From its inception, Tracksmith has celebrated the amateur runner – and one defining characteristic of many amateur runners is that they have day jobs. Run commuting has steadily gained a loyal following in recent years, both as a way to maximize your weekly mileage around a sedentary office job, and also as an environmentally-friendly statement to decrease a dependency on fossil fuels. Although the pandemic of 2020 has forced a lot of people to shift from regular work environments to home offices, there is still a subset of runners hoofing it to work, which is why Tracksmith created the Run Commute Collection.
The collection is an assortment of existing items from the Tracksmith line-up plus some key new pieces to provide added protection and durability, and a pack to hold everything together. We tested the pants, jacket, shorts, merino briefs and socks, along with our existing Tracksmith base layers to get a sense of how they all work together. All of the clothing items feature Australian merino wool, a natural performance fabric that is inherently breathable and moisture-wicking, dries relatively quickly, and resists odor even after multiple uses.
Run Commute pants and Daily Crew Socks
The linchpin of the collection is the Mission Backpack, an 18L pack created by the Mission Workshop in San Francisco, who’ve been designing and manufacturing running and walking packs for more than 20 years. It is a weatherproof pack with a rolltop closure, and more than enough cargo storage on the inside for your work shoes and change of clothes, plus room to spare for a grocery stop on the way home. It has a separate padded compartment for a laptop (up to 13”) and another for a hydration reservoir (up to 3L), with a thin frame sheet to provide some structure and prevent bruising against your back. A perforated back panel provides some air flow between you and the pack, and sturdy shoulder straps combine with padded adjustable waist straps to minimize bouncing while you run.
Mission Backpack
From an aesthetic standpoint, the external pieces in the Run Commute collection are distinctive from your garden varietyrunning outerwear; they have a more stylish, business-like look to them that aren’t immediately out of place if you don’t have time to shower before your first meeting of the day. The jacket and pants both come in a walnut or navy color variants, which blend right in with most office environments. At first glance, the pants look similar to your typical office khakis, complete with zipper, button and metal clasp closures at the waistband, and pleats in the front. The difference is that these pants have four-way stretch merino fibers that provide full range of motion even with a tailored fit, and they have splash resistance so you won’t track too much slop inside after being out on the road.
The pants can be pulled over the Run Commute Shorts, which have a fairly short 4” inseam, but we preferred to wear the pants just over a base layer of the merino boxer briefs, which provide just as much thigh coverage as the shorts, but are much more form-fitting. We also tried wearing regular (not boxer) briefs under the Run Commute Pants, and the feel of the pants fabric against the skin was fairly comfortable.
Men’s jacket in Walnut
Similarly, the Run Commute Jacket is made from the same weather-resistant stretch merino fabric as the pants, with a tailored fit and details that look better suited for coffee meetings than spin class. It has three zippered front pockets (dual hand pockets plus a left diagonal phone stash), a bungee cord hem to cinch the waist, and a mesh-lined back vent for improved airflow when you’re not wearing the Mission Pack.
Harrier LS tee
For base layers, we’re long-standing fans of the Harrier tees in all forms – tank, short sleeve, or long sleeve. These 89% merino wool garments have an ideal thickness that stands alone well in moderately cold conditions, and that provides strong insulation as a baselayer. They are tailored through the trunk and sleeves to feel slightly loose when worn alone, but can slide under an external layer without bunching. Below the waist, the men’s boxer briefs held their position without riding up too excessively, and the regular briefs stayed in place without getting uncomfortably wedged. The Daily Crew Socks are adequate with a professional look, but you can do just as well with a lot of other high-wool blend socks on the market.
On that note, the intent of the Run Commute Collection isn’t to make the entire kit into must-haves, but to identify pieces that improve or complement the clothing and gear you already utilize on your daily grind. We were most impressed by the pants, as well as the excellent Harrier base layers and merino underwear.
The Tracksmith Run Commute Collection is now available at www.tracksmith.com.
Men’s Run Commute Collection:
- Run Commute Pants ($198)
- Run Commute Jacket ($198)
- Run Commute Shorts ($98)
- Harrier SS ($78) or LS ($82) Tee
- Brighton Base Layer Tank ($78)
- Merino Briefs ($48) or Boxer Briefs ($50)
Women’s Run Commute Collection:
- Run Commute Pants ($198)
- Run Commute Jacket ($198)
- Run Commute Shorts ($98)
- Harrier Tank ($72), SS ($78) or LS ($82) Tee
- Brighton Base Layer Tank ($78)
- Merino Briefs ($48)
Unisex Accessories:
- Daily Crew Sock ($25)
- Mission Backpack ($238)