Discussion: Tall socks in the sprint?

While watching the WOC Sprint Final I noticed that some competitors opted for tall socks & shorts while others wore regular low-cut socks & shorts.

If a Sprint is expected to be entirely urban (thus no brush to push through), what's the thinking behind wearing tall socks?

Compression? Proprioception? Tradition? Fashion? Habit?

I reckon most of them because of the good feeling and the believe of compression

Because tall socks are awesome.

Totally agree, if you can pull them off, tall socks are a wicked look.

few elite marathoners are using them (compression socks) too, Paula Radcliffe is one of them:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Paula_%26_Isla_R...

Are you sure they weren't triathletes??

http://runnersfeed.com/the-compression-socks-debat...

http://thesportfactory.com/site/trainingnews/Compr...

I have not seen more recent studies however jury is still out if compression socks, shorts and tights really enhances athletic performance, especially for elite athletes. There was study I read that compression gear did help recreational athletes but I could not link to that study anymore. Many have found - including myself - that compression shorts help against chafing.

My cardiac doctors recommended compression socks for everyday use to combat my edema (ankle swelling). But they also said that I may want to continue to use them as I progress in my training to improve leg circulation. Since that recommendation I am noticing all sorts of racers wearing these. Wish I knew where to find cheaper ones and colors other than black.

In past years, I've ended up running into nasty vegetation even in promised-to-be-urban sprints, so I wore long socks on this way just in case...

colors other than black

At the Road Runner Adventure Runs that I staff, the compression sock vendor has several colors, including neon pink, that you can test out during the run, and you can even win some. (I'd have tested them out myself, but at these events, I'm on "red socks" duty, and not wearing my namesake pink socks.

They are spanks for people with fat calves.

I agree entirely with Ali. I very rarely even use shorts on sprints. If even once in a race, having leg cover saves me from a few seconds hesitation in bashing through a prickly hedge or a thin stip of thorny vegetation, then I figure it has improved my race. Are there any studies on how much a few extra grams of clothing slows you down in a short race? I would not think very much unless it caused overheating or became saturated from a water crossing or rain. I think having leg cover mentally makes me more willing to take a "through" choice when confronted with a through or around situation involving thick or prickly vegetation, which is likely to occur at least once in even the most urban of sprint races.

Thanks for the perspectives!

I love my tall socks, but I also overheat quite easily. While other club members opt to wear long sleeves in our winter here (in the pacific northwest, which is admittedly mild)-- I still wear short sleeves! I just get so hot!

So for me personally, I would have to weigh the few seconds of hesitation against being overheated for the whole duration- which could slow me down more than those few seconds.

That said, I feel like I'm "just running" without the socks! Tall socks tell my brain, "you're orienteering." So that would be my mental benefit. :)

Plus, they're colorful!

At the Road Runner Adventure Runs

The brand is Zensah. You can have just about any color, including black, and if you are lucky and/or visit a lot of checkpoints at your local Thursday Adventure, you may even win a pair at the raffle! I have. If you aren't so lucky, RRS stores also carry them.

...and if you are lucky and/or visit a lot of checkpoints at your local Thursday Adventure, you may even win a pair at the raffle!

Last summer, my dad tagged along at one of these events, and they were giving out compression socks to the first 10 people or something. Since I had to get there early to set up the CascadeOC stuff, he got there early, too. Free socks for him.

(These were Zensah socks which don't come in as many colors as the calf sleeves, but the socks do come in neon pink, so that's good enough for me.)