Vivobarefoot Ones Giveaway

Check out Barefoot Inclined for a great comparison of the Vivobarefoot Ones and the Merrell Vapor Gloves! They are both shoes that I have been looking at and Jeff at Barefoot Inclined put up a great write up of the shoes and how they perform up against each other!

http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2013/08/minimalist-showdown-merrell-vapor-glove.html?showComment=1377321383352#c8680122245808755014

These shoes are done right.

I can't get over how great these shoes are.

No longer getting blisters
NEVER smell bad (I wear with no socks now)
Great grip
Comfortable


Feels awesome to run in. They blew away my first impressions and are a fantastic pair of shoes! This is a shoe done correctly.

Triple jumped in them (in the indoor dome, due to weather inclement) and reached an indoor PR. They're solid, and will find their way into the next season's TJ.

I reach for these shoes more and more often, they just feel cooler in the hot summer temps.

Barefoot Inclined Muddy J Huarache Giveaway!

http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2013/06/huaraches-you-say-nojuaraches-muddy-j.html#comment-form

Head on over to Jeff's blog and join the giveaway for some free shipping on sweet "J"uaraches !

Skora Form Unboxing and First Impressions

I recently picked up a pair of Skora Form's from The Clymb, a website that requires a free online membership to view and buy their products. They offer several brands for hiking, running, swimming, etc. that involve the great outdoors.

Skora is a new brand in the minimalist shoe world, sporting only 4 shoe models. They range from $100 to $185, using a wide array of materials, but with one mindset: Run Real


I picked up the pair for only $92 including shipping! This is their highest end model, sold for $185 on their own website. This shoe is definitely the "Ferrari" of minimalist shoes when it gets to price. But we all know Ferrari's aren't always the fastest or the highest quality.

The Clymb shipped them promptly and they arrived in about a week.
They were packaged well enough.

 The box is very high quality, nicely colored, and even has a magnet in the flap to open the box!

I ordered a size 7 men's, because I finally realized that none of my shoes are exactly a perfect fit (MAYBE the VFF's at EU 40, but even they have some more room). So I bit the bullet to get a nice snug glove-like fit. Yes, I know I have really small feet for a high schooler.

The back of the box, shown above, with their own little punchline of sorts. 

The shoes are nicely wrapped inside the box which has the ability to flatten out easily. Certainly a neat box, but we are here for the shoes right? 

Here's the diagram (also found on their website) showing their 3 part sole that is featured in the Form model and Base model. 

And there they are! The come with another set of matching laces (which I immediately threw on) 

The heel strap does next to nothing!!! 

The upper is goatskin leather, which was a nice, soft, and breathable outer that I liked! 

 I have heard others complain about the heel cup, as it can lead to a lot of "rolling". When standing, there's a bit of a movement from the heel that doesn't quite just allow you to stand still. I also feel that the heel is the most bulky part of the shoe.

 But of course, you're running on the forefoot area! The rubber looks very nicely textured and grippy.

 The inside edge of the shoe features the design on the goatskin leather, which is echoed on their box.

 The right edge of the shoe has perforations in the leather. 

Overall the shoe is flashy, while still maintaining a nice minimalist shoe look. It does fit like a glove! 

 The insoles are by Ortholite and are very plush.

 The shoe features asymmetrical lacing and a no-tongue design. The inside of the upper is made of a perforated sheep-skin leather, which is even softer and smoother on the skin. Also shown above is the inside without the insole, which is a squishy clothlike feeling (almost identical to the Hattori's internals).

 The model is shown on the "tongue" along with sizing and such 

 The shoe is flexible as minimalist shoes should be! It's not as flexible as my VFF's, Vivobarefoot's, and Inov-8 pair though. This is due to the 9mm total stack height (add another 4mm for the Ortholite insole).

 Ortholite insole has some nice anti-bacterial microfiber. 

 The toe has a seam, along with some visible glue. It worries me a bit, especially since out of the box I already see fraying of threads along both shoes.

 Here are the new laces and asymmetrical style!

A nice classy sneaker for casual wear! 

This is after a nice 5 mile run, insoles in, and no socks. I felt a nice blister kicking in on the inside edges of my feet, along where the pattern is. Funny cause there isn't anything here that would cause agitation. I noticed later that tying the shoes too tightly (which I love to do) and crease up the sheep-skin leather that then presses against the skin.

Immediately after pulling them off, there are some evident crease marks in my foot. This was a burning pain for each step , and was pretty horrible to do.

