Invisible Shoes: Almost barefoot and fancy free

Running sandals from Adventure Girl's perspective

Invisible Shoe Huaraches

http://www.invisibleshoe.com/

MSRP $19.95 - $44.95

The Emerging Runner

Earlier this year I was contacted by Invisible Shoe to test their brand of running sandals. These shoes are designed in a similar way to the huaraches that are worn by the Tarahumara people in Mexico's Copper Canyon. Being fans of the book Born to Run by Christopher McDougall, Adventure Girl and I thought it would be interesting to try this ultra-minimal running experience.

Since I already run in Saucony Hattori's, I'd expected that I'd do well with this minimal platform. On the other hand, I thought Adventure Girl might find these thin sandals a little lacking when she negotiated the rough Montana wilds that she currently calls home.

Out of the envelope

I chose the model with a 4mm sole and the DIY (do it yourself) option. Since the Hattori's also have a 4mm outsole, I thought I could adapt to the thinner offering without much problem. The DIY process required that I measure my foot and supply that information to Invisible Shoe. In return I received a pair of black rubber forms that were textured for comfort and stability on the top, with a tire-like tread on the bottom.

I needed to locate a spot at the top of the form, where I would punch a hole and thread the lace between my toes. The form had two pre-punched holes near the ankles that were based on my measurements. I followed the instructional video on the Invisible Shoe website and laced up my sandals. The knot at the bottom, below my big toe, presented a problem with comfort but I thought I'd be okay running on grass. I wasn't.

Doing it yourself

The Experience
For the first time ever, I failed to complete a full test of a supplied product. I just couldn't do it. I'll admit that I really don't like sandals and I can't wear flip-flops, so I probably should have anticipated the problems I had. I wrapped the laces around my feet and ankles, per the website instructions, and went out in the yard to try them out.

Almost immediately I knew this wasn't for me. I got why this could be good for some people, but I found the experience painful. I tried three times to run with the sandals, but the feel of the lace between my toes and the knotted end above my forefoot were too much to bear.

Conclusion
I really like the concept and I think Invisible Shoe offers a very interesting product for people who can handle the feel of a sandal. I can't speak to the value proposition because I cannot use the shoes, but they are priced almost half of what you'd pay for a pair of Vibram Five Fingers. Read on for a real sense of the experience.

Adventure Girl

I read Born to Run a little over a year ago and I enjoyed it immensely. However, I wasn't necessarily motivated to pare down my own footwear in reaction to what I read. Several months ago Invisible Shoe approached Runner’s Tech Review about testing their huaraches designed for running. After some pondering about whether this was a good idea, given that the majority of my running occurs on rough, gravel roads, we gave our consent to Invisible Shoe.

A few days later I felt a bit silly standing barefoot on a sheet of 8 ½ by 11 white paper in the company bathroom tracing my foot with a Sharpie in order to produce a template for the Invisible Shoe folks to use in making my huaraches. There are two methods of sandal preparation offered. You can either have your huaraches custom-made and prepared for you ($39.95 - $44.95 a pair) or you can cut and prepare your own huaraches from a DIY kit ($19.95 - $29.95 a pair). The Emerging Runner opted for the latter option and I chose the former, which was why I ended up barefoot on a piece of a paper in the bathroom.

My custom-sized and prepared huaraches arrived via mail in a Tyvek envelope, not many days after we emailed my foot tracing to Invisible Shoe. I chose black laces (what I thought was a classic and discrete choice). To my surprise the sandals arrived pre-tied in the slip-on/slip-off style. True to the style’s name all I had to do was slip them on, wrap the excess lace ends around my ankles, and tie the loose lace end off. Then it was a matter of seeing how they ran!

The Verdict

My skepticism about the comfort of sandals for running was dispelled almost immediately. Running in the huaraches made me realize how much my feet sweat running in traditional socks and sneakers. Especially in the summer months! Having my feet exposed meant for a cooler, overall less sweaty run. Score one for the huaraches.

