Every sport has its own look, from the Orvis catalogue persona of the fly fisherman to the black leather and colors of a motorcycle gang. As with each sport, the look comes from the performance products used by the participants.  The look of the runner comes from apparel and footwear that make us efficient, fast, comfortable and injury free, the products that work. I'm keen to pick out runners in any crowd, the run specific brands are dead give a ways. Who else but a runner would be styling in pop color footwear like a pair of Saucony Kinvara's or Brooks Pure Flow's when they could get a sporty look from $50 Nike models made specifically for big box stores? I'm sure only a runner would feel comfortable in public wearing neon colored CEP compression sleeves, or apparel with a brand name like Ron Hill, much like I would feel self conscious wearing leather chaps and a vest sporting a Harley logo.

All said, I like the running look and I am proud to wear our colors!

We run!

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner ... that feels as uncomfortable running out the door without compression calf sleeves as I do driving without a seatbelt ... even if I look strange to the rest of the couch potato world.

PS: National class runners from Utah, Colorado, Oregon and Michigan will be shooting to run the fastest mile ever run in the state of Michigan this Sunday, 8 PM at Saline High School. 3:55! A very cool event put on by our friends at the Running Institute. Info at Runninginstituteelite.com

PS: Runner's are a diverse and multifaceted bunch, example:  You may see Running Fit's apparel buyer Lora come to work looking like the most up to date fashion queen of the run or ... In full leather, chaps, tats and all, depending on the day, just sayin'...

P.S. Book Review: "On the lips of children" by Mark Matthews. YIKES! This is a very dark read that will haunt you on your next dark run! Not for everyone ... but I could not put it down! Mark nails the runner's mentality and how a hard run at a time you should be tapering can lead to more trouble than ruining your race, that is, if you think getting eaten by homeless cannibals is a worse fate than blowing a personal best! The book is available on Amazon, HERE, and should be out in print shortly. $3.99 for the digital copy.