It’s the Shoes
Day 44
October 30, 2006
Kiawah Island Marathon
Kiawah Island, South Carolina
Elevation: 100
Weather: 75 degrees; sunny
Time: 4:23:37 (27.8 miles, made wrong turn)
Net calories burned: 140,228
Number of runners: 31
H
alfway through the Kiawah Island Marathon
, my feet began to feel constricted inside my North Face Arnuva 50 Boa running shoes. My feet always swell a bit during long runs (as do the feet of most runners), especially on warm days, and today was warm, in the mid seventies. So I did what I had done throughout the Endurance 50 when this situation arose: I stopped, bent over, and dialed the knob on the heel of my shoes a couple of clicks counterclockwise to loosen the thin metal wires that substitute for shoelaces. Three seconds later I was running again. And, as always, a couple of runners who had witnessed this quick adjustment wanted to know what had just happened.
The Arnuva 50 Boa running shoes were developed in conjunction with the Endurance 50. Ironically, The North Face did not make “road shoes” prior to our running expedition. That’s one of the reasons the company sat on my proposal for so long before finally getting behind it. It didn’t make sense to pour a lot of resources into a major marketing outreach to road runners if the company didn’t make a road running shoe. The Endurance 50 might never have happened if the top executives at The North Face hadn’t decided to create a line of footwear for road runners. Once this decision had been made, my proposed challenge of running fifty marathons in fifty states in fifty days suddenly seemed like a good “fit,” so to speak.
The development process began with the hiring of a team of new in-house footwear employees and an outside company that specialized in running shoe development. All of the North Face–sponsored runners, including me, were asked to share information about needs that were unmet by existing shoes. This process led the developers to focus on creating a new lacing system that would allow quick and easy micro-adjustments of fit, as traditional laces do not.
The technology required to fulfill this need already existed in snowboard boots, but it was too bulky and heavy to be transferred directly to running shoes. So the engineers assigned to the project were challenged to shrink it down, and they did a remarkable job. The “reel” that you use to adjust the fit is smaller than a poker chip and not much heavier. The Arnuva 50 Boa allows you to micro-adjust the shoe’s fit on the fly, rather than having to stop and fuss with traditional shoelaces. It’s revolutionized endurance running.
Fit is the most important factor to consider when choosing a running shoe. Every major running shoe manufacturer makes high-quality shoes that provide cushioning, stability, and a host of other features. None of those features matters, however, if the shoe does not fit properly. Feet come in such a tremendous variety of shapes and sizes that there’s just no telling how any given shoe will work on your foot until you try it on.
The best way to determine how well a shoe fits you is to simply put it on and assess its level of comfort. Your feet are smart. If the shoe is too loose or too constricting in a certain area, if it is too stiff or too flexible, too firm or too mushy, your feet will know it right away. The shoe should
feel
perfect right out of the box.
That said, you can’t thoroughly assess fit and comfort until you start moving. Most good running shoe stores let you wear-test a shoe before you buy it. Basically, this means taking a spin in the shoe around the block or around the store. Try to avoid talking yourself into buying a pair of shoes that is
mostly
comfortable but has just one or two small points of discomfort. Those small imperfections can become major annoyances once you start logging serious miles in the shoes.
Of course, there’s no guarantee that the shoe that felt most comfortable during a brief trial run at the store will feel the same way ten miles into a long marathon training run, due to foot swelling, fatigue-related stride changes, and other factors. Lightweight trainers might feel terrific in the store, but ten miles into a long run, you might find yourself wishing you were wearing a shoe with more cushioning. Take note of such experiences and apply them when choosing your next pair of shoes.
Like so many other aspects of running, finding the type of shoe that works best for you is a learning process. Footwear is the most important component of your running gear, so it’s worthwhile to invest some time and effort in the process of learning what works for you and what doesn’t. Your feet will be forever grateful.
Arch
You Glad You Picked the Right Shoe?