I later ran that night for cross country practice, pulling a 12:56 2 mile time trial. Eh, not too bad for practice day 1. I've been working on a 10-week lifting program and that day was legs. 

For the time trial, I took out the insoles to free up my foot space in there, and didn't have that reoccurring issue on the inside of my foot. However, the pain shifted to the outside edges of the foot. I'm going to have to work on that. If anything, I'll bet that it's the asymmetrical lacing that cinches down especially when I tie it tightly. 

Pros:

-Stylish, great colors and awesome design

-Breathable!!! (I have hyperhidrosis, and this is a HUGE plus). You wouldn't think that all that leather breathes well!

-Asymmetrical lacing

-Comes with two lace sets

-Zero drop shoe, high quality grippy sole! 

-Nice flexibility 

-High quality box

-Ample toe room (though not as wide as other competitors)

Cons:

-COST is a huge one. Goes for $150+ 

-Heel strap does nearly nothing

-Need to have the perfect placement before lacing, or you will have blistering effects

-Build quality has me wondering: there are stitches fraying away, glue visible, the lacing loops look very flimsy and make me nervous when I lace up for tempo runs.

-On the edge of actually being a minimalist shoe

-Shoe laces are ultra long even after double knotting. Again, I tie my shoes pretty tightly. 

Color Vibe 5K, Rockford, IL

I had the opportunity to run the Color Vibe 5K in Rockford last Saturday! It's a knock-off of Color Run.

The event was held at Boone County Fairgrounds in Belvidere, IL It was a nice little event with about 3500 people! We jumped in (we, being a group from my school) the first heat, right in the front of the start pack. Of course this wasn't any serious timed run! We had 4 color stations that frankly didn't stick to our white shirts too much. However, the finish-line after party was phenomenal, with a DJ and timed color throws which left us covered in the colored corn starch! 

 I wore my white Inov-8 Bare-X 200's in hopes of getting some nice color, but after the entire event 

(including the finish line party) I only ended up with some splotches of pink :(

My cross country coach would've cringed at my pacing (along with my brother). 

Vivobarefoot Evo II Review (After 260 miles)

The Story: 

     Yes, I do understand the pair I own now is currently a women's pair. I'm extremely fond of the Vivobarefoot brand and use it as my main comparison to all of my new shoes. 

I owned a pair of Evo I's, mens, in yellow and grey. I have since donated them after over 200 miles or so, particularly since I had multiple rips in the nylon upper, on both shoes.  I used Shoe Goo to seal the rips, but eventually I gave the shoes away because of more and more rips that became a nuisance. 

But positively, they were my first pair of minimalist shoes. Prior to them, I had been wearing all sorts of shoes from Adidas Micro-bounce's, Nike Airmax 360's, and Nike Lunar series shoes. I couldn't quite find a shoe that: 

1. Lasted long enough 

2. Had enough grip for sprinting work outs

3. Flexible enough for sprinting on toes

4. Didn't feel clunky on my feet

I remember clearly stumbling across the Evo I's in a Eastbay magazine, marveling at the colors and hexagonal designs, only to cringe at the price of $140 and up. A few months and coupon code later, I picked up my first pair of minimalist shoes in the summer of 2011. 

The Evo I's:

Again, I have since donated them, but use them for a standard comparison. They ended up costing me about $80. The shoes were phenomenal, of course, but a hard transition as you can imagine, going from 8mm+ stack heights to a zero drop, 3mm outsole minimalist shoe. I threw 200+ miles on it through freshman year, winning indoor season races, suffering through PE, and summer track. They were my day-to-day shoes, (albeit clashing with every single outfit I wore) and I loved them, grew attached, and spread positive information of minimalist footwear. Alas, they ripped up and I bid them farewell in the summer of 2012, as incoming was my pair of Inov-8 Bare-X 200's and Newton Distancia's. 

The Evo II's:

I'm sure most of you have skipped some or all of the information above, because you're here for the review! I stumbled through TJ Maxx one day with my siblings, and as my sister perused the women's shoe aisle, I followed along. Eventually, my eyes floated to a familiar hexagonal design, neutral colors, and a delightful, bittersweet cringe. No women around staring at me? Check. I went for the price tag to find $25.00. TWENTY-FIVE dollars??? For essentially what is the same as my Evo I's (that I paid $80 for!?). Thank goodness for unisex sizing, because I dashed out of the aisle after one quick try on, to avoid any customers who would've found it strange for a teenage boy to be so giddily trying on pair of shoes in the women's shoe aisle. I regret not buying a pair of Neo's (in black/yellow) and another pair of Evo's, both priced also at $25 each. 

