We’ve all heard it…. if you are going to run or do exercise, you want some type of fabric that wicks away the moisture. Somewhere along the line, that seemed to limit the use of natural fibers like my beloved cotton. But there are a couple of products in the market that have more people looking at cotton. And I just wanted to point them out in case you are in the market for some great gear for athletes and outdoor enthusiasts. Since the natural fibers offer a better feel, increasing some of the performance characteristics means everyone can have a win-win!

UnderArmour’s Charged Cotton

I have mentioned Charged Cotton from UnderArmour and previously posted about the ad campaign that had me UnderArmour free. But I only saw UnderArmour’s cotton products recently while shopping my 16-year-old nephew (it was his birthday shopping trip!). I was impressed with how big the selection of Charged Cotton was! The signs clearly position it as active wear when you aren’t sure of or you don’t care what the weather will do. Take to the road in the rain cause its weather tough. There are hoodies, t-shirts, etc. and they all feel really good. I may just have some under the Christmas tree as a result!

Gear Junkie Reviews ‘Performance’ Underwear made of Cotton

A couple of weeks ago, I caught this product review from Gear Junkie and thought to myself…. this HAS to go on the blog! If you are familiar with the Gear Junkie site, you know that whether you need winter boots, the latest in cycling or camping gear, etc, then its a site to check out. To see them covering underwear is…. well…. unexpected.

Cotton underwear. Seriously, that is the topic of this column. But these boxer shorts, made by Longworth Industries Inc. of North Carolina, are not knitted with your run-of-the-mill white fluff. Marketed as “performance underwear,” the company’s Polarmax AYG line of men’s and women’s boxers and briefs feature a special cotton type branded as TransDRY.

The quick summary of TransDRY is that it is a fabric that looks and feels like normal cotton, but it breathes like a synthetic. The secret is in a chemical treatment applied to the threads that helps disperse moisture that might otherwise get caught up in the fine filaments on each cotton strand.

In my use, the TransDRY treatment seems to work. I have worn the boxer shorts on long hikes and on backpacking trips that last a couple days. (No, I did not change my underwear the whole trip!) The TransDRY fabric is indeed a neat product, as it creates a comfortable, non-clammy environment inside boxer shorts that otherwise might act like normal Fruit of the Looms.

A bonus is the underwear’s anti-microbial treatment, which is necessary for trips where your skivvies might do duty for a couple days in a row. The treatment helps with odor and “enhanced comfort and hygiene,” as the company puts it.

The feel of TransDRY is that of a thin cotton fabric, comfortable and light. On the underwear, a strong elastic waistband keeps them in place, and an athletic cut allows for free motion.

via ‘Performance’ Underwear made of Cotton | Gear Review | Gear Junkie.

Do you have any athletes on your shopping lists? If so, this may work!

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Today is a day that has taken QUITE A WHILE to come. It’s one that I am POSITIVE a number of friends have been waiting for! For years, I have walked into various sporting goods shops… and as I’d near the clothing sections, I’d feel an uneasiness… In fact, I’d feel damn well unwelcome frequently. So much so that if a certain thing was seen, I would take photos with my phone & share the with words of caution to friends. Here’s what would make my redhead temper flare:

The ad would fire me up. And when I saw friends wearing Under Armour clothes, I’d mention the ad campaign. And when I saw land grant schools (who were being paid tens of thousands of dollars by thousands of cotton farmers) sporting the UA logo on team gear, I would get mad. I couldn’t think that maybe the garment had some performance characteristics like wickability or something because all I saw was “COTTON IS THE ENEMY.” 

Now, to be clear, I prefer cotton and think that the fabric of my life feels awesome. I tend to prefer other natural fibers like silk, linen and wool too. BUT I don’t think I’ve even said polyester or any other synthetics were the enemy. In fact, I think there is a real role for them. And I say that while wearing a pair of jeans, a favorite t-shirt (both 100 percent cotton) and a Polartech Mountain Hard Wear jacket that is 100 percent polyester.

See, it was the heated word “enemy” that repeatedly brought my heated reaction. Sort of a tit-for-tat that was unwritten. And I’m sure I am not the only one as I saw a friend from Texas recently point to the phrase when a mutual friend’s profile photo on Facebook included the UA logo.

But months ago, I began hearing rumors in the cotton industry that maybe we could all get along. I was told Under Armour’s ad campaign had changed and visits to their website had me coming up empty for the cotton hatin’ words. I decided to cool off & have practiced UA neutrality for a while. Then came an announcement I had hoped for, it popped up in the daily news email from the National Cotton Council.

Under Armour to introduce cotton shirt in 2011

Baltimore Business Journal – by Ryan Sharrow

Cotton is no longer Under Armour Inc.’s enemy.

Under Armour CEO Kevin A. Plank said Tuesday the Baltimore sportswear maker will introduce its “first true performance cotton shirt” next spring.

The product will “introduce Under Armour to a whole new level of consumers,” Plank told analysts on a conference call while discussing the company’s third-quarter earnings. “We’re confident this innovation will expand both the reach and the equity of our brand.”

For years, Plank has declared “cotton is the enemy” to investors and customers.

via Under Armour to introduce cotton shirt in 2011 | Baltimore Business Journal.

WOW! Read the first line of that article again — “Cotton is no longer Under Armour Inc.’s enemy.” Seriously, that makes my day. And it is the sort of thing that we need to see a lot more of, if you ask me.

I see or hear equally hot words pop up all too often. In fact, a couple of weeks ago in a Twitter discussion — a forum founded on the idea of bringing different viewpoints together — I saw words like “bigot” and “invade” used to talked about people who believed differently and ways to counter those opinions. It’s still stuck with me today. And yet, had the words been better chosen, I would have most certainly agreed with the person’s viewpoint. The word “bigot” turned me off immediately so I can only imagine what it did for people who disagreed.

If you use a word that strong, you have to realize you have killed any productive conversation. You could be expressing your opinion on something totally unrelated but by showing a lack of acceptance of diversity, you make things black and white rather than allow for grays.

The fact is one word can make a difference between possibility of working together to being diametrically opposed to each other. At the end of the day, I just don’t see that as helping any of us. It’s easier not to make enemies to begin with if you ask me.

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