Not sure if this goes here or in Gear & Footwear. Mods move it if you think it needs it.
I have a brand new pair of Vivobarefoot Off Road Hi Hiking Boots!
(thanks bfinaz for the coupon code, wouldn't have them otherwise!)
They are beautifully made boots, I will write a review eventually.
I got them for cold & wet winter conditions, hunting, and really rough terrain.
I of course promptly put them on and walked 3+ miles yesterday afternoon, being very careful to monitor for hot spots, chafing, and blisters. None of these happened. Keep in mind that I can walk ~11 miles comfortably in Merrells and recently I have been walking up to 6 miles, with substantial amounts of it crushed gravel about golf ball sized, in VFFs with no ill effects (this is kind of a big deal for me because this is the first time in my life I have been able to hike as far as I want without pain).
I wear VFFs ~80% of the time with the other ~20% of my time being spent in huaraches, Merrell Pure and Pace Gloves, barefoot, or socks. I haven't worn mainstream shoes in over a year.
When I put the boots on I realized they were by far the most substantial pair of footwear I now own and are of course much stiffer and thicker soled than any of my other shoes. I clomped around the house a bit, sounding like a cart horse and feeling silly and weird then I took them outside and realized I wouldn't be sneaking up on as many deer as I do in the VFFs (I found five last night, three saw me first).
Interestingly the boots do actually have ground feel. They felt really weird for my walk but they didn't hurt me. When I got home and had been barefoot again for a few hours my toe joints felt like somebody'd been knocking on them with a little hammer (they are fine now) and this morning my hamstrings were really tight/stiff, although they are better now that I have been up and walking around and sitting on a few tennis balls. Why did my boots make me feel like this? Do I need to do some sort of reverse transition(I'd rather not)?
I have a brand new pair of Vivobarefoot Off Road Hi Hiking Boots!
(thanks bfinaz for the coupon code, wouldn't have them otherwise!
)They are beautifully made boots, I will write a review eventually.
I got them for cold & wet winter conditions, hunting, and really rough terrain.
I of course promptly put them on and walked 3+ miles yesterday afternoon, being very careful to monitor for hot spots, chafing, and blisters. None of these happened. Keep in mind that I can walk ~11 miles comfortably in Merrells and recently I have been walking up to 6 miles, with substantial amounts of it crushed gravel about golf ball sized, in VFFs with no ill effects (this is kind of a big deal for me because this is the first time in my life I have been able to hike as far as I want without pain).
I wear VFFs ~80% of the time with the other ~20% of my time being spent in huaraches, Merrell Pure and Pace Gloves, barefoot, or socks. I haven't worn mainstream shoes in over a year.
When I put the boots on I realized they were by far the most substantial pair of footwear I now own and are of course much stiffer and thicker soled than any of my other shoes. I clomped around the house a bit, sounding like a cart horse and feeling silly and weird then I took them outside and realized I wouldn't be sneaking up on as many deer as I do in the VFFs (I found five last night, three saw me first).
Interestingly the boots do actually have ground feel. They felt really weird for my walk but they didn't hurt me. When I got home and had been barefoot again for a few hours my toe joints felt like somebody'd been knocking on them with a little hammer (they are fine now) and this morning my hamstrings were really tight/stiff, although they are better now that I have been up and walking around and sitting on a few tennis balls. Why did my boots make me feel like this? Do I need to do some sort of reverse transition(I'd rather not)?
