Boston Marathon jacket etiquette

Wear it whenever you want. A) Jacket etiquette seems to be a new thing and B) Folks will be all over Boston with Sox jackets on that never played past little league, so I never got the thing about wearing Boston jackets or not

czech locomotive wrote:

After several failed attempts I qualified for Boston 2017 and will be making the obligatory commemorative jacket purchase. Are there any unwritten rules regarding where the jacket should/should not be worn, or a statute of limitations on how long after the race it can be worn without looking like an attention hound or a buffoon?

I'm not a complete noob, so I won't be wearing it around the expo and on race day, but it seems like the jacket is seen as a hallowed icon or memento of the race and that it should be worn accordingly.

First rule: don't listen to the dorks here. Their jealousy is palpable. Buy one, buy several . Buy the hat, buy the gloves, buy the ear muffs. Marathon weekend wear it the entire time in Boston except to the race ( the volunteers will likely steal it from the baggage check and sell it on the black market.). Wearing it to Dunkin Donuts is a mistress st. First two weeks after the race, wear it every time you run. Next 6 months liberal use. To work, to church, all sporting events, dates. It's a great conversation starter . Next year, just to races. After year and a half, just to small town local races where it will have great intimidation value with the hobby joggers. Casually mention at the registration table that you and Meb both really like the jacket.

Most important : treat the jacket like a holy grail. Wear it with a sense you have accomplished something great. When you take it off,fold it with the ceremony that Chief Jay Strongbow took off his sacred Indian headdress before he wrestled. If in a race, stand front row center at the start and solemnly fold it and hand it to an assistant for safe keeping.

I always thought that the jacket was a participation jacket since everybody seems to have one, but it's an extra $110? Dang.

I'm running my first Boston and will probably buy the jacket. When's the best time to buy it? Are they cheaper on ebay after the race? Or should I just buy one at the expo?

In real life, Chief Jay Strongbow (Joe Scarpa) was Italian and didn't give two craps about the headdress he had to haul around to a new town each night.

I am superstitious, so I didn't wear it or even take the tags off until after I ran the race.

I went to Big Sur from Boston. It was really cool to be able to celebrate the race with the other crazy folks that did both- everyone wore their jackets so we were easy to spot.

I still wear it from time to time and feel proud when I do.

Oh, and I probably wouldn't feel so connected to it, but the race shirt that year was see through and too big.

I will never wear anything with the evil three stripes logo :)

Wear it when you want to. As others have said, it's just a jacket. Worry about the race, not about superstitions.

Is this the same jacket you can just get from Running Warehouse? Blue adidas with the logo and 2017 on back? Is that what everyone buys?

I have two, and didn't run in either, and I'm glad I bought them just for the history of it.

My wife tried for 10 years to BQ, and finally did. Her first Boston was 2013. I sat at the finish line from about 6:45am until about 5 minutes before the bombings. We had bought the jackets at the expo, I protested but she wanted to match, so I relented.

I would never wear it in general public though, just because I didn't actually qualify or even run the race. I do run and ride in the jacket. It's a reminder of how bad things could have gone.

In 2014 we were back and since I already had one I didn't earn, and I love orange, I got the 2014 one as well.

I'd wait until about September when TJ Maxx gets a fresh batch of them from adidas and they will be $24.99. Just gotta find the right TJ Maxx.

I'm surprised there isn't more anti-jacket talk on here.

I've run 8 Bostons and it never occurred to me to buy a jacket. Not that I mind people who do wear them, just not something I really choose to advertise.

The posters are a different story...I'm missing one or two out of the set of eight and it's a bummer I can't find it anywhere online.

Congrats on your BQ - buy the jacket and wear it

Convexity wrote:

I'm surprised there isn't more anti-jacket talk on here.

I've run 8 Bostons and it never occurred to me to buy a jacket. Not that I mind people who do wear them, just not something I really choose to advertise.

The posters are a different story...I'm missing one or two out of the set of eight and it's a bummer I can't find it anywhere online.

I always like seeing people wearing previous years jackets, the older the cooler.

What years are you missing on the posters? ?

My wife always grabs us a few and they are just sitting in are attic unopened.

Unless it's the yellow jacket, no one GAF.

I've run Boston once, in 2006, and bought a jacket at the expo. I wore my jacket for the first year but then kinda retired it. I thought a few times about getting rid of it but could never bring myself to do it. I brought the jacket out of retirement this year and started wearing it again. It is a great weight for cooler fall and spring days and it is old enough to look 'retro'.

It is often a good conversation starter when other runners see it and ask/comment about it.

cheapo runner wrote:

I always thought that the jacket was a participation jacket since everybody seems to have one, but it's an extra $110? Dang.

I'm running my first Boston and will probably buy the jacket. When's the best time to buy it? Are they cheaper on ebay after the race? Or should I just buy one at the expo?

To OP, if you're proud of qualifying, have a race you're happy with, buy the jacket and where it whenever you want. I like what someone said about the Red Sox where you have all these old guys who probably didn't play high school baseball. Qualifying is not something everyone can do and being able to wear a jacket and say I finished Boston is a nice feeling.

For jackets on the cheap if you live close enough, the Adidas Outlet Store at the Wrentham Outlets gets a bunch of Boston gear the week after the race and usually has everything 50% off. You can get the jacket for $50-60 maybe.

I bought it and wore it the weekend of the race. If you wear your jacket and medal to the airport, the screeners go easy on you.

I don't understand why anyone would think it bad to wear the jacket race weekend. Everyone else doing it makes it acceptable. It's like the difference between wearing camo on a military base, or wearing camo in aisle 5 of Target.

Sara Palin wrote:

I bought it and wore it the weekend of the race. If you wear your jacket and medal to the airport, the screeners go easy on you.

I don't understand why anyone would think it bad to wear the jacket race weekend. Everyone else doing it makes it acceptable. It's like the difference between wearing camo on a military base, or wearing camo in aisle 5 of Target.

How would you even know they were in Aisle 5 of Target?

I have a couple, one from the 100th but just momentos, never wear them.

What I cherish are my finish line photos where there is no-one else within camera range.