Monday 17 August 2009

Those dry shirts really work

Those dry moisture-wicking sports shirts really work. I was dancing milonga with someone on Saturday and sweat was practically dripping from his nose, he was having to mop his face at every opportunity and I avoided head contact, but his shoulders, back and torso were absolutely dry.

I don't know what the brand name is, or if there's more than one; it might be dry-fit, I'm not sure. They tend to fit rather tightly and that might be a necessary part of how they work, but if you don't like the way that looks, you could probably wear one of the underwear styles under a normal shirt. It might even still make you feel cooler rather than hotter, because I think the way it works is to spread the sweat around and improve the way it evaporates, which how sweating cools you down in the first place. But there are also some that look like normal polo shirts. I have a dark blue Helly Hansen top for jogging (I think it must be an accidental overflow from my sister's wardrobe, as I have no memory of ever buying such a thing) which I think is in a similar fabric - it doesn't get sweaty, and washes at 60C. It says "100% polypropylene" on the label, but I think the trick is in the way it's spun and woven rather than the substance itself. It might be the same stuff as these - the 'cool' ones rather than the 'thermal'.

Anyway I was very impressed. It's a pity they don't do styles that would 'go' better.

5 comments:

AmpsterTango said...

Remember the Orange shirt? It was one of these that you describe.

Anonymous said...

I used to swear by those t-shirts back in the days of Modern Jiving. I was able to keep dancing on and on! Would feel a bit out of place if I wore them in Tango, especially with my level of skill (of lack of) ...

msHedgehog said...

@Ampster, I remember it well. It looked and fitted just like a normal polo shirt, maybe the one in your profile picture. I think the texture seemed normal too. What brand or manufacturer is it?

@yabotil, nothing that does a job that well and unobtrusively can be much out of place - but it probably is worth looking for the polo-shirt style. I don't know if anyone does suit-shirt-style ones. (If not, why not? You'd think they would sell them in the tropics for people to wear to work. Perhaps just not here - though a London commuter summer can get pretty sticky).

AmpsterTango said...

@ msHedgehog

It was Reebok.

Nike, Under Armor, Adidas, etc. all. They are normally in the "Golf shirt" section.

msHedgehog said...

I bet they don't need ironing, either.