Barefoot Running is Front Page News in Atlanta

[JimN]

Good job, TJ! With the Peachtree Road Race 10K coming up on July 4th, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution published an article Tuesday on barefoot running: http://www.ajc.com/sports/peachtree-road-race/not-every-peachtree-runner-991084.html



Of note -

"Traveling by foot 6.2 miles, with little to no foot cushion, makes Peachtree medical co-director Perry Julien wince. “With glass and metal on the road, you can hurt yourself very badly,” he said. “Our environment is not the jungles of Mexico.” "



Ho hum. I was just out there last March to run the Georgia Half Marathon and had no issues. When I first heard of barefoot running, I thought the same thing - the roads are full of glass, rocks, and nails and running without shoes HAS to be unsafe. But I didn't declare it in the newspaper before finding out beforehand if it's really true. I suppose Mr. Perry knows that the jungles of Mexico are more barefoot friendly than the asphalt streets of Atlanta...



Jim

 

[stomper]

Nice job representing,

Nice job representing, TJ.

The quote from the podiatrist is so typical. The concern about puncture wounds demonstrates that this person has no real first hand experience with barefoot running. But because they are a "dr" and a medical director for the event, they are quote-worthy anyway.

But I have to give the writer (and TJ, who I assume pointed this out) credit, the piece does make a distinction between going truly BF and minimal. Progress is being made. But I'm not sure journalism will ever catch up, as Joshh's frustrating experience with the Oregonian shows.

The best way to educate people is just to get out there and do it with a smile!

 

[Barefoot TJ]

Jim, Terry, and I are also in

Jim, Terry, and I are also in the printed newspaper with our photos the AJC staff photographer took during our run there at Lull Water, but I haven't seen today's edition yet. There's also a subarticle online that appears in the side bar about safety tips here: http://www.ajc.com/sports/peachtree-road-race/barefooting-the-peachtree-read-991154.html This will be expanded in the newspaper edition.

Yes, they always have to get a "scary podiatrist" quote somewhere. I spoke at length with the reporter on the phone, and explained why relearning how to run with a proper form comes easier and safer to those who restart purely barefoot. She totally gets the concept of why it's safer for us, and I think that helped with getting the message across in the article. She said she would have to revise her aim of this article after all that. She had intended it to be about "VFFs" mostly and barefoot on the side, but she said after talking to me, she was going to add more barefoot talk to it.

You know, I would be leary of running in the "jungles of Mexico" more than I would on the streets of Atlanta. I've run lots of races in Atlanta and have never stepped on anything. I think running over rugged rocks and boulders and thorns and stuff like that would be a lot more painful than running on asphalt or concrete. I mean, we've done some trail running, and although you have sections that feel like Heaven, you also have sections that feel like Hell! Ha!

When the reporter told me that the podiatrist she interviewed said that he was seeing great numbers of barefoot/minimalist runners in his office for problems related to their new way of running, I called bullsh!t! I explained to her that there just are not enough of us out there to warrant a comment from him like that. I said think about it. How many shod runners does he see each day with running related injuries (mostly due to their shoes); then tell me how many barefoot or minimalist runners does he see. Exactly!

So, it's up to each of us to make sure the reporters we talk to get the facts as we know them from experience.

I thought what Jim said was HYSTERICAL: Runners such as Harmon, who accumulates most of his mileage in minimalist shoes, also draw criticism from the true “barefooters.” To them, toe shoes are like bathing suits in a nudist colony — why bother?

Here's a picture from online somewhere of me running, but I can't find the other pictures, and I can't even find this one. This one was sent to me by a friend in my shoddie running club.

 

[stomper]

There's something classical

There's something classical about that picture, TJ, you should get it framed.

 

[mokaman]

I saw the pictures and story

I saw the pictures and story in the newspaper today TJ...not too bad at all but the podiatrist along with many many people can't seem to tell the difference between bare feet and minimalist footwear... seperate toes must cause some kind of mind trick!

The picture above of you running is in the Sports section of the newspaper. I've ran the Peachtree race 4 times barefoot and its not any different than most roads maybe on the smoother side for pavement running.

 

[Barefoot TJ]

My hubby brought home a

My hubby brought home a couple copies of the newspaper. It has a picture of all three of us on the Sports section's cover. You and Jim look great.

Thanks, Stomper. I've written to the photographer asking his permission. We'll see what he says, but I'm not holding my breath for a yes. He took a ton of pictures, but of course, not all of them can be published in the paper.