Product Review: Merino Wool Buff®

Disclaimer: I received a Merino Wool Buff® as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!

I have to be totally honest with you, I was nervous about testing out this Buff® headwear. When you hear the word wool you think about either sheep or being super cold and layering up. So since neither of those two affected me, living on Maui of course, I wasn't too sure how this would go. Also to point out I couldn't tell you the difference between regular wool and merino wool last month either. But I decided to keep an open mind as I tested this out.

Initial Thoughts

When I first put it on my head I could tell right away that the texture was very different than the UV Buff® that I have; the Merino Wool was much softer and longer. I really had a hard time believing that it was wool to be honest! So it was at this point that I did a little more research into Merino Wool.

What makes this Buff® headwear so great is the unique properties of the Merino Wool. Merino Wool comes from Merino sheep native to New Zealand and Australia. This bread of sheep grows a wool that is much different than the normal wool we are used to. This wool is much softer since the fibers are much finer than normal wool. What this means for us athletes is that we are able to take advantage of the benefits of wool during activity.

Wool has the ability to wick up moisture from your skin. It can do this because it is water-resistance, so instead of absorbing water it pulls it off your skin and disburses it so it can be evaporated. So imagine wearing this during activity, it's a soft material that keeps you dry which also prevents chaffing.

One of the most important benefits of Merino Wool is its ability to manage temperature. I know that might seem silly to say since it's not alive and its not a device, but hear me out. If you are hot during activity while wearing a Merino Wool Buff® because you are in the sun. The Buff® headwear will help evaporate all your sweat to help regulate your temperature. Now on the flip side, imagine you are doing activity in the cold, the Merino Wool Buff® will help insulate and keep you warm by blocking the wind and adding another lightweight layer.

Run Test

I know that Buff® headwear has many other uses than just running, but let's be honest - running is what I like to do - so I tested this by running. However it can be used for an array of other sports as well.

My first run with the Merino Wool Buff® was after work one night during sunset. Now I consider myself to be well versed in the subtleties of time and temperature on Maui. Meaning that I know how hot or cold it will be at different points of the day. Sunset runs tend to be on the warmers side since you are running in direct sunlight. Granted the sunlight is a not as strong but it still affects me as a runner. I wore my Merino Wool Buff® as a full head cap this night. One of the things that I noticed was that I didn't have as much sweat dripping down my face as I usually do. I knew it should be there since I was sweating in other places. Then once I got out to the point by the ocean the wind picked up and the rest of my body cooled off quite a bit since it was damp, except my head which stayed nice and warm.

I remember gawking when I was first approached about testing this because I live in a tropical environment and couldn't possibly wear any type of wool. I would like to full rescind my feelings!! This past week we have had constant trade winds mixed with lots of rain. So it cooled off the temperature very drastically for us. The temperature is usually very consistent here, so when it differs we notice it. The days were in the mid 70's and night in the 60's, that is COLD for us. I have to say that I was very thankful to have my Buff® headwear to wear.

My final test was to see how the Merino Wool Buff® held up to even colder temperatures. On thanksgiving I ran a 16 mile Turkey Trot up in the town of Kula, which is above 3000 in elevation. The temperature was in the 50's during this race. Boy let me tell you it was so nice to have had my Buff® headwear on! What was the most interesting part was that during the end of the race the sun had finally come up and it was getting much warmer. The versatility of the Merino Wool was proved to me here. I went from being cold and having the Buff® headwear keeping me warm to being too warm and the Buff® headwear keeping me cool.

Conclusion

I was able to see just how this Buff® headwear can really impact my running experience whether is was in the cold or heat. I'm sure that for runners who have a more intense winter will find it more beneficial for sure. But for someone like me who runs in the heat a lot I found it invaluable to temperature regulation!

Join us on Tuesday December 6th for a Buff, Inc. sponsored bibchat at 4pm HST!

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Check out what the other pros are saying about their Merino Wool Buff® experience:

                              Fallon     Karen