Ragnar Trail Appalachian '14

Got Mud?

  What have I been up to, lately?  Training, training, training.  Marathon running.  Trail running.  Triathlon training.  Starting some exciting new projects in my personal life that I will tell everyone about when they are becoming more definite.  Last weekend, though, I experienced the insanity that was the Ragnar Trail Appalachians, in West Virginia.  What an experience.  Crazy storm, beautiful though muddy trails, awesome people.

Team Wetsuit Legal for Confluence Running

We wrote our team name on our arms

Our team's start time was 2:30, and the day was gorgeous: sunny and full of promise.  Two of us had arrived the night before the race so one of our tents was set up, but we spent the morning and early afternoon once the rest of the team arrived setting up our campsite, checking out the Ragnar village and applying temporary tattoos, etc.

Check out my sweet Ragnar tat

Finally it was time for us to go listen to the safety talk and then the first runner could start!  During the safety talk, he explained what would happen in the case of inclement weather.  It seemed simple enough, they would postpone the race for an hour and skip the next runner.  I just crossed my fingers and hoped it wouldn't happen. Finally, our first runner was ready to line up at the start.  Very exciting.  We all went to see our runner off and then headed back to the campsite to hang out for a while. Everything went as planned, and our first runner came in at the expected time and the exchange went exactly as planned. 

Ominous clouds - that "oh crap" moment...

During the second runner's first leg, we were hanging out by the campsite, trying to charge my phone in the car, when we noticed some ominous clouds coming up at us quickly.  Suddenly lightning was flashing, thunder was rumbling, and the wind kicked into high gear while the rain came down in sheets.  I watched in shock as some other teams' tents blew away, taking other tents out with them.  This is when I decided to jump out of the car and take down our borrowed easy-up tent from our friends at the local running store, Confluence Running, which luckily was a pretty heavy tent and didn't blow away with the first gust.  When I finally got a chance to look at our sleeping tent, I was horrified to see that the wind was blowing the side in and looking like it could potentially snap the tent poles.  Let me tell you, you have not lived until you've stood in a field at the top of a mountain in a wild storm desperately grasping tent poles and trying to keep them from bowing too far while shaking from the cold.  By the time the storm had let up to just a steady deluge of rain, the entire camping area was completely trashed.  People were trying to put things back together in the rain or just staring, dumbfounded, at the carnage.  Five of us climbed into my pontiac vibe to ride out the rain, while making ridiculous jokes about the devil coming straight out of the sky to blow away our tents and laughing hysterically at the situation. 

Waiting out the rain in my tiny car

Thankfully, our runner wasn't in the woods in the storm for too terribly long, and made it back safe.  Meantime, the Ragnar people handed her the obligatory postponement card when she returned, putting off the race for an hour and skipping our next runner.  Ultimately, they ended up skipping the next hour and 4th runner, as well.  At this point, we were all chilled to the bone from the rain and the drastic temperature drop brought by the storm, so we decided to make use of the hot food offered at the free dinner - spaghetti and rolls and salad.  It's amazing how some mediocre-tasting but hot food can feel like such a blessing in these conditions.  

Stuffing our faces because: warm

Hanging out in the relative dryness of the merchandise tent.  So.cold. 

 After the storm passed, the race started back up again, having skipped two runners.  The skipping of the runners actually worked in our favor in terms of time because Ragnar just uses the average team pace to calculate those skipped legs, and our skipped runners were slower than the average pace, generally.  It didn't much matter, though, because after the torrential rains, the trails were basically composed of total muck.  Think mud 6 inches deep, when it wasn't just standing water.  Now realize, this race had 1000 teams of 8 runners.  That's a LOT of feet going over trails that are a total disaster, churning them to the point of being about the texture of a thick milkshake.  Needless to say, was pretty slow going.  A total slog.  We had two more runners to run before it would be dark and the going would be even slower.

