5/10/2011

This girl likes it dirty - Dirty Girl Gaiters review

I, for one, wouldn't be the perfect girl to run for president of the 'I like gravel and sand in my running shoes' fanclub. Not a fan. Not a fan at all. And somehow I always manage to get at least one tiny rock per run in one of my shoes. Gravel + running shoes = bloody blisters. Fact. Ouch. And since I love offroad/trail running too much, there really wasn't an easy way to avoid the gravel/sand.

But, lately I've been okay on the 'annoying rocks in my shoes' problemo. Apparently the running gods did hear my prayers for an affordable solution (because paying $40 or more for a pair of gaiters 'ain't my thing'): DirtyGirl Gaiters! Best. Looking. Gaiters. Ever. Plus, they work. Comfy. Easy to attach to the shoes. And...they keep the dirt out. :)

A few photos to show you what the DirtyGirl Gaiters look like:

DirtyGirl Gaiters has a wide variety of fun designs in stock. The Gaiters are made of a thin technical fabric that's really lightweight and dries superfast (yeah, baby!).


You attach the front part of the gaiter to your shoe laces with a hook. Easy peasy!


The gaiters come with a piece of velcro. Just stick the velcro to the heel of your shoes, and you're ready to go.

The photos above show you a pair of my trail running shoes with the gaiters on them. However, I also made a pair of my Asics GT-2150's gaiter ready, and wear gaiters with those to keep tiny rocks out (perfect in case I don't pick trail running shoes for offroad running). It works and keeps my feet happy.

You can order the gaiters online here.

Extra info

For those of you that would like to know a bit more about how to wear the DirtyGirl gaiters and getting your running shoes gaiter ready, here's some info I found on the DirtyGirl Gaiters' website.

"PREPARING THE SHOE:

Your shoes must be new, or, clean and dry. The spot where you will place the Velcro must be smooth.

If they are dirty, or have a groove in the heel, the strip may not adhere securely.

Shoes with grooved or uneven heel surfaces may need Velcro glue or epoxy glue to attach the strip. This glue can be purchased at Walmart, craft stores, office/hardware supply stores.

Cut off about an inch and a half of the self-adhesive Velcro strip for each shoe.

Attach it to the back heel of the shoe. Allow 12 to 24 hours for the strip to reach maximum adhesiveness."

"WEARING THE GAITER:

Put on your socks as usual.

Pull the gaiter on over the socks.

Put on your shoes over your socks and tie as usual.

Pull the gaiter over the shoe.

Attach the rear Velcro on the gaiter to the strip on the back of the shoe.

Hook the front hook under the shoe lace on the front of the shoe.

Adjust the gaiter over the top of the shoe.

Go outside and get dirty! "

I love love love the 'go outside and get dirty' bit! :)

7 comments:

Jill@Run for the Hills said...

Thanks for the info! I've got a trail half in the fall and this was on my list of things to get.

Kevin said...

I'm surprised you have not stopped by the blog today. I figured you would be all over today's post.

Nice post title. :-) I do not even what to know what type of search terms you will get from that one.

Kevin
HalfTRIing.blogspot.com

Rose @ Eat, Drink, and Be Meiri said...

I never thought to wear gaiters, but as I've been trail running recently, and my socks come away filthy, I need to seriously consider these.

Shellyrm ~ just a country runner said...

I need these too. The last 50k had a creek crossing with major silt. It was like running with sand paper in my one shoe! I was lucky that there were lots of creeks in that race and my shoes got washed out or my feet would have been a mess....okay, a bigger mess.

rinusrunning said...

Best wel geinige dingen en lekker vel gekleurd.
Volgens mij wel reuze handig in gebruik.
Ik zie dat je ze ook aan hebt op je blog kopfoto.

Unknown said...

How fun do those look? I assume you've already created a coordinated outfit, no?

The Green Girl said...

Those gaiters rock so hard. I have three pairs.