I've always been fairly weight sensitive when it comes to footwear. If I wear heavy boots on a long hike I usually end up tripping over roots and rocks towards the end of the day. The lightweight nature of the Invisible Shoe huaraches is practically unbeatable. I opted for the 6mm sole because I do a lot of running on rock surfaces. Though there is a lighter weight version (4mm sole), I still felt liberated and swift with the 6mm thickness.

I was initially concerned about the lump that the tied laces present on the underside of the sole between your first and second toes. It was clear that Invisible Shoe took efforts to flatten this knot as much as possible before sending the huaraches my way. When I walked across the linoleum kitchen floor on my way out of the house for the first test run the knot was a noticeable peculiarity. I was pleased then, to find that the knot was not apparent while running, although the Emerging Runner felt it in his pair.

I've been happy enough with the classic tying method that the sandals had in place when delivered to me, so I haven’t tried any of the other tying methods. There are a lot of options, almost all with how-to videos, available on the Invisible Shoe website.

Chafing wasn't a problem for the first half dozen runs. Shortly after that, I did have one lace that rubbed considerably on the top left of my left foot during a short run. This was because I didn't tie the lace securely before beginning my run. On the next run I adjusted the tautness of the lace and the chafing issue disappeared. That said, I wear flip flops a lot in the summer and that may have given me an advantage to adjusting to the huaraches.

Running in the huaraches made me feel light, cool, and unencumbered. I also was surprised at how nice they look. I was tempted to wear them merely walking around town.

The Concerns

As I anticipated, running on gravel in the huaraches can be problematic. The gravel roads I travel have variable size rocks and it’s not uncommon for some of the stones to be greater than an inch in diameter. Stepping on sharp rocks of this size in the huaraches hurts. Knowing this, I have to be diligent in watching my running surface to make sure to avoid the sharp, large rocks. Unfortunately, having to pay this much attention to where I place my feet means that I have less opportunity to look around and appreciate my surroundings. Since taking in the scenery is important to me, this is a drawback that gives me pause. Perhaps my feet will eventually toughen up enough to take on rocks of all sizes, but I have yet to reach that point.

What about winter? Where I live, snow comes early and leaves late. In fact, the high peaks around me were dusted with their first new snow just yesterday (September 16^th). Very soon it’s going to be too cold to run barefoot. So, I anticipate that my Invisible Shoe huaraches will be retired for the cold season along with my tank tops and bathing suits, a duration that is about six months long. [Disclaimer: The flip side of this is that it hardly ever rains in the summer, which means I haven’t had the opportunity to try the sandals in wet conditions. I’m not sure that they would perform especially well.]

I try to run with my lab / chow mix as often as I can. Unfortunately, she occasionally gets distracted looking at a bird, squirrel, or neighbor’s pigs while we run and ends up stepping on my foot. This can be quite painful without the protection of a sneaker’s upper.

I’m having lots of fun with the Invisible Shoe huaraches and I've actually considered buying a pair for several running friends who I think might also enjoy the experience. If you’re a Five Fingers fan, I encourage you to take the next leap and try Invisible Shoe. I think you’ll experience yet another level of freedom and feel. I’m glad that this opportunity came my way because it revitalized my running when I was in a bit of a slump.

Running with the huaraches is fun, liberating, and occasionally, wince inducing (damn gravel!). The price tag is a bit steep if you go the custom-fit route, which I highly recommend over the DIY option, but if you can stomach it, I highly recommend giving them a try.

Here’s hoping next summer I've moved to a place with smooth dirt trails and warm, dry weather. You can guarantee I’ll be wearing the Invisible Shoe huaraches.

This review by Adventure Girl and The Emerging Runner

Karhu Fast 2 Fulcrum: Two firm opinions

Men's Karhu Fast 2 Fulcrum_Ride

Karhu Fast 2 Fulcrum Ride 
MSRP: $130.00  http://www.karhu.com/

4/18/2011 UPDATE: http://www.emergingrunner.com/2011/04/karhu-fast-2s-live-up-to-their-name.html

The Emerging Runner and Adventure Girl have been independently testing the Karhu Fast 2 Fulcrum, the Finnish shoe company's newest neutral performance shoe. We did not compare notes until the end but we found ourselves primarily agreeing on how we view these shoes. What follows are our individual impressions along with our collective assessment.

