I’ve never been a big fan of one-tone clothing. Yes, okay: black goes on everything and hides your tummy; if you dress sober, you won’t go wrong. Between sober and boring, however, is often a short step. And then my grandmother taught me that in the mountains it’s better if you dress colorful, that you never know.
Wild Tee has been fighting boredom in (trail) running outfits since 2015, not for nothing one of their payoffs is performance with style. If you follow this column regularly, you will know that style and attention to detail are almost essential elements to go through these pages.
The soul of Wild Tee is definitely about our wild side, our relationship with nature and the environment around us. Reconnect with your nature, they say. Their daily commitment to protecting the land is one of the reasons why I invest in their products. An example? All deliveries in Milan and province are made by bicycle, whether it is five or fifty kilometers. In addition, the company adheres to the 1% For The Planet project, which means-among other things-that it donates at least 1 percent of its sales to nonprofit projects to protect our planet.
Beyond the physical and mental limits, when the primal instinct for survival kicks in, you may no longer remember your name, but you will discover everything about yourself. Wear nature. Rediscover the wildest part of yourself.
Another reason I particularly appreciate their clothing-perhaps obvious but you never know-is that these are products made with care and intelligence by someone who designs them knowing full well what a runner’s needs are. The founder of Wild Tee is in fact Filippo Canetta, whose resume as an ultra runner would need an entire ream of A4 leaf to print. In addition to being the first tester of each product, Philip routinely writes in the blog section of the site, and his accounts of such feats as the Spartathlon, Sakura Michi or Marathon des Sables fascinate me every time I reread them.
Finally when I look at myself reflected in the windows of parked cars as I run I nod in satisfaction. Always remember: if you can’t come first, at least come dressed well.
From their entire catalog, I have selected three pieces that I consider particularly noteworthy, which I have tested for hundreds of miles and use regularly.
The first favorite piece is undoubtedly the long-sleeved T-shirt from the color block collection-I own three of them (in different colors) and the trouble is, I almost always love the women’s palette more than the men’s. The color block is an ongoing collection, with a couple of new colors added each season.The fabric is extremely soft (my nipples thank you) and cool. A flaw? There is no short sleeve version: soon a signature collection to demand color block short sleeve.
The second favorite piece is the Lava Jacket, a windproof jacket–with or without a hood–that is ultra-light (93 grams!) and compressible that you can easily carry in your pocket. It is not a waterproof jacket but still does well in mid-season drizzle. Its special feature is the stretch fabric with a crepe effect: according to the body’s movements, the folds of the fabric uncover a core of fluorescent colors. Unfortunately, this is one of those cases where no photo or description will do the product justice, and you don’t realize its uniqueness until you have it in your hands.
The third and final piece is an accessory that I have previously named “the trail runner’s true fetish” namely theEndurance Tech Hat. I have a disproportionate number of these, too, to go with the outfit of the day: lightweight and very breathable, the visor is just stiff enough but soft enough to allow you to stuff the hat in a breast pocket should the need arise. Very hard to choose between the forest, yellow/green or the one with the reflective trim.