. At a Runner's World event several years ago, an organizer handed us brand-new RW shirts. Caught up in running my first race as a Runner's World editor, I wore the shirt and suffered through the equivalent of running a half-marathon with cheese graters strapped to my chest.

The post-run shower was the worst part of the race.

Second, a race shirt is something you'll wear for a long time after the race, and it will be a point of pride and conversation. It's your way of showing fellow runners on the road or at the grocery store that yes, the Bix 7 is a great race and worth the trip, and yes, you did find the Steamtown Marathon's downhill layout to be punishing on your legs. Wearing the shirt to the starting line shows that you believe you already have the race wrapped up, but all runners eventually learn that sometimes race day just isn't your day, and DNFs are unavoidable over a long running life.

So the bottom line is save the race shirt for after the race. After all, you don't want to be "that guy."

Yes, unless you're a grumpy elitist.
By Robert James Reese.

Anyone who tells you that you shouldn't be wearing the race shirt during the race is just being an grumpy elitist. They probably weren't hugged enough as a child.

Their first argument is often that it's bad luck to wear a shirt for a race that you didn't yet finish. Well, I suppose that if you go out of your way to avoid black cats and ladders, you might as well play along with this superstition, too. But I've not seen any empirical evidence to suggest that any sort of misfortune will befall you just because you wore a race shirt before finishing the race it represents.

Those same naysayers often go on to tell you that you'll look dumb for wearing the same thing as everyone else. I suggest you counter this with, "No, you're dumb." Or if you'd like to be a little more grown up in your response, ask them if they think that the Dallas Cowboys look dumb because they're all wearing the same thing.

Having the official shirt on will make your race photos look more authentic -- not to mention cool -- and it will make it easier for you to remember which race was which when you're flipping through your future album of race faces.

The only legitimate argument against wearing the race's shirt in the race is that chafing can occur when wearing something new for the first time on race day. But that's true for marathons; 5Ks, not so much. Unless you have super-sensitive skin, you're not going to see any problems from wearing a new shirt on a 3.1-mile run.

You just got the shirt, so it's likely the newest (and therefore coolest) thing in your closet. The urge to wear it will be strong. Embrace it.

Your Response

We tallied up your votes and found that most of you – 68% to be exact – say runners shouldn't wear the official race shirt on race day. 10,866 voted no, 5,177 voted yes.