Christopher McDougall, Author of Born to Run, To Visit Gear West

To claim Christopher McDougall’s book Born to Run is a popular read among runners would be a serious understatement. McDougall tells a fantastic story about the running secrets of the Tarahumara Indians of Mexico’s Copper Canyon. This story alone is enough to read the book. But, it's one of their secrets has had a huge and dare I say controversial impact on the running community – that, according to McDougall, running with minimalist shoes or barefoot (or in the case of the Tarahumara, in sandals) is the key to enjoyable and injury free longevity. Since then, countless coaches, shoe companies, and runners have weighed in on the topic. So you want to join the discussion?

Here’s your chance.

Gear West and The Bookcase are hosting Christopher McDougall to the Gear West Store in Long Lake on Wednesday, September 15th at 6:30 in the evening. The store is located at 1786 West Wayzata Boulevard. Tickets are only $5.00 and are available at either Gear West or The Bookcase.

Check it out and see what all the fuss is about!

Bikila

The problem with trying drastically new footwear in the middle of marathon training is I don’t want to lose a day. What I mean is, since I’ve only worked up to 4 miles in the VFF I don’t want to wear them on any day where I’m supposed to run longer than that – which is every day. And, I’m not about to embark on a 7 mile run with a change of shoes! Anyway, I’m going to try and go 6 miles in them tomorrow.

Speaking of running barefoot, check out this article about Abebe Bikila, who ran (and won) a couple marathons, including one in the Olympics performed barefoot.

I would also like to add that he has his own Facebook page with over 260 times more Facebook friends than I, and he passed away almost 40 years ago.

VFF: Not My BFF...Yet

You can’t stop progress. My last run in the VFF (that’s what kids these days are calling the Vibram Five Fingers) was really quite pleasant; four miles on a soft trail over lunch. I ran in them sans socks, which was a pretty good idea until I blistered, otherwise I would have gone another couple miles. Next time I’ll be wearing a pair of socks.

It’s virtually impossible to miss the barefoot craze. ‘Minimalist running’ is blowing up. Beyond Born to Run, other prominent and varied organizations have weighed into the fray including Brooks, who did so via an open letter from CEO Jim Weber; as well as Popular Mechanics; Nature, Harvard University Skeletal Biology Lab, among countless others. As Rocco mentioned in one of his previous blog posts, Marathon Sports was even hosting a debate this evening on the topic. Of course this all makes for fascinating reading and discussion. How is it that for millions of years, man has coped with the impact of running barefoot before the dawn of modern running shoes in the 1970s?

At this point, I don’t intend to give up on my running shoes, but I do anticipate training in the VFF at least once per week to strengthen my feet, which I believe will only benefit my shod (not a typo!) running. Personally, I’ve had some positive physical results that I’ll share in an upcoming post. In the meantime, check out the links above and feel free to weigh in with your own two cents.