3 Ways to Stay Cool on the Run
By John Hanc
Runner's World
Miami Ice: Steve Brookner of the Bikila Athletic Club in Miami came up with this idea while running the marathon leg of
Ironman Arizona. "They had thin sponges at each aid station," he says. "So I took one and grabbed a couple of ice cubes." He put the cubes on top of the sponge, then put his hat on over both. As the ice melted into the sponge, it created a cool spot on his head and a nice trickle of water running down his neck.
The Tucson Cold Cap: Randy Accetta, president of the Southern Arizona Roadrunners and a 1996
Olympic Trials marathoner, keeps his head cool in the extreme heat of Tucson with his "cold cap." "I'll soak a baseball cap in water and put it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or overnight before a morning run," he says. "An old baseball cap retains the moisture longer than the new technical hats."
The Badwater Bandanna: For years, Denise Jones puzzled over the best way to keep the competitors in the
Badwater Ultramarathon cool. Finally, Jones—considered the "dean" of Badwater aid-station volunteers—came up with the answer: Lay a bandanna out in a diamond shape. Place a row of ice cubes in a horizontal line, just below one tip of the bandanna. Then roll it up "like a burrito," and tie it around your neck. "We've found that this is the best way to keep runners cool," she says. "It feels wonderful."
