People's reactions when you run

Really small town here. Word got around even before too many people had seen me barefooting. A couple of weeks ago I was out for a walk/run along the highway with my 9-year-old. It had recently snowed; there was gravel and salt down, and we were going slowly, so I was wearing shoes. A local guy goes by on his bike. I know him casually but I don't think I've ever seen him while I was running. He's been in Spain all winter and this was the first time I'd seen him in months.

"What gives? You're wearing shoes!" he calls out. He sounded kind of disappointed in me.

Miranda

 

I'm known as "that barefoot guy". Even the hippy yoga lady down the way calls me "that barefoot guy".

 

Most people won't make eye contact, especially if they are with children. Some people yell out ouch or doesn't that hurt. One woman actually just
said hi Barefoot Runner, that was my favorite.

 

There are very different reactions. I´ve got very few aggressive comments so far. Mostly people react surprised. Very often I hear only the word: "barefoot!", but with different sounds. It can sound more positive, like: "wow, barefoot, thumbs up!" or more negative, like: "barefoot? You must be crazy."

Yesterday I got one of the sweetest reactions so far: I ran on a trail and passed a couple. The lady was heavily pregnant. They said hi, me too. One minute later I found that I headed in the wrong direction and turned back, then I passed the same couple again. Only to discover that the lady had turned off her shoes in the meantime! Now, that was a surprise for me! And so I could react to someone being barefoot!

I said: "Pleasant, isn´t it?" She agreed, her husband (still with his shoes on) asked about barefoot-friendly trails in this particular forest, we chatted for a minute. I guess her feet must have hurt because of the pregnancy. But anyway, obviously I was an inspiration for her and she immidiately put it into action!

 

My favourite comment was when I'd just started BFR and was only running a couple miles, at best, and VERY slowly. The Princeton University men's Cross Country team went pounding by me like a herd of gazelles past a water buffalo and the last guy turned to me and called "Hey! Wow! Hard core!"

 

A recent quip was, "What's this the barefoot run?" My wife just grinned at the two mothers and their children while saying, "We like it." I wanted to sit down on the curb, mime taking off shoes, get up, run off and call back, "It is now." My wife was glad that I didn't.

 

I'm so near-sighted, I don't get to enjoy all the looks and stares. I do hear the comments though.

 

"God bless you!"

"You're going to get plantar fasciitis!"

Most people just stare and widen their eyes. I don't like being noticed. I wish there were more barefoot runners.

 

I wish there were more barefoot runners.

We're working on that, Bess.

 

The toddlers are funny. "Look, Daddy, no shoes!" Some adults have been inquisitive, but no one has been nasty. One woman I passed said "I'd really like to try that." I ran with her for a little and told her that if she does, go very, very slowly, explained that . Then I said bye, and pulled away from her, just to show her that even though she was in expensive, trendy running clothes and I was 20 years older than her, that barefoot doesn't mean slow.

 

If you run in the same place regularly, folks will get completely used to you.

 

Bess, TJ's got the solution for you - take off the glasses. That works for me, too.

 

The best I ever received was from an incredulous classmate of my son's when I picked him up bf (I had run up to the school). Kids always seem fascinated. Adults with kids seem horrified. Most everyone else either looks like they don't care, or gives me the crazy person look.
This one little girl said "you're gonna run?! In your FEET?!?!"

 

I don't have any neighbors, but I think most everyone in my valley knows I run barefoot now. I just worry about out of towners or truck drivers driving by. My biggest fear is to have someone have an car accident staring at me.

 

I watched a guy almost get t-boned because he was staring at me running barefoot. He started to pull out into an intersection and then saw me and he just stopped to stare. Right in front of on coming traffic. What an idiot.

 

I bet his mouth was hanging open, right? Something about seeing bare feet causes people's lower jaws to slacken. I was going to start another thread about almost causing accidents. The few runs I have done in town have almost caused some rear enders.

 

"Now, they think,"There goes Mandy." They think the same thing about me...which is odd, as my name is Chris

I'm still very early in the conversion phase where I'm out walking barefoot. Two nights ago, I encountered a neighbor and his daughter (toddler) who looked at me and said "Hey! Bare feet!". It was my first barefoot comment.

Maybe it'll have an effect on her...

 

Eggplant? Do elaborate...