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Vibram Releases New FiveFingers

I've had a pair Vibram Fivefinger Sprints for about a year. I wanted something that would allow me to run "barefoot" without getting annoying things embedded in my feet, like heroin needles. Here is just how awesome the FiveFingers are: I just met a guy who is a contractor in Iraq (the kind with a gun, not the kind that builds houses) who likes to where them around "at work." Apparently the insurgents, stunned by your sheer awesomeness, forget to set off the IED's.

The rumor goes that the FiveFinger was originally created for Marco Bramani, the grandson of the founder of Vibram. Using his large trust fund to the fullest, Marco enjoyed sailing around the Mediterranean barefoot and kept stubbing his toes on the poop deck. Robert Fliri, seeing the opportunity to get in with the big dogs, presented the original FiveFingers to Bramini who thought they were as amazing as the models in Milan. (another thing trust funds are great for) Then, united for the common good of man, they created the best shoes ever.

My Sprints quickly became my outdoor recreation footwear for everything not involving snow or four inch deep scree. They are my running, hiking, jumping off 60' cliff, slacklining, and getting hot girl shoes; well at least the first four. The idea behind the shoes is apparent - to simulate being barefoot. There are hardcore bare-footers out there who consider the FiveFingers to be cheating, but not all of us live in a climate, or have the time to develop the type of calluses necessary for true bare-footing. I'd also like to see the bare-footers deal with a field of goat heads or 140°F black top.

The reason why one may want to run around barefoot may not be so apparent. For some it's just a feeling of freedom; the enjoyment of a more tactile interaction with the ground. However, there is more benefit to being barefoot then that. Almost all of us, not just runners, have been told our whole lives that we need good supportive shoes. Since the first time I can remember going shoe shopping my mother would ask the salesmen if the shoe had good arch support. A movement has started that where supportive shoes could actually be causing more problems then they are solving. Shoes make ones feet weaker, alter ones stride, and cause a host of other problems.[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] I'm not clocking four minute miles but there is a noticeable improvement in my arch and muscles in my feet and ankles. More so than when I was running 60 miles a week. I can even jump higher.

Despite the (runs to thesaurus to find synonym for awesomeness... o it's not actually a word) I have had two complaints about the shoes. With the exception of the Surge, the lack of coverage over the top of the foot allowed debris to easily enter the shoe and it is impossible to run outside in the winter unless you want to fake an expedition to K2 by losing toes to frostbite. Vibram has taken a stab at both of these problems with two new models this year. The KSO and the Flow, which is apparently a replacement for the Surge. As soon as I get the money or Vibram wants to send me a pair I will be getting the KSO.

[1] Barefoot Running (sportsci.org)
[2] Should You Be Running Barefoot? (runnersworld.com)
[3] Feet Hurt? Stop Wearing Shoes (npr.org)
[4] You Walk Wrong (nymag.com)
[5] Why were you born with bare feet? (alun.dk)