Fleet Feet barefoot running clinic?

#2
When I read your post my

When I read your post my first thought was those a-holes again. Seems a little ironic for a shoe store to have a pay for clinic about barefoot running eh? I wonder if people will see throught their charade.
 
#3
The FF stores in Tulsa carry

The FF stores in Tulsa carry some VFFs, but that's it. I'm guessing it is an individual franchisee's option, so I don't know if we'll ever get one. Maybe I should offer to help 'em out. ;-)
 
#4
Abide, from what I can tell

Abide, from what I can tell locally, FF charge for any & every training program they have. I've heard some local runners that support other stores, because they have no charge training groups. The crazy thing is they will probably have people pay to get info they could get free here. :)
 
#5
From what I remember the

From what I remember the president of FF released a pretty scathing statement that said people shouldn't run barefoot because of small rocks and stuff.

Yeah no kidding we have a more informed knowledge pool here than they can offer.
 
#6
I note this Fleet Feet is in

I note this Fleet Feet is in Bend, Oregon, home to a fair number of serious athletes and outdoor enthusiasts. So it might make sense for this particular store. I imagine there are some honest to god barefoot runners in Bend.

My only question is if the people running this thing really know what they are talking about. Hard to tell from this kind of statement...

fleetfeetbend said:
If you are thinking that running barefoot is the “cure all” and that your injuries will suddenly disappear, that will not be the case. We do believe that by SLOWLY introducing barefoot running into your training, you will begin to focus on better running mechanics that will allow you to run healthier in the long run. Our stance on barefoot running is that it should be used as a tool for your training and not your mainstay.
Click to expand...

... whether they are just being cautious in their claims, whether they really understand what can be accomplished BF, or they are just trying to make sure they sell some minimalist shoes!
 
#7
I like how they ask you to

I like how they ask you to bring two pairs of shoes along with you. I'm guessing they hope that people have a bad first experience with barefooting, and will assume that they need to either buy minimalist or regular footwear. Both of which they stock I'm sure.

Maybe I'm just being cynical, but I doubt they'll have good instruction on basic barefoot running. Perhaps as an attempt to sell VFFs?
 
#8
saypay, i'm skeptical too. 

saypay, i'm skeptical too. After all the r'aison d'etre of the store is to sell shoes. It'd be odd of them to run a seminar where the take home message was "you don't need our products -- any of them!" ... "well, maybe the pants, so we're changing our name to Fleet Pants, Shorts, Kilts, and Tunics". :)
 
#9
I wonder if someone here

I wonder if someone here would go to it? I'd be curious to hear about it.

By the way what is a national caliber ultrarunner?
 
#10
I concur.  They're shod

I concur. They're shod runners selling shoes with a gimmick to bring in people. They completely commercialize the BF concept and are incapable of stepping outside the conventional "stay protected" box.
 
#11
 Follow the money. There's

Follow the money. There's more on the store's blog here: http://fleetfeetbend.blogspot.com/ Ultimately, it's not so much learning about barefoot running or what it might do for you; it's to sell the minimalist shoes.

Sorry to sound so skeptical, but as new lines of minimalist shoes are being introduced this spring, the companies that produce them are all jockeying for the best pitch to potential customers. And the running stores - naturally - want to cash in on the latest 'trend.'



Jim
 
#12
I remember when they came out

I remember when they came out with those nasty comments about BFR. Brought a smirk to my face.
tounge_smile.gif


It's good to see them eating crow.

I too hope they are starting to get it right, but I fear they may not have good BFR representation. It is so important they get the right tools in place to support those who are going to be taking the "minimalist" but sometimes called "barefoot" plunge. We need to prevent as many TMTS injuries as we can to give BFR a good name.

That's why I like what Stem Footwear ( http://www.stemfootwear.com/barefoot-running.html) and Merrell (http://www.merrell.com/US/en/BarefootConnection ) are doing with their sites and products. They are not just jumping on the bandwagon and leaving the consumer to deal with the TMTS injuries; they are actually putting their money into programs/materials to educate the consumers on safe transitioning, barefoot running, and pointing them to other resources that can help them along the way.
 
