Fabric Guide
DRYROAD®
DRYROAD® is Road Runner Sports' own fabric line and is exceptional at moving heat
and moisture away from the body. Engineered to dry quickly, you can work out and always feel
dry and comfortable. What that also means is your endurance and overall performance will
benefit since you'll spend less energy cooling off your body.
You have lots of great choices in DRYROAD® apparel for men's and women's shorts,
singlets, tops, tights, capris and innerwear. Airlyte Pro Distance Tee and Singlet, Finisher
Short, Matchmate Short, Double Short and the Buddy Short are just a few of the garments made
from DRYROAD®.
DRYROAD® may be combined with other materials such as Lycra®,
Supplex® or microfiber. Garments blended with microfibers are known for their soft,
silky touch and drape beautifully on runners like you. They allow lightweight breathability and
resist wrinkles for easy care.
TRANSPOR®
Another Road Runner Sports material, TRANSPOR® is a light, cooling and fast drying
fabric. The soft material allows air to move freely without resorting to the mesh look.
COOLMAX®
You've undoubtedly heard about this fabric. Developed in 1986 as the first moisture management
fabric, CoolMax® was revolutionary. As you sweat, the moisture moves to the outer
layer of the fabric where it evaporates quickly and faster than any other fabric. You stay dry
as you work out and in the summer, you'll be cool and in the winter, you'll be warm thanks to
this moisture transfer. There's also less opportunity for chafing if you're dry and able to
move comfortably.
SUPPLEX®
Take the best that cotton can offer runners (its softness) and the best of what nylon can offer
(strength), and you get Supplex® . Its soft, supple feel combines with the
durability and performance advantages of nylon so runners have apparel that stands up to the
rigors of training and still looks great. Don't worry about pilling or fuzz, you won't find it
here. Supplex® is also resistant to tears and punctures and is quite breathable.
Odors and moisture don't stand a chance either.
TACTEL®
TACTEL® provides essential practical benefits demanded today: softness, lightweight,
strength, easy care and versatility. Clothes made with TACTEL® are very soft, have a
superior drape, and move with you easily. TACTEL® fiber is the registered trademark
for the INVISTA brand of tactile and aesthetic nylon fibers.
LYCRA®
With a remarkable ability to stretch up to 600% and spring back to its original length,
LYCRA® can be combined with virtually every other fiber to achieve different levels
of stretch and recovery. Garments with LYCRA® move easily with the body's natural
movements, but recover their original shape when allowed to relax. LYCRA® is a
registered trademark of INVISTA for premium stretch fiber and fabric.
DRI-FIT®
It's spelled Dri, but it's pronounced "dry." Get it? And dry is what it will keep
you. One layer of this moisture-managing material from Nike moves perspiration away from the
body while a second layer delivers the moisture to the surface of the garment, where it can
easily.
POLARTEC®
They invented fleece and now have other high quality, top performance fabric categories
including Next to Skin (Power Dry® and Power Stretch® products),
Insulation and Weather Protection.
GORE-TEX®
Waterproof, breathable, windproof and durable, the patented membrane technology forever changed
the standard of performance outerwear. It is wearable weather protection that keeps you dry and
comfortable from head to toe.
WINDSTOPPER®
Also from Gore, WINDSTOPPER® outerwear combines durable wind protection and high
breathability in garments that keep you warm and comfortable with fewer layers and less
bulk.
CLIMACOOL®
ClimaCool® by adidas isn't just another moisture wicking fabric. It is an integrated
system of technologies that work together to regulate the body temperature.
ClimaCool® apparel activity conducts heat and sweat away from the body through a
combination of heat and moisture-dissipating materials, ventilation channels and
three-dimensional fabrics that allow air to circulate close to the skin.
CLIMALITE®
Also from adidas, this fabric acts to move sweat away from the skin to allow your body to
maintain its natural temperature.
CLIMA-FIT®
Products with this fabric from Nike offer wind and water resistance with a high level of
breathability. It's a densely constructed polyester microfiber.
OPEN-WEAVE MESH
A lightweight, breathable material used in the upper that provides a consistent, resilient
fit.
MESH
An open-textured fabric, knitted or woven. If it's got visible holes in it, it's mesh.
MICROFIBER
A fabric that uses tiny little filaments to produce cool effects, literally. Its ability to
absorb and disperse moisture quickly is the key, and other high-performance, high-comfort
technology.
FLAT BACK MESH
A double-ply polyester knit fabric consisting of an open-hole mesh layer with a polyester layer
behind to make it "flat back". You get the breathability of mesh without showing any
skin.
COTTON
This natural fiber is soft, dry and comfortable. It is also absorbent (both a benefit and a
disadvantage). Cotton is a popular fabric worn by people with sensitive skin.
NYLON
A completely synthetic fiber, nylon is known for its superior flexibility and excellent
resilience. Quick-drying nylon fabric is naturally hydrophobic and resistant to shrinkage and
wrinkling.
TRICOT
A vertical stretch knitted fabric in which the fabric is formed by interlooping adjacent
parallel yarns.
SPANDEX
Generic term for a synthetic stretch fiber. Known for its excellent stretch and recovery,
spandex can be used for form-fitting garments or to add comfort and freedom of movement to
looser garments made of knit or woven fabric.
Apparel Terms
FLATSEAM CONSTRUCTION
A sewing process that produces a flat-stitched surface instead of the traditional, rough,
rounded seam of most garments.
SCALLOPED HEM
Usually found on shirts and jackets, it's a bottom hem that makes a gradual transition from
high in the front of the garment to lower in the back.
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