Member Profile of the Week - Nathan “Inbetweenmytoes” Smith - Never Say Never

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Member Profile of the WeekNathan “Inbetweenmytoes” SmithNever Say Never
Nathan “inbetweenmytoes” Smith is a 35 year-old resident of Cardston, Alberta, Canada, where he lives with his wife Gen and their four children. He grew up in a small farming community just outside the Park, and while he left the area for about 12 years, he found his way back 8 years ago. He boasts the Waterton National Park as being his backyard, and the proximity to this wilderness is quite convenient to satisfy the outdoor interests he loves, which include camping, hiking, kayaking, and mountain biking. Nathan attended Brigham Young University, obtaining a BS in Recreation Management & Youth Leadership, with a minor in Family Science, and is currently employed as a School Counselor. Prior to settling down, he used his fluent Romanian 15 years ago while on a two-year missionary trip to Romania; then following his marriage, returned there with Gen for a three-month practicum during which they developed recreation programming in a few orphanages. Additionally, Nathan has a creative side. “I enjoy photography, and my wife and I have a dream to someday have a photography business. I play guitar, sing, and enjoy being creative with design and art.” While no military experience per se, he wonders does Boy Scouts count? Hmm, Nathan, must be a tough troop!

Nathan has been running just about two years and says this about the why: “Many have suggested that I must love running. I struggle with acceptance of that type of relationship with running. It’s not the sport that I love as much as the feeling that I get when I run. Running clears my head, forces me to breathe deeply (good practice for a shallow breather such as myself), loosens my body, increases my metabolism, gives me ‘me’ time, helps me more acutely focus on my own awareness, and gives me opportunity to pit myself against myself and nature.”

As for barefoot and minimalist running, he came to it rather naturally. “I have forever been against ‘sturdy’ shoes for my children, preferring a supple, leather-bottomed sole that would not affect my children’s gaits. Almost 5 years ago, Graham, Inov-8’s designer, shared the concept behind their footwear, a shoe that lets your foot do what it is naturally supposed to do. A year later, Georgia Shaw, of Vibram FiveFingers, put my wife and I into some funny looking shoes with toe pockets in them. The odd footwear took a while to take with me, but the idea of moving towards an increasingly barefoot experience had been firmly planted. For nearly a year, I have been wearing Vibram FiveFingers exclusively and blogging about my experiences at inbetweenmytoes.com. The experience has been profound in developing both my self-awareness and understanding about the act of running.”

Nathan’s favorite distance is 10 miles, as it gives him a chance to really warm up and feel like he’s accomplishing something. As for his favorite race, there isn’t just one, and Nathan has given us a “Top 4” list:

- Cardston Legacy was my first ½ and Logan Top of Utah was my first full, definitely important being my first racing achievements.

- The Lethbridge Moonlight Run was only 10 km, but it was a hoot running down into the coulees in the dark.

- The Lethbridge Coulee Cactus Crawl was memorable as my first team run and first trail running experience. I’m hooked on the trail running idea now.

- At the beginning of this year, I ran the Great Aloha 8 mile race in Hawaii when my wife and I took a needed vacation after building our own house. I felt like a super athlete although I had not started my running or training for the year. The climate and elevation were culprit… going from almost 1,000 meters to sea level makes a big difference. Also, lining up before dawn with 20,000 plus participants was an incredible and surreal feeling (details on the Great Aloha race and zombies at http://www.inbetweenmytoes.com/blog/2010/4/14/the-great-aloha-race.html) .

Personal Records: Mile: 6-ish minutes;5K: 00:16:25 (4km race);10K: 00:47:30; 1/2 Marathon: 1:38:18;Marathon: 3:53:59

Nathan’s most memorable running experience is an example of why runners especially should not be taken seriously when making “never” declarations. Nathan’s first race was a half marathon, in honor of a brother-in-law fighting cancer… “I swore I would never run again after the race’s end, but I signed up for a full marathon (bucket list item) just a few days later.”

In conclusion, Nathan can’t remember if it was an invitation or recommendation to join the BRS, but a connection with Jason Robillard had him interested in trying out the “beta site.” He further explains, “I was and still am interested in a connection with the barefoot and minimalist running online community. It helps keep me from blogging about my experiences while in a vacuum… I’m just a regular guy trying out something a little on the irregular side, and I have learned a lot about myself along the way. Please check out my blog, inbetweenmytoes.com, for more information about me and my year-long challenge of wearing Vibram FiveFingers exclusively.”

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I'm really not the 'wild' guy in that picture :) The picture was taken after a Terry Fox "Great Canadian Hair-Do" Fundraiser that I hosted at one of the schools I work at. Students earned enough to put a number of the teachers heads on the chopping block, and being the main organizer, I wasn't about to get away with all of my hair. I figured I may as well take advantage of the once in a lifetime hairdo that matched my Sport Kilt, so off for a run through the alley I went.

I look forward to meeting up with you, Pb. If you come this way, I know some good hair stylists I could recommend.