#13
So I visited the website of

So I visited the website of our local Fleet Feet store in Albuquerque. Their homepage photo is way cool and way ironic, but sadly, I am not smart enough to paste the image here. It's a pair of bare feet against a faded black background

http://www.fleetfeetalbuquerque.com/

I admit to being a little excited but after doing a site search for barefoot, there were no results. I wonder if anyone realizes how silly this looks.

I hate being the spotted dog at the pound (after Disney's 101 Dalmations everyone wanted a cute puppy just like in the movie) of the running world. So many people who have genuine interest will be "guided" into buying something they don't need or worse, will become injured due to bad advice.

Maybe we could stage a protest . . . Maybe I'll just go for a run.

moz-screenshot.png
 
#14
a few hours after I was

a few hours after I was dissing it, now I feel like a bit guilty. Should we be jumping to conclusions? Sounds like from the blog that the guy wants people to be more comfortable & have better form & etc, which is all good. Now the only problem I have is that it's really about "minimal running" or "the skill of running" which [ack this is my axe to grind] isn't exactly the same as barefoot running. It's not really a barefoot running clinic the guy's putting on. After all, one could have horrid form & still being doing it barefoot. Or, if not that, at least horrid style. :)
 
#15
Abide wrote:I wonder if

Abide said:
I wonder if someone here would go to it? I'd be curious to hear about it.

By the way what is a national caliber ultrarunner?
Click to expand...

Rod Bien has quite the Ultra resume. http://ultrasignup.com/results_participant.aspx?fname=Rod&lname=Bien&age=39 Check out the elvation charts of some of these races. He was working his Fleet Feet store in Bend in 2009 on a Friday afternoon when I stopped in to pick up a few things while in town for a wedding. He was very helpful and pointed out some crazy local trails to run. It is a great little store off the beaten path. He had actual placed second the weekend before in the Cascade Crest 100. I would have still been in a wheelchair less than a week after that race. He did not come across as the type of person to put on something like this as a gimmick to bring in people just so he can increase his sales. If you are ever in the area Bend is beautiful and I cannot wait for an excuse to get back!
 
#16
Do you suppose the instructor

Do you suppose the instructor will have the particpants take off their shoes at any point and walk or run a short distance barefoot?
 
#17
I think you all are being a

I think you all are being a bit hard on the place. Sure they are probably hoping to sell some minimal shoes, but some of the owners of these type of shoe stores are likely very interested in helping people to run with better form. After all, someone who learns to run with better form will likely be running longer, healthier and happier then someone who is getting hurt and give up running. And guess where that happy healthy runner is going to go to buy his gear, whether is minimal shoes, or shirts, or whatever?

One of the area New Balance stores have been doing something very similar, only theirs is a free clinic. They video your stide while wearing big old cushy shoes and then again barefoot. They are not neccessarily promoting "barefoot" running, but use it to demonstrate "Good Form Running", which is the name of their clinic. They also had a clinic on barefoot running (also free) with Michael Sandler of Runbare which I attended. This was last year when New Balance had ZERO to offer the minimalist runner, other than to show off some preproduction shoes from the Minimus line.
 
#18
I stand corrected.  It's easy

I stand corrected. It's easy to jump to negative conclusions in this world. Very often a little understanding and humility is more what's called for. I hope they have a terrific seminar and that some of the participants come out of it with improvements in their form.
 
#19
As for being too hard on the

As for being too hard on the place you are probably right. I didn't know they were franchises, or independents. However if you have an oppurtunity to read that email from the pres of FF (I am positive it was them, if not I will profusely apologize) you will understand my knee jerk reaction.

Now instead of me bitching and moaning, maybe I should approach the local Y and see if they would put on a free barefoot running clinic. This may be a way to be more proactive to consumer demand while limiting the success a shoe store will have with their psuedo barefoot seminars. What do you all think?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Support Your Club

Xero Shoes Amuri Z-Trek

Forum statistics

Threads
19,158
Messages
183,644
Members
8,705
Latest member
Raramuri7

Latest posts

Share this page

Share this page
Top Bottom
Back
Menu