The trails

As runner #8 (the last runner), I was "lucky" enough to be the first one to run in the dark.  In the slushy-mud trails.  In mountain lion territory (I went in being nervous about the possibility for an encounter with wildlife).  On friday the 13th... and a full moon. I was slated to run the yellow loop.  I put on my headlamp, grabbed a hand-held flashlight and nervously waited in the exchange area for my teammate to come through.  The light was still waning when I headed out but the moment I got into the woods, it was clear that I needed my lights on immediately.  About a minute and a half into my run, the fog became so thick you could barely see anything and the headlamp just made the air into a wall of white.  Every breath out just added to the fuzzy visibility.  I was so glad I brought my hand-held flashlight as well, because using that to spotlight rocks is what made it possible to run at all through that fog.  I'm a little disappointed that I didn't get to see much of that trail (fog too thick, trail too technical and required too much concentration).  At one point I ran past ferns that came up to my shoulder.  It really felt magical, at the time, despite my fears of encountering a bear or mountain lion.  The mud and fog made the going pretty slow, but I was still hitting a pretty good pace (around 10 min/mile) and ended up finishing the loop ahead of my projected pace and blowing by a ton of people who were stuck just walking because of their lack of light or whatever.  When I got back to the Ragnar village, I immediately told my teammates to take their time because I had no need to have another run in the dark, but later I started to feel like it was kind of awesome, though it would have been more fun (and less terrifying) if I had been running with my friends who have been doing the night trail run training with me.

My poor trail shoes

 Luckily (or not?), we were all slow enough through the muck at night that I didn't end up running again until about 9 the next morning.  My second leg, luckily, was the shortest and had dried out fairly well over the course of the night.  The running was only somewhat technical, but pretty fun, and overall uneventful.  It was by far my fastest leg of the three.

After that, we had expected a lot of down time again, as we went through the cycle of runners one last time.  Unfortunately, the Ragnar people decided that too many of the teams were too far behind schedule because of the lousy trail conditions and they were telling us that we needed to have our final runner out on the trails by 4pm or risk a DNF (did not finish).  They told us that if we were not likely to have that happen, we would have to double up and since there was only one race bib, the doubled up runners would have to finish the leg together.  So, for the last leg (the longest one) I ended up running with a teammate.  It was a lot of fun!  The trail was technical, but GORGEOUS and running it with a friend made the experience that much more enjoyable.  By this time, the trails had dried up, for the most part, though there were still some fairly slushy areas, and it was just a lovely fun trot through the woods.  We pushed hard at the end, through the very mucky last mile, and I think the elevation difference from home (about 2000 ft higher there) made the running more difficult, but my final experience with the Ragnar Trail was that it was an awesome though exhausting experience.

My overall takeaway from the Ragnar Trail Relay is that it was fun and physically challenging, but there was at least as much mental challenge (from lack of sleep, and grueling runs through the darkness and the mud).  During the race I kept thinking "ugh, why do I do this to myself?  I hate relays." but just like always, afterwards all I can think about is when I can do it again!

I'd like to give special thanks to our local running store, Confluence Running, for loaning us the tent that kept us dry and shaded during the race.  It really made our race experience that much better.  If you're ever in Binghamton, NY, stop by and check them out!  It's one of my favorite places to go.

Minimalist Running in Winter

This is the first winter I've really spent much time running when it was very cold.  This is partially because we're having a colder winter than we had the past few years, and partially because in previous years I was a lot less serious about getting out there as often during cold weather.  The biggest question I get from other runners regarding my minimalist shoes is "Don't your feet get cold?"  The answer might surprise you.  Nope!  In fact, generally my feet are one of the warmest parts of my body despite the thinness of the soles of my (well worn) Merrells, along with the thinness of the upper.  My hands tend to be cold when I run in cold weather, but not my feet.  I do wear wool socks to help keep in warmth in case my feet get wet, since the upper extends very close to the ground and there can be some water seeping in if the road is wet or slushy.  So far I've run in 4 degree weather where my legs felt very cold, but my feet were perfectly warm.

The basic concept behind this is that your foot muscles are in use so much more than when they're being supported by arch support and all kinds of padding that you're pumping blood through there much faster.  I don't really have anything to compare with, since I've never run in conventional shoes in wintertime, but I have been hiking in winter boots and had my feet feel extremely cold/numb.  I know my feet are much more muscular than they were before I started running, so it seems to make sense that that's why they're not cold (muscles in use generate heat, right?), but I don't have any specific information on it.  Anyway, just thought I'd share that experience, in case there's people out there wondering how that goes.

Meantime, my Merrell Dash Gloves have over 1000 miles on them and I'm hoping to try out Skoras soon, since Merrell seems to have converted their entire "Barefoot" line to something less minimalist than I'd like to see.  I'll post a review once I've used them for a while.