The Emerging Runner's take on the Fast 2 Fulcrum

When it comes to running gear I'm definitely a shoe person. When assessing a running shoe I tend to start with high hopes. I figure that when a company puts serious research into its product their shoe is likely to have some upside. Sometimes this proves out and sometimes I end up disappointed. I've become increasingly interested in minimalism and that has changed my expectation for running shoes. I now look for a shoe that provides: 1) reasonable protection from the ground, 2) a minimal drop between the heel and front and, 3) a relatively low profile. My experience running in the Saucony Kinvaras supports this view. However, every runner is different and every shoe has its fans.

When Karhu sent me a pair of Fast 2 Fulcrums I was excited to try them out. According to Karhu this shoe is targeted to the "race training focused runner seeking a highly responsive running experience." That sounded promising. I watched this video on the Karhu site and was further intrigued.

Karhu is known for its high performance shoes that use "Fulcrum" technology to help move the runner along. The negatives I'd heard about the brand were that the mid-foot fit on some models tended toward the narrow. I asked for a pair of Fast 2 Fulcrums a half size up from normal and that was a good call.

First impressions (before running)

Out of the box these shoes, in iridescent chartreuse with yellow highlights, are both garish and beautiful. They look fast and weigh less than I thought they might (10.1 oz.) based on my first view. No matter how you feel about the fit and performance of the Fast 2 Fulcrums, you cannot argue that the quality of the materials and construction are superb. With running shoes you get two first impressions. The first is when you take them out of the box and put them on for the first time. The second and more relevant measure is when you take them out for a run. More on that later.

The Fast 2 Fulcrums fit me well enough, snug but not tight in the midfoot and toebox, with very slight slippage around the heel. This may be because I'd ordered size 11's vs. my normal 10.5's. Tighter lacing near the top took care of that. Standing in the Fast 2 Fulcrums for the first time was interesting. I'm used to the Kinvara that stands 21 mm at the heel with about a 5 mm ramp angle to the toe height. The Fast 2 Fulcrums stand a towering 36.7 mm with almost 12 mm of drop. Karhu builds a "fulcrum" wedge into the mid-sole in front of the arch that supposedly promotes forward motion. I thought that the fulcrum felt a little unnatural as I walked across the floor for the first time. Still, the shoe was perfectly comfortable and I reserved judgment until I ran.

Putting the Fast 2 Fulcrums to the test
My first report on Emerging Runner stated: "While the Kinvaras are light and very flexible on toe-off, the Fast 2's are very stiff at the front. Far stiffer than any other shoe I own." The Fast 2 Fulcrums seemed to loosen up after repeated runs but I still consider it a stiff shoe. I had hoped for a zippy feel when I hit the street but neither the fulcrum nor the rigid forefoot returned energy like other shoes I've tried. I began to question whether this shoe was a good match for me when I crested a hill and on the way back down felt my stride disrupted. It was as if the shoe and my foot were trying to travel on slightly different vectors. My mental picture at that moment was of a grocery cart with a misaligned wheel. Subsequent runs on the treadmill were better but my satisfaction when running in the Fast 2 Fulcrums never quite matched how I feel when running in the Kinvaras, Grid Tangents or Brooks Adrenalins.

My comments on one such run: "That [doesn't] mean the shoes failed to perform, in fact they took everything I threw at them. It was really about the feel compared to my Kinvaras and GTS-10's that move more naturally with my foot." My last street run with the Fast 2 Fulcrums confirmed that while the Karhu is a good shoe it doesn't really work for my style of running: "I decided to try some quick acceleration to see if the shoe transformed to a quasi-racer when run at higher cadences...The Fast 2's didn't give me the feeling of speed. In fact, during "speed play", they felt less stable than when I ran at my normal pace."

