There’s something properly unnerving about the idea of hundreds of strangers all dreaming the same dream. It sounds a bit too Black Mirror for me. But when people talk of a runner’s high, that’s kind of the realm they’re talking about. It’s that half-awake, post-run haze where your legs are still twitching and your brain’s floating somewhere between euphoria and delirium. You’re tired and broken but you’re enjoying the moment, still. This seems to be sort of territory Acid Running seem happiest operating in.
“Never have I felt so peaceful, as when I see the Acid hare in my dreams.”
Apparently, this isn’t some isolated incident either. Parallel dreaming has become a recurring phenomenon amongst Acid runners, with reports stacking up from all over the place. Hundreds confirmed, potentially thousands unconfirmed, all chasing the same long-eared apparition through the subconscious after clocking up their miles. Let’s be honest, it’s probably a mixture of natural euphoria and too many electrolytes, but we won’t let that get in the way of a good story.
Rather than brushing it off as collective runner weirdness, Acid Running have leaned into it fully, pulling in psychoanalysts, dream specialists and structured interviews to shape a collection rooted in these shared late-night visions. The result feels suitably lucid. Dream-state colour palettes meet featherlight fabrics, easy silhouettes and graphics that sit somewhere between cosmic running club and forgotten rave flyer discovered in the pocket of an old windbreaker.
The first drop focuses on the Acid Running staples too, which is sensible because there’s no point reinventing the wheel when your shorts already look this good bombing round a reservoir at 5.22am. You’ll also find their core 2-in-1 shorts, socks and running vests reworked in fresh shades including iced pink, heather blue, Riverstone grey, taupe, phantom navy and graphite. They’re all understated enough for the trail, but with enough oddness bubbling beneath the surface to let people know the music in your headphones is pretty esoteric.
There’s more still to come too, apparently, including the appropriately surreal Runner’s Dream graphic alongside the Good Pace graphic, both of which sound like slogans daubed on the wall of a service station toilet by someone halfway through an ultramarathon-induced revelation. In Acid Running terms, that is very much a compliment.
See more at Acid Running
