By Mary Stevens.
Can a retail clothing company make it onto Mary’s Short List of Preferred Merchants, joining New England Running Company, Sherman’s and the bottlers of Moxie? Yes!
Recently I was walking around the post-race festivities at the Mount Washington Road Race, when the Handy Spandy tent found me. More accurately, several racks full of screaming-loud running togs caught my eye and wouldn’t let go. Closer inspection revealed running tights and shorts in prints vibrant enough to cut fog. No vague pastel pink or lilac here. (MY PEOPLE!)
“Where there’s that much swirly red, white and blue, psychedelic checkerboards, and electric lime and turquoise paisley, ” I mused, “might there also be … leopard? ”
Looking but not finding, I was nonetheless happy to buy a “subdued” pair of cosmic patterned tights for yoga. Since it never hurts to ask, I inquired of Handy Spandy proprietors Connie and Anna Conway, did they sell anything in animal print?
Yes, they do. Oh, happy discovery!!
The print is called “Real Cheetah,” and you can get tights, capris, long or short skirts, shorts or yes, skorts in nature’s best color combination … and plenty of others, none of them dull. Not only that, but all their apparel is made in this country (exotic New Jersey) and sold at very reasonable prices.
I ordered a pair from the Handy Spandy website, which is a fun read and features real people doing real workouts looking real sharp. The ordering process is fail-safe and pretty quick, and the size choices are sensible. I had my animal-print tights four days after ordering (and about 20 years of searching), and they’re just as excellent as advertised.
If your below-the-jacket running wardrobe has been stuck in a black-gray rut of drabness, or you’re looking for legwear that will help keep you safe during hunting season, I strongly recommend you check out the Conways’ operation, order up and pass it on … and get ready to hear “Ohmygod, I LOVE those tights!”
My “real cheetah” running tights won’t make me faster at the Moxie Day 5K in Lisbon Falls, Maine, next month, but they’ll make me louder.
Great post. I really enjoyed reading it.