Conclusion
I'll admit that I'm biased against the high ride and the firm forefoot of the Fast 2 Fulcrums. Both attributes run counter to what I look for in a running shoe. The shoe is substantial and its build quality and materials are top notch. The Fast 2 Fulcrum's cushioning is very good considering its relatively light weight. However, though I had hopes of using it as a racing shoe, I found the lack of response from the Fast 2 Fulcrums disappointing. As a general athletic shoe I think they're fine. I've had more than one satisfactory run with the Karhu's on the treadmill and I like wearing them on the elliptical machine. I may even take these shoes out on the road on occasion for a change of pace. However, in the end, the Fast 2 Fulcrums felt neither fast nor agile. Other reviewers may disagree with me (I've seen a couple that do). Fast 2 Fulcrum may provide the desired characteristics that a different runner values. If you are a runner who prefers a low flexible racer trainer you may find this too much shoe for you.

Adventure Girl's take on the Fast 2 Fulcrum

Karhu's marketing of their neutral Fast 2 Fulcrum is honest without embellishment. Their website states that the Fast 2 Fulcrum is for the runner desiring a "firm and responsive ride". True to its name, Karhu has moved the fulcrum of this shoe forward in order to encourage quick stride turnover. The first time I put these shoes on I was tempted to rock back and forth from my midfoot to my toes because the fulcrum point makes a natural rocking motion. And that's exactly what this fulcrum position is encouraging you to do while running--roll forward onto your toes while striding.  This is done to quicken your stride rate and shift you towards forefoot striking.

Woman's Karhu Fast 2 Fulcrum

I haven't yet attempted to transition to a forefoot style of running but every run I've taken with the Karhus has made me conscious of my midfoot landing in a way that seemed to sometimes gently (and sometimes not so gently) nudge me towards a forefoot strike. If I were to exaggerate the sensation of the fulcrum transition I would describe it akin to the sensation of falling forward. The nudging made it feel very much like the Fast 2 Fulcrum's were actively training me. This training was appreciated when I went out for a run with fresh legs, but on the few runs where my legs were less responsive the fulcrum rocking and forefoot encouragement seemed more than I could handle.

Karhu also bills this shoe as firm, which is immediately apparent. Most of my runs have both a sidewalk and a trail component. On the sidewalk I was stuck by the cushioning presence of firm foam between my foot and the concrete. Since I normally run in the minimal Saucony Kinvara this additional protection was surprising. The Karhu foam, however, doesn't provide a sense of springy-ness, but instead dampens the feel of the running surface. For all its cushioning, the Fast 2 Fulcrum weighs in as mid-weight at 9.1oz (for a point of comparison the Kinvara is 6.7oz).

On the trail portion of my runs I found the Fast 2 Fulcrums to perform moderately well on flat, well-packed trails, but it didn't prove to be rugged enough for rocky, slippery, or steep trails. The tread on the Fast 2 Fulcrum isn't very pronounced and the model isn't billed as a trail runner, so the lack of performance on difficult terrain was not unexpected or disappointing.

The woman's Fast 2 Fulcrum is an arresting shade of orange, with yellow accents and sole. I felt conspicuous on the streets while wearing these shoes. At midday this made me self-conscious, even to the point of once deterring me from wearing the Fast 2's when I was meeting a fellow runner I didn't know well. However, at both dusk and dawn, it made me feel more visible to traffic (i.e. safer).

Conclusion
The Karhu Fast 2 Fulcrums will not become my go-to daily trainer, because the fulcrum rocking added unnecessary work to my run and it wasn't a natural fit with my strike and stride. If I decide to make a concerted effort to move toward forefoot striking I think the Fast 2 Fulcrums will be an excellent training shoe to encourage and speed that transition.

Summary

What's Good:

• Quality of materials and construction
• Well ventilated upper
• Light weight
• Fulcrum technology enables mid-foot landing
• Highly visible

What could be improved:

• Forefoot responsiveness
• Lateral stability
• Bulk

This review by the Emerging Runner and Adventure Girl