Race shirts are the t-shirts which you (typically) receive when signing up for a race. The shirts are anywhere from cotton to Dri Fit material, short sleeved to long sleeved and the list goes on. Call me picky but I don’t like just any old race shirt. No, I like a quality t-shirt that I will be proud to wear. Trust me, there have been several brightly colored race shirts I’ve acquired that haven’t seen the light of day.

There are two reasons why race shirts make running my sport of choice. One, acquiring a race shirt is akin to getting a trophy or medal but without actually having to win. Just for racing, I can be the proud owner of a symbol (the shirt) which lets everyone know that I accomplished a certain distance or ran a specific race. Two, having race shirts is a great way to build up my workout clothes inventory without having to buy it all at the store. They are a great way to supplement the workout clothes I already have.

Sure, it may seem like a silly reason to run but race shirts are a way for me to remember that all those hard training runs were worth it.