Running Stuff I Like

I've been pretty busy lately between marathon training and writer's block (aka, kids), so I thought I'd just drop in quickly and post about things I've been into lately in the running world.

• My new compression socks.  I love these things.  My calves used to feel so, so tired at the end of long runs, but the compression socks keep my legs feeling fresh even at mile 19 (my longest run so far has been 20 miles).  I'm pretty thrilled.  And look how cool they are!  Neon green with crazy pink stars?  Yes, please.  And I got them on sale from www.procompression.com.  Check them out on facebook, seems they're consistently posting coupon codes, which I especially like because compression socks are pricey!  They have less, er, flamboyant ones, too, if you're into that kind of thing.
• NUUN in kona cola flavor.  Because I'm low carb, I don't need a ton of fuel, but I do need electrolytes, and for whatever reason at the end of a long run I'm consistently CRAVING COLA, so this is perfect.  I was worried that it'd be kind of nasty-flat-soda-ish, but it's not.  Just don't expect coca-cola because it's not really that either.  Something about the gingery cola flavor really seems to settle my stomach, too.
• The book "Train Like a Mother".  It's got funny anecdotes and interesting information and it's where my marathon training plan came from.  I'm using the Marathon "Own it" plan and I really like it because they organize it by which runs are completely required and which you can skip if you need to.  Perfect for busy moms.  
• My garmin watch.  I was so torn on buying this because I ran with my phone with the endomondo app and it seemed to fill that purpose for me, but I so strongly prefer running with my garmin.  If you're on the fence, I'd say go for it.
• Margarita flavored clif shot blocks.  As I said, I don't do a ton of fueling, but on the 20 milers I'll have a few shot blocks (like maybe 4 or 5 over the course of the 3 1/2 hr run).  I far prefer the margarita ones... they're tasty and not overly gooey-sweet like all the other stuff seems to be.  They have extra salt in them, too, which has been great for me in all this extreme heat and humidity.
• My Smiths sunglasses.  I've had them for years and they're my best friend on a sunny day.
• Running along the beach.  Because beach.  Even despite the humidity.
  
  
  
  And with that, I'm out.
  
  What's your favorite running stuff?
  

Training Notes

First, I've caught crazy and signed up for a (mini) triathlon.  I don't think it should be too bad, it's only a 250yd swim, 5 mile bike, 2 mile run.  I think I should be done in around 50 minutes.  It's funny because I had put it off for so long because I thought I hated swimming laps.  In the past, every time I swam laps I felt so BORED and just hated it.  I don't know what happened, maybe the kids have really pushed me past my limits and I'm desperate for quiet, or maybe it's just via all the running without music I've gotten used to the silence.  I'm actually enjoying the lap swims!  It's started pretty slow, I couldn't swim more than 50 yds at a time without feeling like I couldn't breathe, but now I'm able to swim 500 and then take a short break and swim 500 more.  I'm pretty pleased with my progress.

Interestingly, the cycling part of the tri training is not so appealing to me. though I had thought I'd enjoy it.  I love riding our tandem bicycle with my husband, but I am not loving riding in town, by myself.  Maybe I would like doing group rides, better.  Hopefully when my kids' evening activities end in a couple weeks, I can start participating in group rides with the local triathlon club.

Second, I've caught double crazy and signed up for a MARATHON in October.  I started marathon training this week.  I'm planning on using this "less is more" training plan from runner's world, basically, except I added a few weeks in the middle because I really want to run a full 26 miles before the race so I know what I'm up against.  I bought the book Run Less, Run Faster by Bill Pierce, Scott Murr,  and Ray Moss, to try and make sure I am completely up on exactly how much cross training to be doing, and what pace I should be running at, etc. I'm planning to do some cycling, some swimming, and some HIIT-style work outs for cross training, at this point, but we'll see how it goes.  This will be important, I think, because I've signed up for a Super Spartan race, which will be 8+ miles of obstacle course and mud in the beginning of September, and I'll need to have decent upper body strength for that.

My new pace gloves, in funky yellow!

