So I am having a super depressing day thank to my left achilles tendon. As with most training plans, things were going so well until my body was like “calm this nonsense down and stop stressing me or I’m going to ruin your day and rebel.” I was so pumped to go to the track tonight (for a change) and try out my pretty new racing flats until Monday morning when I had a funky feeling in my left achilles tendon during my easy 4 mile training run. I was hopefully that a good night’s sleep would do the trick but no way jose. The realization that I would have to deviate from my beloved training plan was just a devastating blow this morning. I’m still not over it. ANGER!

In any case, I figured writing about the lovely RooSport would cheer me up. So please, enjoy the fruits of my frustration…

GEAR REVIEW: The RooSport

please note: The folks at The RooSport were kind enough to provide me with a complementary product to satisfy my strong urge to try it and tell you all about it. I received no additional compensation and all of my humble opinions written here are completely my own.

As you may all remember from my previous blog post, I have been looking for a great way for me to carry energy gels (Clif Shot Bloks in my case) during a race without spending my entire salary on running skirts with big built in pockets. After seeing the RooSport at one of the runDisney expos, the seed was planted and I figured this might be my perfect solution.

The Verdict: I think I have found my fuel carrying fix! I gave the product a thorough test over the last couple weeks and I am excited to report that it will be coming with me to the Nike Women’s Half Marathon in a few weeks.

A Quick Orientation:

So The RooSport‘s construction is simple but purposeful. There is a large pouch with a velcro closure that is easy to pull items out of and replace mid-run.

Although it’s somewhat difficult to see in the photo, I was using a mini Luna bar in ziplock as my test item. It is half way in the pouch and half way out and proved easy to grab without missing a beat. While putting the remaining fuel back in (as I do with my Shot Bloks mid-race) was a little bit more difficult, it was definitely doable.

On the back of the pouch is a zipper pocket that is perfect for a key, ID, some cash and other essentials that you definitely want to keep secure during your run but do not necessarily need to access while you run. Again, I think the RooSport is perfect for this.

How Does It Work?

Putting the RooSport in place is super easy. The small orange pull tab makes it easy to open. The large side slides easily under the waist band of your shorts, pants, or skirt and the orange tap can be used again to pull the top half down to magnet into place.

Just like the website claims, I found that the RooSport did not bounce, chafe, or really move at all once it was secure. In my opinion, it is just the right size that it accommodates what you want to carry without being bulky or cumbersome. I do struggle with my current running belt riding up occasionally so this belt-less solution seems to be perfect if you want to clip it on and forget about it.

 

Now, while I really liked the RooSport, I did run into one issue. One of the main reasons that I carry a running belt in general is to carry my cell phone which is probably true for most people. Well, the bad news is that my iPhone 5 in its case (a moderately sized case – it’s no Otter Box but it’s not a super slim case either) will not fit. Now, I didn’t plan to carry my phone and gels at the same time so it really doesn’t interrupt my plans but it’s definitely something to take note of if you are looking to use it to carry your phone. I suspect that an iPhone 4 or an iPhone without a case would have been just dandy and a nice little hole in the side of the pouch allows you to feed headphones through if you want to listen to some tunes while you run. Also, because of its size, it would be difficult to carry anything additional (other than items in the small zipper pocket) if you are carrying a phone.

So, in summary:

Pros:

• It doesn’t bounce/move/chafe or really disrupt your run at all
• It’s nice and small and stays nicely tucked under your waistband
• There is no need to make adjustments as you run – it just stays put
• Taking items – like energy gels – in and out of the velcro pouch is easy
• The zipper pouch keeps important items like keys secure and gives you peace of mind
• A small hole in the side of the pouch allows you to plug headphones into your phone to jam out while you run
• The RooSport could be great for holding valuables even when you’re not running because it is so discrete and comfortable
• Fool-proof design is incredibly easy to use

Cons:

Well…there aren’t many…

• My iPhone 5 in its moderately sized case will not fit inside the RooSport
• If you want to carry multiple items (including a cell phone), the capacity of the pouch is a bit limited and may not accommodate everything
• The RooSport is not made out of a flexible/stretchy material so its capacity is its capacity – it cannot stretch to accommodate extra stuff

Overall, I think it’s a great product that I definitely plan to continue using. I will be very excited to see how it performs during my race. It seems to be well designed, well made, and addresses real concerns of real runners.

Now…(get ready for the melodrama) if only I could run again *sigh*

Hopefully I will be back at it again tomorrow after a night of restorative sleep.

—

Have you ever tried the RooSport? Does it sound like a product you would use?