Icebreaker - Pure Merino

What a week we had. All 15 members of Team CatWalk made it safely round the NYC marathon and lived to tell the tale! To come all the way from New Zealand to participate in the world’s greatest marathon was an amazing experience and boy, does New York know how to host a party?! What an incredible atmostphere – the spectators, the bands, the food, the flags; just amazing.

Our sponsored Icebreaker gear was such an awesome treat too. To get logoed running tees (Rush Crewe for women and Ace Crewe for men) and a hoodie (GT260 Quantum Hood) really cemented the Team, we could spot each other in the hotel (even if not on the road with 47,000 other runners!) and they are so warm – essential in a New York winter! We were really proud to be showcasing fantastic NZ merino quality clothing on the international stage.

Of course New Yorkers know all about Icebreaker because of the phenomenal TouchLab store there. As we discovered on our second night in NYC, it’s also a great place for a party! We had a great night meeting other like minded runners and getting excited about the big event. The cute ‘Ram’ mascot was an added bonus to the evening!

Running a marathon for a worthy cause combines a trip to one of the greatest cities in the world with a ‘bucket list’ tick and a high feel good factor for the Team CatWalk members. Knowing a world class company like Icebreaker is also supporting us gives us that bit more energy to keep going when we are wondering what we signed ourselves up for. We will get spinal cord injured people out of wheelchairs and back on their feet, and Icebreaker will have helped. Everyone’s a winner (except possibly the odd toenail!)

www.catwalk.org.nz

Nicola Holmwood, Team Manager for Team CatWalk 2011

Due to the success of ‘Team Ariki in the 2010 edition of the Hood to Coast relay race, we are back running this weekend for our second attempt at claiming glory.  Last year we were the third placed team overall so gained automatic entry into a race that often has to turn away close to 1,000 teams.  If Bob Foote the founder of Hood to Coast is to be believed, the secret of our success last year was the Portland beer and girls.

The Hood to Coast is a 197 mile running relay race with over a thousand teams competing.  The race is based around the city and surrounding areas of Portland in the United States.  The race starts half way up Mount Hood and finishes on the coast at Seaside.  Each team has 12 runners and these runners complete 3 legs each.  The relay see us run over a variety of terrains, weather conditions and times of day, which will once again test us both mentally and physically.

Our team is made up of runners who specialise in variety of distances ranging from 800m to marathons.  Most of us have run for the Ariki Club which is based in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand (close to the birth place of Icebreaker) during our running careers. Due to us being a New Zealand team, Icebreaker felt it was only right that we wear their merino.  Team Ariki is honoured to be supplied by Icebreaker, there is a compelling logic to this combination/partnership as Icebreaker will be represented at the worlds largest relay by a group of first class runners from the same region, equally hardy and resilient as the raw materials from Icebreaker’s products.  We are determined to perform well for both Icebreaker and our supporters back home.

- Alastair Chisnall, Team Ariki Captain

It started as a simple bet; if a certain number of people liked the Teton Running Company Facebook page, I would  let the public choose my outfit for a the next local race. No harm there, I thought. I’ll probably end up running in some high split shorts and a bright jersey.

Turns out the people felt I needed a little more support and that I had a stomach to die for, or at least laugh at. The votes were counted and a running skirt and sports bra reigned as champions.

The skirt seemed simple enough, a compression short with some extra drapery, in all reality very comfortable. The sports bra was another issue. Ask any girl and they will tell you this is a big deal. Make the wrong choice and you will be bouncing, rubbing, or even worse you might have the highly feared (and completely detestable) ‘uni-boob’.  Can you see the environment for a nickname being created if I made the wrong decision? The Icebreaker GT Run Rush Bra was the obvious choice.  Icebreaker fits great and if I was going to subject my man chest to tight fitting womenswear (and inevitable humiliation),  I could only put my trust in the sheep. I never see any sheep taking flack about their chests.

The race went beautifully. I looked great, had no support problems, and the merino felt amazing. Chest sweat was no issue and I’m certain that’s the best I’ve ever smelled after a race. Just like the bra, I was hot to trot.

- Gray Augustus, Store Manager, Teton Running Company