Runners with high foot arches tend not to absorb ground impact forces as well as those with normal arches, making them more prone to bone strains and stress fractures in the lower legs. Wearing a running shoe with extra cushioning can attenuate some of this risk. Runners with low arches tend to have less stable hips and knees than their normal-arched counterparts, predisposing them to overuse injuries in these joints. Selecting footwear from the motion-control category of running shoes may help reduce your risk of experiencing knee and hip pain if you have low arches.
Day 45
October 31, 2006
Triple Lake Trails Marathon
Greensboro, North Carolina
Elevation: 15'
Weather: 71 degrees; partly cloudy
Time: 4:18:12
Net calories burned: 143,415
Number of runners: 55
A friend of mine, Kevin Paulk, heads up the Advanced Design team at Nike Running. Basically, he and his team create footwear designs for three to five years in the future. Talk about a fun job! Several years ago, Kevin invited me to visit his office at the Nike headquarters and discuss ideas for innovative new running shoes with his team. During the meeting, Kevin showed me all kinds of cool designs and prototypes for shoe technologies that would provide more cushioning, more stability—more, more, more. After seeing all this stuff, however, I started to wonder if perhaps
less
could be
more
.
“Have you ever thought about going in the other direction?” I asked.
“What do you mean?” said Kevin.
“I mean taking stuff away from running shoes instead of adding more stuff to them. Let’s face it: Humans are really designed to run barefoot. I realize that’s not practical for most runners today, but couldn’t you still design a shoe that allows us to run more like we do
without
shoes? My stride never feels more natural than when I run barefoot on the beach sometimes. What about developing a shoe that just lets your foot be, well,
a foot
?”
“Yes, as a matter of fact I have thought about that,” Kevin said, “and I agree with you. I think we should look at the possibility of moving in the other direction by taking away things instead of adding more.”
A few years after that meeting, Nike launched a shoe called the Free. A minimalist, barefoot-like running shoe, the Nike Free allowed the foot to be the foot better than any other running shoe I’d ever seen. Although I was now affiliated with the North Face running project, I have to admit that I was very impressed with the Nike Free. I called Kevin and asked him how much influence our meeting several years back had had in the development of the shoe. He chuckled.
“I could tell you,” he said, “but I’d have to kill you.”
My loyalty to The North Face notwithstanding, I believe that the Nike Free is a truly revolutionary piece of footwear and a representation of the future of running shoes. It’s not the only minimalist running shoe on the market, though. Others have entered the race. Most of these shoes have deep grooves in their soles that help make them extremely flexible, allowing all the tiny muscles and bones of the foot to work naturally, unlike conventional running shoes. When your feet can function as they were designed to do during running, they absorb impact forces better and make a bigger contribution to forward thrust. Also, the minimal heel cushioning of this type of running shoe encourages a more natural midfoot landing, which can help to reduce injury and enhances the stability and efficiency of the stride.
As much as I like and appreciate minimalist running shoes, I would never go so far as to suggest that they’ll definitely work for you. I know of runners who have tried the Free and developed transient plantar fasciitis and other strains, forcing them to go back to their conventional shoes. It’s best to operate without any preconceived ideas about what a running shoe should be in your search for the perfect footwear for you. Try lots of models, experiment with different styles, and learn as you run.
If you’re an ultrarunner logging big miles, a minimalist running shoe is unlikely to be your best choice. You’ll probably fare better with something more durable, like the North Face Arnuva 50 Boa shoes I wore throughout the Endurance 50. (I went through five pairs of them, by the way.) Wisely, in developing their running shoe line, The North Face did not seek to compete directly against the major manufacturers for the masses, such as Nike and New Balance. Instead, their goal was to focus on the endurance category, something more consistent with the expedition heritage of the company.
