Trucker hats have been my headwear of choice for 25 years. From middle school through high school, a green-billed, white-topped trucker lived on my head nonstop. (I ditched it when my college girlfriend said she didn鈥檛 like it鈥攈uge mistake.) Since then听I鈥檝e worked, played, and lived in a shifting cast of netbacks.
But when I got serious about running, I had a problem: I found that my favorite lids were听terrible for exercise. Just one jog would render a hat听forever dirtied, lined with gross听salty marks. The non-breathable front panels听turned my noggin into a sauna, and cheap liners mainlined sweat directly into my eyes. Thankfully, we now have performance truckers that offer all the shade and steeze of their predecessors but with workout-focused details that make them comfortable on the hottest, hardest runs. That said,听they鈥檙e not all created equal: we put these five to the test to determine which could take the heat.
The Test
Over the course of a听sweltering听spring and summer, I ran in each hat for a minimum of 60 miles. My听routes and conditions varied, but I wore every model on at least one run when the temperature was over听90 degrees, I gained听more than 1,300 vertical feet, or I was out for more听than three hours. I took听notes on听the materials and fit systems, weighed the hats on my kitchen scale, and measured the brims to gauge coverage.
The Results
The Winner:听Sunday Afternoons Vantage Point ($32)
Fit: 5/5
Comfort: 5/5
Moisture Wicking: 5/5
Temperature Regulation:听5/5
Weight: 2.2 ounces
Brim Coverage: 7 by听3 inches
Full disclosure: I already loved this hat going into the test. I gave听the others a fair shot, but when I compared notes, the was the clear winner in every category except coverage. The seven-by-three-inch bill did provide plenty of shade for my large beak, so I couldn鈥檛 even complain about that.
I tried to distill my love for this hat down to one attribute听but couldn鈥檛, so here are two:听the fit and moisture mitigation were far superior to any other athletic hat I have used and made for a more comfortable run every single time I wore it. To the side of the rear size adjuster, Sunday Afternoons attached听about an inch of stretchy plastic鈥攕o it鈥檚 not听entirely made of听rigid plastic, like all of its competition except the Patagonia, below鈥攚hich afforded a completely dialed fit without being restrictive. As a听result, my head was noticeably more comfortable听at the end of a four-hour run from my house to the top of Mount听Ashland, Oregon, a climb with听5,764 feet of elevation, on a hot summer day. The amply holed听mesh front, plus the largest moisture-wicking听liner in the test, gave the hat a swamp-cooler feel on runs over 90 degrees. Sweat never dripped into my eyes, and I鈥檓 an听extremely sweaty person, so that is no small feat.
Runner-Up: Boco Trail听($30)
Fit: 4.5/5
Comfort: 4.5/5
Moisture Wicking: 4/5
Temperature Regulation: 4/5
Weight: 2听ounces
Brim Coverage: 7 by 3.5 inches
The soft foam front of didn鈥檛 look breathable, but it was surprisingly so.听At the end of the day, though, it didn鈥檛 vent as well as its all-mesh competition, landing it in second place. It was the lightest hat听in the test, and the malleable brim conformed to my forehead for a comfortable fit while still remaining听rigid enough to offer amazing coverage. All in all, its听simplicity makes this听a great running hat, but it was outgunned by the feature-rich Vantage Point.
For Cooler Temps: Patagonia Duckbill ($35)
Fit: 4/5
Comfort: 4/5
Moisture Wicking: 3/5
Temperature Regulation: 2/5
Weight: 2.4 ounces
Brim Coverage: 6.75 by 3.25 inches
I liked the looks of the best鈥攊t offered the perfect balance of casual style but retained听key performance details, like a flexible fabric strap and a water-resistant front panel. This was not a style competition, though, and the Duckbill had one serious issue for this hot-headed runner: the front鈥檚 recycled nylon grabbed onto moisture and held it. This would probably be a plus for blocking rain in inclement conditions, but it made things听notably hotter in sweltering ones. The adjustable rear buckle allowed for a dialed fit, and the design鈥檚 wide mesh in the back did breathe well. It鈥檚 a comfortable hat, but perhaps one just better suited for cooler temperatures.
For Small Noggins: The North Face Trail ($30)
Fit: 2.5/5
Comfort: 3.5/5
Moisture Wicking: 4/5
Temperature Regulation: 5/5
Weight: 2.7 ounces
Brim Coverage: 7.5 by 3.35 inches
This mesh-dominant trucker hat鈥檚 cooling powers were on a par with the first-place Vantage Point, and it offered the most coverage of the bunch. However, it听took a solid hit for its fit鈥攁lthough, to be fair to the North Face, I have a pretty massive noggin. I wear most of my hats with the adjustment system maxed out, and the fit my dome more like a novelty hat than a functional one. It was outmatched on fit and moisture wicking听by the Vantage Point, but this could be听the best hat on the list if you have a small or midsize听head.
For Casual Wear: Nathan Sports Runnable ($25)
Fit: 3/5
Comfort: 3/5
Moisture Wicking: 3/5
Temperature Regulation: 2.5/5
Weight: 2.5 ounces
Brim Coverage: 7.25 by 3 inches
On first sight, I thought the 听wouldn鈥檛 perform any differently than a normal hat. Nathan proved me wrong. Its looks are the most casual of the test, but it did a commendable job of wicking moisture, thanks to its internal mesh headband. A听structured front panel听created space between it and my forehead, and the hat helped move heat, as did the net听sides. That rigid front did make the hat a little less comfortable and a bit hotter overall, though. Paired with a middling fit, those qualities put this otherwise awesome lid听at the bottom of a stacked test.