Ready For The Trails And Longer Runs

For two months I've had a pair of Vibram Five Fingers on back order. So after saying good-bye to Josh at UW last Thursday, I thought I'd stop by REI in Seattle and see what they had in stock. Maybe I'd get lucky. I asked one of the folks in the footwear department and the answer was music to my ears.

"We just got a shipment in this morning."

Yessssssssss (with a fist pump). After doing the Goldilocks thing I found a pair of Bikilas that fit me just right. The Bikila model is made specifically for running.

Thursday night I wore them around the house for an hour. Putting them on is a trip because getting your toes to line up is more difficult than your fingers going into a glove. The seams and accompanying extra material spread your toes apart a little. I had a little discomfort from that first hour of wear but none after. For the last three days I've been wearing them around the house to get the feel of them.

And what a relief...
...to see how comfortable they are...
...in every activity in the home.
Today I took them for their first run, four miles on pavement. I purposely stepped on rocks to see how protective the sole is and I am very happy with the results. The overall feel of the shoe(?) is very close to being barefoot, more so than the aqua sox I've been using.

Now to see how well they hold up. I'll run them to work this week. Their first off-road test will be the Sekani 10k Trail run on Oct 16.