Run Run Away

Question:

My solution to keeping the smell (and salt) out of my running gear is to walk straight into the shower wearing it all except my shoes, whereupon I get undressed, washing as I go, until I get down to my HRM transmitter, which also gets a scrub! Oh yes, and then I clean me.

I do the same thing, sans the HRM, for my running clothes at work, and then hang them to dry. My clothes stay pretty fresh for quite a while. I’ve never understood why more people don’t do this. It sure beats putting on clothes that were stored in a gym bag while wet the day before. – Rod

Response:

I do the same thing, sans the HRM, for my running clothes at work, and then hang them to dry. My clothes stay pretty fresh for quite a while. I’ve never understood why more people don’t do this. It sure beats putting on clothes that were stored in a gym bag while wet the day before.

   I, too, wash my stuff in the shower. It doesn’t take too much time and a little bit of soap and warm water do the trick. Pinar —   H. Pinar Zengingonul                "Without music, life would be a mistake."                                       -Nietzsche   ECE, University of Illinois

Response:

You wash em and they still stink?  What the hell are you sweating?  Maybe you should use more soap! Actually the smell comes from bacteria living in the polypro, and soap does not kill them.  My doctor, an avid ultrarunner like myself, said about the only way to get rid of the bacteria is to wash the synthetics with bleach (real bleach).  It works. Milt

My bride of 30 years or so once complained that my amateur radio station looked like a rat’s nest. To which I responded: "It’s supposed to look like a rat’s nest." Later, she remarked that my running gear smelled bad. To which I responded: "Real runner’s gear smells sweaty." To which she responded by throwing it out into the yard.  Shoes, shorts, jocks, socks, knit caps, long underwear, the whole works. Now, I strip off in the laundry room and throw in in the washer. The amateur radio station, however, is another story.

Response:

| Actually the smell comes from bacteria living in the polypro, | and soap does not kill them.  My doctor, an avid ultrarunner | like myself, said about the only way to get rid of the bacteria | is to wash the synthetics with bleach (real bleach).  It works. Some time back one of the running rags evaluated some of the running tops and gave then the "stink" test(or some such odious factor). Anyway, if you want to avoid the smell, throw them into the wash machine as soon as you peel it off your body. You invite the stink when you let it dry. If you don’t have a washer handy, wash it by hand or at least soak it until you get to the washer. The thought of spending $70+ on a Drylete top and using bleach, makes me uncomfortable. By the way, I used my Drylete top in 2 degrees with a negative degrees when rolling in the wind and it behaved beautifully. It was a 2 hour run. — Doug Freese  All opinions are mine. IBM Tele: 8-293-8098

Response:

| Actually the smell comes from bacteria living in the polypro, | and soap does not kill them.  My doctor, an avid ultrarunner | like myself, said about the only way to get rid of the bacteria | is to wash the synthetics with bleach (real bleach).  It works.

snip machine as soon as you peel it off your body. You invite the stink when you let it dry. If you don’t have a washer handy, wash it by hand or at least soak it until you get to the washer.

snip My solution to keeping the smell (and salt) out of my running gear is to walk straight into the shower wearing it all except my shoes, whereupon I get undressed, washing as I go, until I get down to my HRM transmitter, which also gets a scrub! Oh yes, and then I clean me. — Mark Peters                   Department of Artificial Intelligence                               School of Computer Science and Engineering fax:     +61-(0)2-9385 1814   Sydney  NSW 2052  Australia mobile:  +61-(0)15 705 854    http://www.cse.unsw.edu.au/~markpeters

Response:

You wash em and they still stink?  What the hell are you sweating?  Maybe you should use more soap! "Conan, what is best in life?" "Kill your enemy, see him driven before you, and hear the lamentation of his womenfolk." —Arnold Schwartzennegger, Conan the Barbarian

Response:

You wash em and they still stink?  What the hell are you sweating?  Maybe you should use more soap!

Actually the smell comes from bacteria living in the polypro, and soap does not kill them.  My doctor, an avid ultrarunner like myself, said about the only way to get rid of the bacteria is to wash the synthetics with bleach (real bleach).  It works. Milt

Response:

        My shirts stink!  I want to put away these shirts because while they were useful in Kansas and Alabama, they aren’t really needed here in Cyprus. THe only problem is that they *really* stink!! (in defense of my sweat glands, I did share these shirts with my dad.) I have washed them but they still stink. Anyone have stink free polypropylene shirts? Any tips on getting the stink out? Thanks, Erika Hargadine

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