Extra, Extra wide minimalist shoes?

Soft Star had a pair in stock, 13 wide. This is one size bigger than what I wear in Vivos, but it was in stock ready to ship, so I gave it a try just for sizing.

Well, it was one size too big. :p However, most importantly, it was Plenty wide! :D Even at full splay, I still had extra room.
(My feet are 10.5" in length and 5.5" wide in full splay.)

I think that the 12 wide should be fine, and I'm going to order them to give it a try.
 
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ok, the Altra's were a bust. I'm prone to heavy pronation when I don't have a solid sole or can't feel the ground (workboots, VFF's, moccasins, etc), and I was pronating so badly in these I was in pain within hours from just wearing them around the office at work. :(
Between not being able to feel through the cusioning (listed as "light cusioning" on their website) and the sole not being wide enough in the midfoot (the side of my foot was actually wider than the footbed), it tipped my foot inward so much that I was in pain by the end of my workday.
They do seem like a good shoe, they just don't work for me and my wide-ass feet...

That being said, the shop readily exchanged them for a pair of Reebok Nano 2.0 Crossfit shoes. I've never met a pair of Reeboks that fit, so we were all surprised when they did. They're wider in both the toebox and the midfoot than the Altra's and are the widest shoe they stock. Suffice to say, I'll give those a "day at the office" test just to be sure they'll work. If not, I'll be calling Vivobarefoot...
 
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I've worn Vivos for several years. I like the feel of the Dash Runamoc better. The Vivos are built with toespring, and the Dash are mostly flat. I will provide an update once I get the Dash in the proper size.
 
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Oh wow they really changed that up , which is too bad. Back when I dealt with them last they had me take lots of measurements of my feet for them and had me do a drawing of my feet. Too bad they stopped doing that as that was a huge plus for us odd shaped people. Guess there's jut not enough of us to make it profitable or worth their while.. :-(
 
So, I've been wearing the Runamoc Dash for a few weeks. I love them. Good groundfeel, flexible, and they lay flat. (I've found that shoes with molded soles usually have toespring and are curved side to side as well.)

If there was one thing, I'd say that I have an extra inch in the toe, which I've caught under an area rug a couple of times. I don't have this issue with the Vivos, however overall the Dash is a more comfortable shoe for my feet.

The 12 wide is comparable to the Vivobarefoot Dharma 46 in sizing.

The customer service for the exchange was great. I shipped them back on a Monday and got the replacement back on a Saturday.
 
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Looks like the Reeboks were a bust too. Felt pretty good in the store, but when I spent a day in them, they were pinching my little toes inward due to the taper in the toebox.

Looks like Vivobarefoot are next on my list. Any suggestions for their models to check out?
 
Ultra pure. Really wide, fast to put on, also lightest vivo shoe.. I don't use them much for running nowadays, they tend to be bit abrasive at ankles and stuff gets in easily. But I have run trail marathon and also used them for orienteering.
I didnt think the Ultra Pure was very wide in the toes - I dont even have very wide feet and it pushed on my big toe a bit and was noticeably narrower than my other Vivo (Ra). I wouldnt think these would be a good choice for EEE to EEEE feet. I'm surprised you used them so much off road though, mine burnt through the soles faster than I thought they would with just casual wear and no off road activities!
 
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I didn't mention the Ultra Pure, because the OP was referring to trying a lot of sneakers, though I'm not really sure what type of shoe he is actually looking for. I have a pair, but have never used them (they were on sale and I didn't want to pay shipping to return them). I buy a size larger (maybe even two larger), so there's a decent amount of room for me, and they are somewhat loose fitting as a result.

I'm not sure what I'd use them for. The holes make me think that it's good for around water, but I don't wear shoes around water. They offer some protection, but I don't really need protection.

I suppose that if I was around water, and was required to wear shoes, that I'd consider wearing them? I'm sure that I'll find a purpose for them one day! :/
 
Sid, I'm looking for shoes that could be used at the office (pretty relaxed dress code), working in the yard and options for running in a Minnesota winter.

I've been trying to check out as much as i can locally before resorting to ordering stuff on line, which explains my trying the Altras and Reeboks so far.
 
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Sid, with the width issue, I've been kind of forced to take what I can get...

Ideally, I want to move away from the moccasin and VFF styles:
For the office - something that could work with the usual Dockers/Button Down look or just blue jeans and t-shirts - Lems are on my list to check out for this.
For the yard - anything with a decent grip and would protect my feet from debris/etc when running the mower, doing yardwork, etc.

I'm not sure what would be recommended for running in snow beyond decent grip and that they fit...
 
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I didnt think the Ultra Pure was very wide in the toes - I dont even have very wide feet and it pushed on my big toe a bit and was noticeably narrower than my other Vivo (Ra). I wouldnt think these would be a good choice for EEE to EEEE feet. I'm surprised you used them so much off road though, mine burnt through the soles faster than I thought they would with just casual wear and no off road activities!


Yeah, well it seems to be about shape of foot or something like that. When I'm wearing ultras, my foot is aligned so that there's empty room for my toes at both sides, so nothing is pushing them... I don't have that extra slab of meat at the outer edge of my foot (like I have seen here at some pics), edges of my foot are straight and it's wide only at the toes. ;) I would guess that if you have more stuff at the outer edge of foot, it would align your foot inside the shoe more inwards -you would have more room for little toe and no room for big toe. In my case there's same amount of free room at the both sides of my toes, with full splay I can touch the edges.

Soles of ultra seem quite durable, have lasted for three years now, more walking with that pair than running though. And they leave footprint that looks pretty barefootish.. But trail running isn't that abrasive to shoe soles, they are also quite slippery, sliding doesn't wear sole and it probably makes you run with less friction. I tried breatho trail and didn't like that much of grip, for me it felt too unnatural and risk for ankles - you would except that your foot slides a bit but it suddenly stops and holds still. I guess I like more surprise slide than surprise grip.. :D