I’ve never used Nike shoes, I’ve nothing against them just never actually liked a pair enough to buy some. Over the years, I’ve never even been that interested in Nike shoes. Then a while ago along came the Nike Free trainers. Could Nike be jumping on to the barefoot supporters bandwagon? Hedging their bets in case the movement really took off? Or were they really worth looking
The Beachy Head Marathon and more testing
So another marathon has been and gone. This went better than expected given the volume of training not done.
The other half of RTP, Bev, had a great race finishing 3rd; she seems to like these long, hilly, off-road trials.
Anyway, the day after the race it was back to the Brighton University for more testing. One of the things they are looking at is the effect of DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness)
An unashamed shoe supplier plug
Yes, I know the focus here is on barefoot running, but I do still run most of my miles in shoes.
Regular readers should know that I do not make frequent shoe purchases; the last pair of ‘normal’ road shoes I bough was well over 2 years ago. However, I did have the need for some new shoes for the upcoming cross country season and also I need some more shoes for my road running.
I am certainly
A different kind of research
This week should have started with a 10 mile race, the Lewes Downland 10. But last week’s experience told me quite plainly that I’m a bit short on endurance miles, so instead it was a longer, slower, slog on the South Downs of around two and half hours. I felt surprisingly good. Next week’s 20 mile race will be a stronger indicator of what sort of long-distance capacity I have
Black Mountains — how the other half run
A slightly cautious week in view of the unknown experience to come, that of the Black Mountains Fell Race.
This soft, southern, road-runner was feeling quite anxious about this one.
The event was recommended to me by a friend of mine. He’s into Alpine marathons and more these days, but has plenty of experience on the fells and mountains of these islands. He’s also recently
Who needs new shoes?
It occurred to me the other day that the last pair of ‘ordinary’ trainers I bought was back in April 2008.
Although, since then, I have had 3 new pairs of not so ordinary running shoes:
- Inov-8 Roclite 315. These have been used for much of my running: 5k road races, half marathons, long (20 mile+) road runs, off-road marathons & mountain races. They are getting pretty worn now but still have plenty of miles left in them, I’ll replace them soon, probably with some 285s
- Zoot Ultra Race 2. I tried these on in a local Triathlon shop out of curiosity. They looked very interesting: extremely lightweight, minimal cushioning & support, very low heel lift and amazingly comfortable. They’ve not had much use yet because I really want to be rid of my Achilles problem before I go blasting a 5k in them — they are even flatter than the Roclites.
- Aqua shoes. At the other end of the price spectrum to the Zoots are these cheap and cheerful aqua shoes bought in Tescos for about £3. I’ve only run a few times in them including a 5 miler, but they’ve been very comfy. I will use them more in the winter when the roads carry too much debris for safe barefoot running.
The point is though, the marketing guys and the running magazines will have us replacing our shoes every 500 miles or risk certain injury — I’m not entirely sure this is the best strategy to