In preparation for this stuff, I've bought a few things.  New shoes, of course, though I kept with the same shoe (Merrell Dash Gloves) I've been running in all year (though I got myself a new pair of the Pace Gloves, too).  Also, I bought a pair of compression calf sleeves since during my recent half marathon training I was getting some calf soreness.  Hopefully they'll help me side-step that during marathon training.  ALSO, I'm super excited that my husband has bought me the Garmin Forerunner 910xt watch!  WOOT!  Hoping it's as awesome as it seems like it will be... and now I won't have to worry about bringing my ginormous phone everywhere with me (previously, I've used the endomondo app), and I can use it to track my swims!

So, here we go!  

My Grand Experiment

Just before the finish line of my most recent half marathon.

     I've been basically conducting my own little experiment with running and diet since the beginning of the year.  Let's just say my dietary choices were pretty out of control over the holiday season and I gained 10 lbs in the space of about two months.  Something had to be done!  I needed to get back to basics for paleo/primal.  I started looking into options that were on the paleo spectrum but also helpful for endurance athletes.  I looked into Loren Cordain's Paleo Diet for Athletes but it seemed like more carbs than I could reasonably function on.  Every time my carb levels go up, I gain weight.  I tried doing their program during my training for my first half marathon last fall and gained fat.  It'd be nice to be able to say it was muscle, but my pants got tighter and I got more of a belly.
  
So, in my googling, I found a few discussions referring to The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Performance by Jeff Volek and Steve Phinney.  Their research on low carbohydrate diets actually enhancing performance for endurance athletes (after up to a 6 week transition period) was fascinating to me, so I figured I'd try it out for a while.  I highly recommend reading it to see what they say before anyone starts criticizing it.  Recently, for instance, a low carb athlete won the Western States 100 race!  

Low and behold I started dropping pounds (like most people do on a low carb diet), despite not having yet picked up my mileage for my half marathon.  Volek and Phinney do recommend use of non-caloric sweeteners, but I just cut out sweets aside from occasional berries.  I ate nuts and lots of veggies and lots of fatty meat and dairy.  Honestly, I think I should probably cut the dairy out, too, because I think it is related to some of my problems like acne, but I just haven't gotten there yet (or maybe ever).

The first couple weeks were tough, cutting back that much, but after that it felt normal and I didn't mind not having the sweets that I used to crave, though  I did eat the occasional piece of dark chocolate.  I kept track of my diet for the first few weeks on sparkpeople.  It was really enlightening how many incidental carbs I was getting without realizing it.  A lot of people end up with "carb flu" starting any kind of low carb diet, but I didn't - presumably owing to my somewhat low carb diet in the past following paleo/primal.

I was training for the Greater Binghamton Bridge Run Half-marathon, which was beginning of May.  Once I acclimated to the diet, my running was just fine, though I did bring some "bonk-protection" (a bit of sugary something-or other) and drank coconut water on my longer runs, but even my 13 mile training run, which was over 2 hrs of running, I felt completely fine and did not have to break out the emergency sugar.

My results:

 I'm pleased with this diet and how functional I am as an athlete on it, but recently I've read more about super low carb and cortisol, so now I'm not exactly sure what to do.  I've struggled with adrenal fatigue (aka overtraining, except mine was just from stress in life, not stress from exercise) in the past and am not overly interested in hitting that again. It was fascinating that I didn't really get hungry ever, though, and found my "full" response.  I would get through half of what I normally wanted to eat and just be... done.  That never happened before with my regular old paleo/primal diet.

In terms of my running performance, I PR'd by 10 minutes (1:54:06), which was awesome, but I'll admit that I trained much better for this race than I had for my last. 

Overall, I'd recommend people try this for a couple months and see how you feel.  Maybe it'll be great!  Maybe you won't notice much of a difference.  Definitely read the book, though, because the research is FASCINATING!  It really put a twist on my thinking about the need for carb loading, etc.

Another Shoe Review: Merrell Barefoot Run Dash Glove

  

After having the Pace Glove and overall appreciating it's flexibility and minimal nature, but noting the damage the road was doing to the sole, I decided that I really wanted to try a minimalist road shoe.  I chose the Merrell Barefoot Run Dash Glove because I already knew what to expect from Merrell, at least in terms of their barefoot line.   I was not sure about it though, because I wasn't really thrilled with the look of it from the pictures on their website.  When it arrived, it was much cuter than I expected.

