Women want to look good no matter what they're doing, even going for a run.
"You know I did New York [marathon] a few years ago, and it was my first marathon after my pro Ironman career," designer Nicole DeBoom said.
DeBoom, also a professional triathlete and Ironman champ, saw a need and filled the void when she developed a line of fitness-oriented fashion called SkirtSports. It's a line she launched in Austin in 2005.
"People looked at skirts in the beginning and they thought, 'Oh, that's way too sexy for me, or way too girly for me.' But in the end, it's actually more modest. It covers you up more but it also gives that mystery of what's under the skirt," DeBoom said.
"When I conceptualized a skirt for running, I thought the goal for me was, I don't want something that's going to ride up because that was my trouble with shorts. They were always riding up and I was pulling them down. And, I wanted something that covered my butt," she said.
Nicole also wanted function to meet fashion.
"I want to make clothing that is very technical but I also want to make something that is cute enough to wear around afterwards," she said.
The line that started with just two styles of skirts now has six for various sports, workout bras, shirts and even skirted running pants and capris.
She's even made a skirt for winter running, called the Tough Girl. It combines a boot cut pant with a skirt.
"We wanted to cover our butts while we were running in the winter. And, actually to build a skirt over the pant adds a nice little layer of insulation on the spots that women tend to get very cold in the winter," DeBoom said.
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Running women
A designer has come up with plenty of running skirts for athletic women.
 
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The Tough Girl skirt also has a pocket on each leg so you can fit gels, you can fit your key, your ID, some money.
"And then the interior panel of the skirt we used a fabric that's used in a lot of exercise bras and it's got a more compression feeling so the top panel of the tough girl skirt actually gives you the feel of a tummy tuck."
SkirtSports' Tough Girl top has a nifty little stay-warm feature.
"The really cool thing about this top is the sleeves are super long and then they've got the little thumb hole," DeBoom said.
The most versatile and best-selling skirt in the line is called the Gym Girl.
"We're known for skirts with the built-in liners. Our liners have different inseam lengths," she said.
On the Gym Girl, it's four inches.
"It covers your thigh in the spots you want covered. It also, like all of our products, has a pocket built into each leg," DeBoom said. "This is probably our skirt that is more versatile in that it can ride higher up or it can ride lower down on the body."
DeBoom said her favorite model was called the Roller Girl.
"This skirt actually has the widest waist line in our collection and fits lowest. It's probably our flirtiest skirt. It's got a boy short length inseam, which we call Girl Shorties, built in that come right about the upper thigh and come around the middle," she said.
DeBoom is currently finishing up the spring 2008 Active Collection. It contains a built-in one-piece outfit, with the tights built into the skirt. It's main feature is a special spot to store a music player.
Also coming out in spring '08 is the Footloose Running Dress. It will be offered in five colors.
"It has kind of an A-line look. It's very flattering, very versatile, and has a racer back," DeBoom said.
The Skirts Sport line is available locally at Betty Sport. DeBoom says Austin has a special place in her heart: she launched her line here, competed for the Olympic trials here as a teen and it's a great place for runners.
"Austin is a hub for athletes. It may not have a huge event here like the Ironman but it's a very active, active city," she said.
