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My takeaway from the Brooklyn Mile? It felt like go-karting. A friend of mine likened it to Frogger.
A narrow, straight-line dash along Williamsburg’s Kent Avenue, the event is staged each August by the Brooklyn Running Company. This year was the biggest installment yet, with Hoka and Bandit among the sponsors, and nearly 4,000 participants competing in seven different races.
It also happens to be in my backyard, and I’ve wanted to run it for years. I finally got my act together in 2025, registering in late spring, and spent the last couple months force-feeding myself track workouts. In the end, my fitness probably would’ve benefited from skipping a wedding here or there, but I rumbled through the finish line at 4:53. I brunched with pride.
Core to my prep for the race, beyond all the speed work and strength training in the weeks prior, was figuring out my race-day kit. I didn’t want to be dragged down by a poor wardrobe decision in a race that comes down to seconds. If you’re used to running halfs or longer, it’s crazy how quickly those 400-meter markers keep popping up.
I opted for the RDSinglet from running brand Ciele Athletics. As I’ve covered before, the Montreal design house does a lot more than their famous mesh hats. This particular singlet is part of Ciele’s Elite Collection, a series of garments for all-out efforts. The Brooklyn Mile certainly fit the bill there. When you’re in a race that fast, you’d prefer to be wearing no top at all, quite frankly, but that’s not the vibe in a road race (especially when you need to pin your bib somewhere).
I was a big fan of the RDSinglet, which weighs a featherlight 80 grams and somehow doesn’t have a single stitch. Some added benefits if you wear it for longer races or training: back-panel ventilation, UPF 50+ at the front and reflective detailing for night runs. Oh, and you can comfortably chuck it in the wash. Get one and wear it forever.
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