The Dash Glove seems a bit stiffer in the sole than the pace glove, but there's still a fair amount of ground-feel.  I can't really call it "stiff" though, because you can still roll the shoe right up in your hand.  The grooves are not as deep as the pace glove, but I haven't had any trouble with traction on the road, even in wet conditions.  I also kind of like the motif on the bottom - sorta looks like toes.  I guess they're getting all in on emphasizing the bareFOOTness of the shoe.  It seems to be holding up well to the road, so far, but I guess we'll see how it goes over time.  I've been running in them a few times a week for a couple months.

  

The main differences between the Dash Glove and the Pace Glove seem to be (aside from grooves on the bottom) that the laces come up higher on the foot and that the top has more coverage with fabric that is a bit more waterproof.  I will say that the fabric on the top seems to keep my feet fairly dry, especially compared to the pace glove where my feet get soaked with any rain or dew on grass or whatever.  I've been pretty pleased with that.  Who wants to run with wet feet?

The laces do come up much higher on the foot than in the dash glove - good inch or so further.  When I first put the shoes on, I didn't really like this fact too much.  It felt awkward and uncomfortable initially.  After about 5 minutes of running, my feet settled in and the laces adjusted enough to be much more comfortable.  I actually find I can get a better fit with these than with my Pace Gloves.  They still open up fairly wide to get your foot in.  I don't have super high arches, or anything, but they're very easy to get on, despite the higher lacing.

As with much of the women's line (but not the men's, so I'm not sure why this is the case) they have the elastic bits along the back.  I'm really growing to appreciate that, though.  I'd still like to know why they do that for the women's and not the men's.  

The inside is sewn with no seams so it's very comfortable to wear sockless, though the reason I prefer a toeless shoe over vibrams is that it's easier to just get cheap (toe socks are expensive!), thin socks and keep from having to wash my shoes all the time.  It's also, of course, warmer for winter or cooler weather running.

Basically, these are very similar to the pace glove in many ways.  I encourage you to check out my pace glove review to catch a more full description of what I like about them.

I'm trying to think of downsides and I'm not coming up with any other than not having a ton of color selections that I love.  I did buy a half size up but it hasn't seemed to shrink like the dash gloves did.  I haven't had to wash them as often (helps that I'm not running in mud), though, so the same deal may apply. 

Overall, I love this shoe and it's my go-to for running.

Review: Merrell Barefoot Life Wonder Glove

Merrell now has a line of barefoot shoes that include a number of casual shoes (!!!), and because, who DOESN'T want to feel like they're barefoot all the time, I bought a pair.  Now, looking on their website, I see they also have boots and fun looking shoes for fall!

I appreciated the look of the "Barefoot Life Serene Glove", but wasn't sure I wanted the ribbon going around my ankle.  Instead, I went for the "Barefoot Life Wonder Glove"... in "mulberry"!  Hooray for bright pink shoes!  Actually they're not as bright as I expected them to be, but they're still plenty noticeable.  I've decided shoes are now officially a netural (no matter what color), so I wear them with everthing.  Haha!
 

The wonder glove is extremely comfortable.  It seems more flexible, to me, than either of the Merrell barefoot running shoes I own, which is a bonus.  The fabric on the sides is very thin, similar to the fabric for vibrams in thickness, but the toe and heel is leather.  I'm not sure this would be a reasonable shoe to wear if there's water on the ground or if it's cold out, but it's been wonderful for summer.  It's also cute enough that I can wear it with nicer things or with jeans or shorts.  Looks especially cute with jeans.  If I worked, I'd totally wear it to work.

It seems nearly all of their women's line has that elastic by the ankle.  I'm not sure why that is, but it is reasonably comfortable and doesn't really bother me as I expected.  The elastic is fairly stiff and not really pulling into your ankle, as it looks like it might be in the pictures.  That's something I recall being worried about before I bought any of their barefoot shoes.

The sole is, as I said, thin and flexible (you can roll them right up in your hand), but with a decent amount of grip, so you don't have to worry about sliding around.  It's also rubber, so not a problem in slippery polished indoor floors.  As you can see, it's a vibram sole.

I've been wearing them daily, with no sock or anything, for a couple months, and have yet to detect a stench.  They supposedly are treated to slow bacterial growth, but I do wonder how to clean them when they do start to smell.  Of course, this would be a problem with any shoe you typically wear without socks.

