Custom Running Shirts for Training and Races
Runners Can Express Themselves by Wearing Customized Apparel
Oct 22, 2009
A good running shirt should be comfortable, allowing the body to move without chafing, offering some protection from the elements, and wicking away moisture. But beyond these basic needs, runners can choose shirts that are both fun and functional. Custom-designed shirts allow runners – as well as walkers and wheelchair athletes – to share their individual motivations, interests and goals.
There are many companies that sell running shirts with quirky expressions and cool graphics, including One More Mile Running and See Jane Run. Runners who wear their products identify with the brand as a reflection of their own interests.
A custom shirt, though, goes one step further in expressing a runner’s personality. It provides unique information about the runner, a sort of moving billboard that advertises the individual. They’re memorable and expressive. Those qualities make custom shirts an appealing addition to a runner’s wardrobe.
Custom Shirts for Training and Races
Custom shirts are good options for individuals and groups to wear during training and on race days. The shirts help spectators spot individuals, generate conversation between runners, and can help locate runners in race photos. If designed for a particular event, a personalized shirt can also serve as a memento worn before, during, or after the event.
Six Ideas for Customizing a Running Shirt
- Encourage Personal Recognition. A simple custom shirt printed with a runner’s name allows spectators to address their words of encouragement to individuals. That kind of personal recognition can make time spent in training or on a race course go faster.
- Express Motivation and Personality. The text and graphics of a custom shirt can share a runner’s training mantra or favorite inspirational quote. It can demonstrate a person’s sense of humor. Or a shirt can reveal the wearer’s other interests, such as a hobby.
- Commemorate an Event or Accomplishment. Shirts can anticipate, observe, and then remember a runner’s first marathon, a birthday or an anniversary, or meeting a personal challenge
- Honor an Individual. Shirts can let others know if a runner is participating in memory of someone, and why.
- Identify Groups and Show Team Pride. Wearing “team colors” can help foster camaraderie. Custom shirts identify race participants as being united by a common bond: a relay team, work groups, a family gathering, a fundraising challenge. Wearing the same shirt can also help runners identify each other on the course, which is important for larger groups.
- Promote Causes, Organizations, and Businesses. Shirts can endorse or publicize things important to the runner, ranging from charity organizations to company sponsors.
Choosing a Custom-Shirt Company
Those interested in ordering a custom shirt should compare several companies to see which one best fits their needs. Although by no means a comprehensive list, familiar names include Running Banana and Race Ready, which specialize in running shirts, and Custom Ink, which offers a broad range of merchandise. Choosing a printer can be difficult, however, because needs vary. Is the order a single shirt, a small quantity, or a bulk order? How much design assistance is needed? What is the desired turn-around deadline?
These guidelines will help runners identify a custom-shirt company that best fit their needs. Choose a printer that:
- Carries athletic clothing for running, cycling, duathlons, or triathlons. A shirt should be performance wear made of a technical fabric (wicking, not cotton).
- Provides clear information about its production process (dye, silkscreen, digital), fabric, styles, and sizes.
- Offers in-house design assistance to help customers work with text and graphics, and submits proofs to customers for approval.
- Prints in the desired quantity at a reasonable cost. A single shirt will often, but not always, cost more than bulk orders.
- Presents a reasonable production time frame for the quantity desired.
Runners love their workout clothing almost as much as they love running. And because they frequently need new shirts to replace the sweaty old ones, a custom shirt that expresses the personality of its wearer is a distinctive option for runners.
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