They come in at 7.2 oz per shoe, in an EU 42 L. 

The Shoes: 

The important part: the soles. 

The soles are perfect. A great median of grip,flexibility, lightness, and durability. Its 3mm, puncture-proof sole provides texture throughout the sole and grip. 

It should be noted that I also use this as a day-to-day shoe, and it is an excellent walking shoe. Because of that, the heels have been worn down to the "whites" of the sole. 

But yet, the forefoot remains rather untouched by the "whites" save for one hexagon near the V. This is obviously because of the lightness of forefoot running, which leads to much less abrasion. 

 The insoles are nice, about 2mm in thickness, with anti-bacterial microfiber. The bottom features again the hexagonal pattern. The insol e is a plush foam that does what it should. It should be noted, however, that I hardly use these!

Originally, each green/red hexagon had a prominent nub on it. Shown above was the only nub that still clearly existed, simply because of its location. The forefoot has worn down those nubs, as have the heels. 

Overall, the sole is extremely flexible and can be rolled up! 

The Uppers:

The upper is great! It has a mesh with nylon overlay, and a spandex-like layer on the inside. It breathes well, is flexible, and is lightweight! Particularly from a person with sweaty feet, I can say that these shoe's do fine. Not as superb as the Bare-X 200's, but reasonable enough to prevent a stink like from my VFF's. 

Of course, my greatest fear was the upper ripping. I am extremely ecstatic to say that the Evo II's have improved over the Evo I's: I have not suffered a rip in the shoes, even though these shoes have accumulated more miles than the Evo I's!! Very, very satisfied to hear that Vivobarefoot listens to their customers and fixes problems. Above you will also see that I have one frayed shoe lace tip, which is by no means an issue. You will also see that the nylon overlay of this left shoe has torn off, namely the lime "V". I have noticed the other shoe to do the same. However, in the Evo I's, the entire mesh did in fact rupture, forming a direct hole in the shoe. Well, multiple, multiple rips and holes. 

The mesh is still intact. 

The right shoe's lime hexagons are beginning to peel off as well. Only aesthetic! 

The inside of the shoe with removed insoles looks like so. The stitching has NOT been an issue at all. It also does not seem to retain much stink, although I do sun-zap my shoes once in a while! 

Performance: 

I mentioned before the large transition from traditional heel-stacked shoes to Vivobarefoot shoes. This transition was not all that bad because of my experiences running in track spikes, with very minimal support (Nike Victories, Asics Japan Thunder). 

I ran with this shoe on roads, grass, trails, gravel, etc. Additionally, I ran through all types of weather including rain, ice, and snow. I ran with and without socks. With and without insoles. I feel that this shoe has the perfect amount of ground feel, particularly when I ran on the trails. I had a sense of the terrain but also had the confidence through puncture proof soles (for those nasty, nasty rocks and tree roots). 

I even raced in them. For the entire cross country season, I trained and raced in these shoes, putting my Bare-X 200's and Newton Distancia's to shame. I chose none other than my $25 Evo II's, and yet I was able to PR every single race. While that obviously can't all be attributed to a pair of shoes, I can say that I never once had any complaints for grip, weight, or comfort. The shoes were great on grass, the track, trails, and roads; they have shaped my legs to the way they are now, and I love that.

The wide toe box is perfect for my toe splay, and the shoe is overall, simply functional. 

Conclusion:

I've grown attached to Vivobarefoot shoes. Because they were my first minimalist shoes, I've a sort of sentimental love for the brand and their ability to improve each model. The Evo I's were great to run in, they made freshman year track so enjoyable! Evo II's, however, totally blew my expectations away. And at $25, I have no right to complain. For the many people who can't find insane deals on these shoes, they can get very pricey quickly. Vivobarefoot is a premium barefoot running brand; expect premium prices, but also expect premium build quality and performance. The shoes are durable, functional, and even breathable. The sole is intrinsically durable and works well on roads, grass, the track, trails, and pavement. They also function well with casual wear, and walking. To me, this is my go-to all-around shoe that will always be there when I need it, even after 260 miles, and still going strong. I may have to go perusing around in women's shoe aisles again just to find another pair to enjoy! 

Pros:

-Durable upper and sole

-Flexible

-Stylish, intricate design

-Breathable

-Lightweight

-Great ground feel 

-Great colorways (particularly their 2013 models!)

-Wide toe box

-Great build quality

Cons:

-Price point ($100+) 

-Nylon overlay peeling away

-Cold to wear in winter