Really, my only negative on this shoe is that the cross strap occasionally pulls the shoe over a little and I have to scoot it back.  That is, it sorta feels like it's on sideways.  It's not a huge deal, to me, though.  Overall, I love them and am looking forward to getting other varieties of Merrell barefoot casual shoes!

**Edited to add**

My shoes started getting pretty stinky, so I asked merrell how we should clean these.  They said they do not recommend sending them through the washer, but that I could use a typical sandal cleaner.  What I did instead was dump a bunch of baking soda in them and then dampen it with some water and use that to gently scrub any crud off.  Then I rinsed with apple cider vinegar.  I followed this up with water rinse and then let them dry in the sun.  It's not a perfect fix but it's cheap and made a big difference in the funk.  :)

Merrell Barefoot Run Pace Glove Review

I've been running in minimalist shoes since I started the couch-to-5k last February (so almost a year and a half), and though I've run a fair bit in my Vibram Five Fingers Sprints, most of my running has been done in my Merrell Barefoot Run Pace Gloves.  I'm actually on my second pair because the rubber vibram sole of the first pair was worn down.  I expect this is because I was mostly running on asphalt and the shoe is designed to be a trail shoe.  Though I love it for trails, I just tend to run more on asphalt.  Obviously I like them, or I wouldn't have bought a second pair, I thought I'd put out my review for other people who might be considering them.  I actually haven't been running in them as much lately because recently I bought Merrell's Barefoot Run Dash Glove, which is actually made as a road shoe.  I plan to review them once I've put a few more miles on them.

Overall, these are very comfortable.  I like wearing them with thin socks, because then I don't have to wash them so frequently, but it's not necessary.  The inside is pretty much smooth and comfortable, but then, I haven't been in a long run with them without socks, so take that with a grain of salt.

I do recommend buying a half size up.  I find they seem to shrink/form to my foot.  It's nice in terms of getting a foot-hugging experience, but my first pair I had to trade out for a bigger pair because  they were starting to become too tight.  I should say, though, that it may be because I started out running in them when I started barefoot running and my feet have overall grown a bit from gaining muscle.  My second pair started out feeling HUGE and seem to have become much more form fitting, though.

Pros:

• compared to VFFs, you're looking at a much more conventional looking shoe - you can wear whatever cheapo socks you already have and don't have to spend money getting uber expensive thin toe socks
• very comfy
• good grip in mud
• easier to fit than VFFs, and you can find it locally (my local Dick's Sporting Goods carries it), thus you can try it on and make sure it's the one you want.  I do live in kind of a small area, though, so it's not so easy to find Vibrams around here.
• If you have weird shaped toes (that wouldn't fit in a VFF toe shoe well) you can still wear them.
• Easy to wash and because I can wear them with socks they don't get as stinky as my VFFs 
• There's not much fabric or padding to them so they dry really fast... great if you're doing, say, a mud run.

Cons:

• I'm wearing out the sole running on asphalt.  I guess this is normal, but it happened sooner than I expected.
• the laces don't come up as far as other shoes might so if you have very small heels/ankles or you are running in thick/deep mud you  may have some sliding-out problems
• Weird elastic on the rear of the collar - seems like almost all of their women's barefoot shoes have them.  I was skeptical of this at first, but it turns out it's not a big deal at all - the elastic is fairly stiff so it really just moves with you a little better.  I'm not sure I feel this is a con anymore, but I thought I should address it.  Maybe I should have labeled this section "quirks"
• the toe is coming slightly unglued, but it's not bad, so far.  
• Another quirk is that when you first put them on, you kind of feel like your toes are hanging out over nothing.  Almost like they're hanging over a ledge or something.  It's a very weird feeling and I was a little worried about how that would be while running when I first tried them on, but it was not noticeable at all once running.  Over time the little bit of padding they do have wears down (or possibly I just got used to the feeling) and I'm not sure this ledge is even there anymore.
• These shoes have a lot more to them than vibrams.  If you're new to barefoot/minimalist running, definitely try it completely SHOELESS a few times to make sure you have a reasonable stride before running in these shoes.  It's a little bit shocking, the difference between completely bare and these shoes.  Still very minimalist, zero drop, you can curl them right up in a spiral, but NOT barefoot.

 Overall, I obviously like them a lot.  I definitely would buy them again, but I think I'm going to use them mostly for trails from now on.  If you run mostly on asphalt, this shoe may not be for you.