Minimalist Running Shoes
Running shoes that are lightweight, flexible, and light on cushioning and stability features allow the foot to function more naturally during running. Here’s a selection of minimalist footwear for runners:
• Adidas ZX Racer
• ASICS GEL-Piranha
• Nike Free 3.0
• Nike Waffle Racer
• Puma H. Street
• Vibram Five Fingers (not a shoe at all, actually; more like a glove for the foot)
It so happened that Mackey McDonald, chairman and CEO of VF, parent company of The North Face, came to witness marathon number forty-five of the Endurance 50 in North Carolina. He didn’t have far to travel, because the company headquarters is right in Greensboro. After the marathon was completed, the runners, our crew, and my family went there for a luncheon with twelve hundred VF employees. Afterward, a ceremony was held, during which I was called on stage to accept a bronze shoe commemorating the Endurance 50 (it was an Arnuva 50 Boa) and a five-thousand-dollar donation to Karno’s Kids, reaffirming the company’s commitment to getting kids into the great outdoors.
I took Alexandria and Nicholas on stage with me to accept these honors. The whole time we were up there, Nicholas stared at the bronze shoe with a look of unease that I did not understand at first. Later, as we made our way back to the tour bus to prepare for the drive to Baltimore, Maryland, Nicholas voiced his concern.
“Dad, do you really have to wear that?” he asked.
I chuckled. Poor kid had never seen a bronzed shoe before.
“No, Nicholas,” I said.
“What is it?” he asked. I thought about his question.
“It’s the perfect anti-Free,” I answered with a smile.
The Clock Is Running
Day 46
November 1, 2006
Baltimore Marathon
Baltimore, Maryland
Elevation: 95'
Weather: 75 degrees; sunny
Time: 3:49:40
Net calories burned: 146,602
Number of runners: 30 (filled to capacity, permits for only 30 runners)
T
hey say that running saves lives.
On Day 46 of the Endurance 50, it did so quite literally. We began the Baltimore Marathon with a police escort eleven strong. As our group was proceeding down a street just past the two-mile mark, one of the runners noticed smoke coming out of a second-story window in a building up ahead. By the time we reached the building, flames were erupting from the window and the heat from the fire reached us all the way down in the street. The police instructed us to dash ahead and wait at the next intersection. Then the officers broke down the door and rushed inside. They pulled three people out of the building, including a baby.
Eventually, the fire department arrived and began dousing the flames. The police turned the situation over to them and pulled back up to us, seemingly unfazed by the heroics they had performed just moments earlier.
I expressed to one of the officers how amazed we were by what they’d just done.
“They’re lucky you guys happened to be running down this particular street, on this particular day, at this particular time,” he said. “We rarely patrol this area.”
The episode seemed surreal, like a dream, yet it’s true, and its implications are undeniable: If the Endurance 50 hadn’t been proceeding down this path at precisely this moment in time, there’s no way the police could have responded as quickly. In a very direct sense today, running did save lives.
We started off again, a bit shaken but still intact. The Baltimore Marathon runs past some incredible places, including Fort McHenry, the birthplace of our national anthem. You actually see the cannons and the place where the harbor was bombed. As we ran by, I could envision Francis Scott Key watching, “. . . the rockets’ red glare, the bombs bursting in air . . .”
At mile fifteen, as we passed through a rustic area of downtown, a local tavern was awaiting our arrival and had set up an aid station with water, Gatorade, and—get this—beer. About half the runners partook (several of the latter too). If you’ve got to get down the carbohydrates, I guess that’s one way to do it.
The Baltimore Marathon finishes at historic Camden Yards. As we made our way down the final stretch, the streets were crowded with people watching us run by. Someone yelled, “Why are you running?” One of the runners yelled back, “Because we can.” Everyone on the street cheered his response. Even though most of them were clearly not runners, I think they got the gist of his comeback.
At the finish, I spoke with a gentleman who was cramping a bit but absolutely gleaming. He had originally planned on doing the half, but decided at the midpoint to try the full marathon, and made it beautifully! I asked him if he had learned anything from the experience. “Yeah,” he said, “I learned that limitations are between my ears.” He went on, “I’d been putting off running a marathon for years. You know the excuses: work, family, other obligations, yada yada yada. I didn’t have time. Well, today I made the time.”