Duct Tape: The Trail Runner's Best Friend

I was just reading Geoff’s comment in Sibylle Tinsel’s popular blog discussion about running in the rain. To summarize, Geoff doesn’t like to run in the rain because he ends up with bloody nipples. Sibylle, in turn calls him a wuss and suggests he use Band-Aids.

This got me thinking about the STORMY and how last year I crossed the finish line looking as if I’d been stabbed. It was hot and sunny. I had a singlet on, but for some reason it irritated my nipples. Both of them had been bleeding from near the top of 9-mile hill (about 20K from the finish) and my whole chest was bright, blood red.

I had a training run the next day and as soon as I put a t-shirt on, my nipples started to bleed again in the time it took me to get from the porch to the street. Too lazy to go in the house, I ducked into the garage and cut up a couple pieces of duct tape. That did the job: No more bleeding, the bandages didn’t fall off from the sweat and they stayed on when I went for a swim. Another use for duct tape!

Duct tape is a fantastic accessory for trail runners. Here are a few things I’ve used it for to kick off a discussion. I’m sure there are 101 uses for duct tape for trail runners and ultrarunners. Please chip in your thoughts:

1. A great patch for a bloody nipple or a great prevention for bloody nipples.
2. Better than moleskin for blisters. I learned this at the Western States 100. I’ve seen people’s feet that look like hamburger after this race. They even show some examples in the WS100 video as if it’s something to be proud about. Not me. I put duct tape on both feet at Devil’s Thumb before the minor abraisions got out of hand. These feet were immaculate afterwards.
3. Perfect for use on your lower back to prevent chaffing from the water bottle carrier
4. Great patch for when the bladder in your hydration pack springs a small leak
5. Holds your shades together if you sit on them and break the frame or arm. (Say, I did that to a pair of Oakleys. Someone said you can take them back if you break them because of stupidity ‘cause they have a lifetime warranty. Any truth to that?)
6. Cover the top of your hat to make it waterproof. True, I’ve never seen it done, but it makes sense, doesn’t it?
7. Tape straws to your hat. (Ron Gehl, a very accomplished ultrarunner and former member of Canada’s 100K national team, does this. God only knows why he tapes straws to his hat, but I’ll bet duct tape would keep them in place!)
8. Hold the sole on your shoe. I have a pair of Nike Skylons that my buddy Wayne Richardson sold me in 1996. They must have 15,000K on them. Since I have plantar fasciitis, I’m not allowed to run in them anymore, so I figured I’d use them as house slippers. I put them in the washing machine to clean out the stink and the soles started to delaminate. Duct tape fixed that!
9. Tie the ends of your laces together. Ever notice how all trail shoes have laces that are way too long? Personally, I prefer to put barrel locks on and cut the laces, but I see a lot of folks who tape their laces to their shoes with duct tape. Smart!