Vibram Five Fingers "Sprint" Review

I know there must be thousands of reviews of VFFs out there, by now, but I just thought I'd throw my input out there.  I've been running in my sprints (off and on, they're not my favorite at this point, but they were my first minimal footwear) for about 15 months.  Here's my take on it:

I will preface this by saying I've only tried two kinds of minimal shoes (at this point) for running - my VFF sprints and my Merrell Barefoot Pace Gloves.  Aside from that I've run completely without shoes, so that gives you an idea of my experience.  Generally I run 3-4 miles per run, although I've just signed up for a half-marathon, so I'm excited to see how my barefooting holds up!  I've worn my VFFs trail running, street running, and also for hiking/general walking, not to mention just casually.

Most people's first question is "what do they feel like??"  Well, they feel basically like wearing gloves on your feet.  They're not difficult to get on if you have any ability to move your toes, though there's a slight learning curve - the first couple times were a little weird and I needed to use my fingers to guide my smaller toes in, but now I'm pretty used to it and they slip on easily.  The fabric is thin, about the thickness of the material in a woman's bathing suit, though not quite as stretchy.  Before I ordered them, I thought the pictures always looked a bit puffy, as if they're made out of maybe neoprene or something, so I was a little shocked to find this out when I received them.

I'll concede that probably some of the problems on here may, or even certainly do relate to the style (the "sprints" vs. other styles of VFF)

PRO:

• These shoes are very thin and flexible.  You can literally roll them right up.  Really easy to pack to take with you on vacation or whatever.
• When wearing them you can feel little bumps and rocks in the road, though not enough for it to be uncomfortable.  Still, a lot of ground feel, thus, very similar to barefoot - more similar to barefoot than my Merrell barefoot pace gloves.
• It's easy to spread my toes.
• They LOOK really cool and get asked about a lot.  This can be a con if you like to hide, but I kind of like the opportunity to enlighten people.  Sometimes their faces look horrified and they say "WHAT IS ON YOUR FEET?" though and I reply with sort of a meek "uh... shoes?" but that usually leads into a discussion of how they feel and why I would wear such a thing and whatnot.  

CON:

• Though the toes fit my toes well, occasionally they twist when I'm running and feel sort of funny (not a huge issue, but I do squirm my feet around while running once this happens and lose focus)
• I'm not a huge fan of the velcro.  It sticks to things sometimes (like if it's in a bag with other stuff), and occasionally it cuts in/chafes my skin if I haven't worn them in a while.  I'm considering trying one of the types of VFF that is a bit more like a sneaker.
• The heel slides down, but when I pull it up, the sides cut into my ankles and are uncomfortable.  I think it's possible that I should downsize, but here's a picture of what I mean: 

down

up

             See how the blue velcro is touching the top of the sole in the first picture (and not in the     second)?  That is a bit annoying while running.  I noticed that the newer style they've made        some changes to this part of the shoe, so it's possible that that is no longer an issue.  I do know         that in other VFF styles, the heel cup is more like a sneaker, which would fix this issue entirely, I expect.

•    The infamous VFF stench.  Funny because the first couple months of using them I didn't really get much of the stench... but oh boy, yes, now I get it.  And ew.  It's possible that they've managed to fix this in the past year, too... 
• This is minor since these have so much ground feel, but running in them is still different from running barefoot.  If you only ever run in minimal shoes, you should give completely barefoot a try if for no other reason than to see the difference.  I mean, these are *really* minimal and I can feel rocks and stuff through them, and it's still somewhat different than running completely barefoot.
• My last complaint is that these don't have enough grip on the bottom.  They only have thin little razor slices in them.  I'll admit that this is completely due to the style.  Other ones have more grip... and honestly more grip, I assume, would result in less ground-feel, but these are not shoes I would recommend for a lot of trail running.  They slide in mud... not exactly what you would want for a trail run.  If you're set on VFFs for trail running (which I was), definitely check out some of the other styles with more grippy bottoms.  Totally would be worth it, and again, I'm seriously contemplating getting those.

Anyway, so that's it!  Would I buy sprints again?  Hmm... I think they'd be great water shoes or for water sports, definitely.  For me, however, I would prefer something with less velcro and with a better heel cup/collar.