New Shoes!

  I am really impressed by people that keep track of the mileage on their shoes, how do they do that? A training log? Their memory is just that good? Whatever it is, I didn't do that with my last ones and based on the holes I was creating with my big toe, it probably had a good many on them!

 Back home we had a running store in town, Fairhaven Runners how I miss you! They watched you walk, watched you run, evaluated your stride, brought out the shoes they recommended and had you run outside in them to try them out. Here on the prairie? Yeah, no such store.

  On top of that, I was making way too big a deal selecting a brand and style this time around, mostly because I feel like I am more of an actual runner while before I was just a casual jogger. I mean, I have actual running socks so that must mean I getting pretty serious, right?

  Since I have been trying to get to the whole minimalist running feel, I knew I at least wanted shoes that mimicked the Luna Sandals. Altras were recommended to me by the lady I met that ran the Leadville, if they will hold up for a 100 mile of tough mountain trails they must be worth trying out. I was thrilled to read the story on them; wide toe box and zero drop heel developed by a family that had a running store and realized that feet needed to replicate the barefoot stride inside a shoe as closely as possible. The outdoor store in town just started carrying Altras and had two trail types to choose from, the Lone Peak had the best fit, and yes I had to get the men's because they don't have my size in women's. I have big feet.

 I like that they give me lots of space for my toes and enough cushion for my foot that I don't feel the stab of every rock down the drive but still minimalist enough that if I am heel landing too much I can feel the jarring up nearly into my teeth and I am reminded to correct my stride and lighten up on the landing. I heel strike pretty bad going downhill, but maybe that is because I run hills so rarely, note to self; run more hills.

 So far my longest run in them has been five miles on the treadmill, I told you I have been slacking off. Today I ran an actual trail, with varied terrain and rocks to deal with, other than feeling I was slipping too much in the shoes themselves, as in my foot within the shoe, when going downhill, they held up well enough and I don't have a lot of complaints. The grip on the ground was fine, but the real test will be when the ground is damp and slick. With the clay footing around here, it makes running in the winter outdoors (when it isn't in the negatives and the wind isn't blowing) even less appealing.

 The even bigger test will be the long runs, whenever those happen again.