Everyone we know, young or old, has or had at least a pair of blue jeans in their respective wardrobes. Be it deep blue, faded or distressed, denims are the easy choice. It also matches with almost anything.
Denim is a shortened word from the French term “serge de Nimes” – meaning a sturdy fabric (serge) from Nimes, a city in France, hence “de Nimes”.
Here’s a short history about our favorite garment. In 1853, a tailor from Reno, Nevada, United States (US) named Jacob W. Davis partnered with Levi Strauss, a German immigrant who was selling sturdy materials for horse blankets, tents and wagon covers. The two made the world’s first jeans with rivets which became popular to miners and cowboys in the area during the gold rush.
We wore denim pants and white t-shirt with the school’s logo printed on the upper left chest as uniform during our high school days at Don Bosco. Also, there was always the need for us to bring extra shirts.
From playing ping-pong, then basketball, then football, and then sometimes the occasional not so secret fist fights, we sweated in our maongs during breaktime and dismissal. We would go home with noticeable sweat stains on our pants and our bodies smelling closer to vinegar.
This brings us to the feat of one of America’s best middle-distance runner. Putting on a pair of Levi’s 501s, Johnny Gregorek, 28, with a shirtless pacer also in a pair of Levi’s, ran on the tracks of the Masters School in Dobbs Ferry, New York last March 30 the fastest mile in denims with a time of 4:06.25.
The informal event called the Blue Jeans Mile began in 2017. He broke the previous denim mile record achieved by Dillon Maggard by more than 5 seconds. Streamed live on Instagram, the run was watched and commented by several top US distance runners.
A Tokyo Olympics hopeful, Gregorek has speed on his genes as his parents were elite runners during the 1980s. Both surprised him when they flew in from Massachusetts to cheer for their son who ran in memory of his younger brother Patrick to raise funds for the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). The non-profit organization is special for the Gregorek family as Patrick died March of last year after a long struggle with mental illness.
The initial goal was to raise $2,500. But when word spread, donations came in, including $5,000 from Levi Strauss and Company. The run raised almost $40,000 for the foundation.
Gregorek’s sponsor Asics gave him customized yellow running spikes with denim accents and laces. The word “Paddy”, which was named after his brother, was stitched on the left shoe tongue while on the right shoe tongue was “NAMI”. Sooner or later, the shoes will find the way to the auctions, of course, for NAMI’s benefit.
Gregorek finished 6th place during the 2016 Olympic Trials and 10th place in the 1500m of the 2017 World Championships in London. But in 2019, he won the 1500m silver medal of the 2019 Pan-American Games at Lima, Peru.
Another Asics-sponsored runner, Emma Ulmer, ran in denim shorts a 10K with a time of 32:45 earlier in the day at Boise, Idaho to draw attention and support for the fund raising race.
I had seen in the previous weeks on TV guys on denims and backpacks doing speed runs that could rival Gregorek’s. Yes, those were the guys running away from the police after smashing and looting stores.
Wear blue jeans for a running record. And yes, do it in Asics and Levi’s 501s./PN
