Apparel & Shoes - Indoor Track Girls

TEAM APPAREL

Athlete & Parents:

ATHLETES WILL NEED TO PURCHASE BLACK UNIFORM SHORTS ON THEIR OWN. THEY CAN BE SPLIT SIDE SHORTS, COMPRESSION SHORTS, OR FULL LENGTH COMPRESSIONS OR TIGHTS.

RUNNING SHOES

2 Local stores that offer free stride analysis (video record you running a few steps on a treadmill), advice from actual runners, and a 10-15% discount when you tell them you're on a high school running team.

Pacers Running Store, 10420 North St in old town Fairfax, (703) 537-0630

Potomac River Running, 11895 Grand Commons Ave at Fairfax Corner, (703) 988-9700.

For track training, we recommend that athletes wear running shoes designed for training on roads and trails. This means they’re made of lighter materials than basketball or tennis shoes, and have strong shock resistant properties to protect against leg injuries. Running shoes are adapted to 3 kids of feet/running styles. Those with high arches (requiring more flexibility), those with flat feet (requiring more stability), and those with severe pronation (rolling of the foot). Most running stores can watch you run a few strides around the store or on a treadmill and assess your running style. Then they can recommend shoes according to your style and foot strike. Most training shoes are designed to provide proper shock absorption and wear for 500 miles which equates to 3-4 months for our veteran distance runners and 1 year for sprinters and new distance runners.

I recommend training shoes which are moderately priced ($70-100). Popular brands are Asics, Saucony, Brooks, Nike and New Balance. Nike tends to run more expensive.

For indoor track races, athletes can wear one of many special racing shoes:

Athletes should ask Coach Odell which competition shoes are right for them.

Sprint spikes - have stiff plastic spike plate and little if no padding.
Distance track spikes – usually a lighter, thinner sole than x-country spikes, , removeable metal spikes (1/4-5/8”), ¼ inch of cushioning, and sometime a plastic spike plate. Plastic spike plates are not allowed at the TJMS track where we have 2 open meets.
X-country spikes – have rubber tread, removeable metal spikes (1/4-5/8”), ¼ inch of cushioning, and no plastic spike plate.
Road racing flats – very light weight, blown foam, very little rubber, ¼-1/2 inch of cushioning, flat or very little tread on the sole

Racing shoes range from $50-100+. The $50 models are ok for most high school runners, though some top runners prefer some of the more expensive models.

If you know your sizing in a specific model, you can look for discounts from the following websites: