there’s nothing that rustles my jimmies more than those people who defend wearing cotton while running or hiking long distances because ‘oh mankind has been wearing cotton for hundreds of years and we’ve been fine’ no you sad sack of inexperienced lotion that’s not how it works and this is why ok
cotton absorbs water. when your arse is 10 kilometres into running over two alpine mountains you don’t bloody want all of your sweat to have been sucked in by your shirt. especially if it’s an alpine mountain. because your shirt is wet and the alpine wind is blowing and you know what that means?
you’re gonna get really fucking cold. but hey, your core is really warm because as i said, you’re 10km into your run so you don’t really realise that you’re, oh, idk, in the first stages of hypothermia until you like, pass out or some shit like that.
we don’t want that! no one wants you to pass out or catch some kind of horrible cold or something equally as horrible. now apply that shituation to a long hike.
you’re hiking, it’s cold as fuck, because why not, alpine regions remain cold as fuck even in the middle of summer, and you’re just all sweaty and gross because everyone gets sweaty and gross when they’re trekking over large mountains with like, 26 kilos on their back.
between that pack and your back is a cotton shirt. a sweaty, damp, probably mildrewy by this point of the hike cotton shirt. caught by your waist strap, which you better bloody be using, by the way. no one wants 26 whole kilos sitting on your shoulders. transfer that shit to your hips. it’ll change your life.
[this, by the way, extends to every pack in life. if your schoolbag is straining your shoulders a bit too much, put on both shoulder straps, and then snap together the waist one.]
now that cotton shirt is gonna chafe. and seriously, there is nothing more uncomfortable than chafing when you’re hauling yourself down an avalanche path while it’s raining and you can’t see shit and your knees are kicking up a fuss, to boot. yes i have experienced the latter firsthand it was horrible i had to hold someone’s hand to get down and i think i cried a little from the pain. but AT LEAST I WASN’T CHAFING BECAUSE I WAS WEARING QUICK-DRY
yeah, it’s raining too. it’s raining and it’s cold and wet and if you don’t get hypothermia by the time you’ve gotten to the next rest stop, well, your shirt sure as shit isn’t going to dry for a lovely long while. so yeah, that’s a wonderful illness that you’re possibly looking at too.
so yes! this is why you should always, always wear quick-dry material when you are hiking, running, or just exercising in general! please do it guys, seriously. it might cost a lot more but just haul yourself down to target or kmart or kathmandu if you’re taking it far more seriously and buy yourself some quick-dry.
