Merrell Barefoot Trail Glove Review and Giveaway

While I firmly believe that minimalist running is here to stay, I also think it will reach a settling point over the long term. I anticipate that many traditional runners will become convinced of the benefits of barefoot biomechanics, but will still want a marginal amount of comfort and protection from their everyday shoes. I also suspect that a percentage of current barefoot and minimalist diehards will eventually drift back – either for reasons of comfort or performance, or both – towards footwear that is something more than a flat slab of rubber and a little bit of leather.

Accordingly, there will be a huge demand for “nearly” barefoot shoes that are structured enough to appeal to wary traditionalists, but minimal enough to attract purists as well; basically, something that can bring minimalism to the mainstream consumer. And when that time comes, Merrell will be ready.

More than any other company this year, Merrell has completely thrown its arms around the barefoot and minimalist movement: from recognizing numerous biomechanics studies detailing the advantages of natural running, to educating its customers (largely through the efforts of barefoot advocate Jason Robillard) in proper barefoot technique, to supporting the minimalist community through a dedicated website and social media campaign, to creating a whole collection of footwear designed to appeal to the widest possible spectrum of folks interested in minimalism. This isn’t a “me, too” effort by a major company looking to cash in on the latest trend – it’s a genuine investment by an established industry player acknowledging that minimalist footwear is here to stay, and looking to establish itself as the dominant brand in bringing minimalism to the masses.

To my additional delight, they’ve also proven to be one of the most generous companies I’ve encountered – which is the perfect cue to announce two upcoming giveaways. After today’s review, we’ll have a contest for one pair of Merrell’s Men’s Trail Glove, which will be described shortly. A couple of weeks from now, I’ll post a review of their Women’s Pace Glove, and give away one pair of those as well. But if you’re still not a fan of the company after what I’ve just described, allow me to introduce you to the Trail Glove, which makes a strong case as one of the best minimalist trail shoes on the market today.

Merrell Barefoot Trail Glove

As usual, we’ll consider the vital specs first: the Trail Glove weighs in at 6.2 oz, with a midsole height of 12mm at both heel and forefoot. Thus, it’s a very lightweight zero-drop shoe that places you slightly higher off the ground than a pair of Vibrams (8mm for the KSO Trek), but lower and flatter than New Balance’s Minimus Trail (15mm heel/11mm forefoot). It has some protective features of traditional shoes without sacrificing any of the flexibility or mechanics of barefoot running.

Mesh upper; Omni-fit lacing with straps across tongue; laces also attached to side TPU overlays

Material construction of the upper is a somewhat traditional microfiber and air mesh design, with a rubberized bumper at the front for abrasion and impact resistance. Through the midfoot, synthetic overlays are looped into the lacing system, creating a very snug midfoot and forefoot feel. I found the uppers to be extremely effective at draining and drying after water immersions, but still warm enough to keep your toes happy when air temperatures get frosty. The toe box is wide enough to prevent hot spots and to allow your toes to splay without impingement. There’s a slight upward curvature to the toebox, but when they’re actually on my feet I found this to be unnoticeable.

Upward curvature of toebox; yellow TPU overlays

The overall shape of the upper is cut to be snug through the metatarsal area, to the point where it’s sometimes hard for me to get my foot into the shoe (more on this in a second). It accomplishes a similar feel as the forefoot of New Balance’s Minimus Trail, without having an actual strap across the top of the foot. Merrell’s Omni-fit lacing system incorporates not just the TPU overlays on the side of the shoe, but small straps across the tongue as well, so that tension is applied evenly across the entire upper when the laces are tightened.

Thin ankle collar

Since the Trail Glove is designed to be worn without socks, its ankle collar is very thin and sits snug around the heel, with an interior sockliner that is quite plush and comfortable against your skin. The antimicrobial microfiber footbed below has a somewhat rubbery feel to it, which further minimizes any slipping of the foot. If you're keeping track, that's about 5 different structural mechanisms to keep your foot stable and secure on top of the midsole, resulting in an overall feel like the shoe is simply an extension of your foot. Whether you’re on irregular terrain or steep downhills, your foot isn’t going anywhere it shouldn’t be inside this shoe.

Microfiber footbed; soft internal sockliner

One caveat to the whole sockless fit concept is that the upper is almost too snug to wear with traditional trail running socks. I’m not a fan of going sockless, especially on high-mileage days, so I wear socks for most of my longer runs in these shoes – but I find that even when wearing my thinnest socks (Drymax Lite Trail), I have to kind of wriggle my foot into the upper when putting the Trail Gloves on. Once I’m in, I’m good to go … but I’ve learned to budget for an extra 30 seconds or so when getting dressed in the morning. Fortunately, it’s a compromise I can live with.

Rear view: stability overlay strap, EVA midsole above rubber outsole

With most natural running shoes, there’s a performance tradeoff through the midsole area; true minimalist fans want their footwear to be as flexible as possible, which inherently limits the possibility of incorporating any protective features. And if there’s any midsole at all (for purists, none is preferable), it should be as thin as possible to maintain maximal ground feel against the bottom of the foot. This is where Merrell has staked out a nice middle ground, by incorporating two design elements that add a dose of comfort while not detracting too significantly from overall barefoot feel.

The first element isn’t anything novel: it’s a 4mm compression-molded EVA layer between the outsole and insole. This thickness is similar to Vibram’s Trek midsole – and just as with the FiveFingers, I’ve also noticed that there’s a settling period during the first 100 miles or so of use. In other words, the initial “cushy” feeling eventually recedes to allow improved ground feel than you have on your first run out of the box.

Great flexibility, along with great protection

It’s in the forefoot area that Merrell offers a cool innovation: a 1mm forefoot plate that distributes impact pressure from sharp rocks, but is still completely flexible. This combination of slight cushioning and slight impact protection makes the Trail Glove somewhat unique in the spectrum of minimalist trail shoes. From my testing, its ground feel is slightly less than Vibram’s Trek or Terra Plana’s Evo, but there’s a little more comfort over exceedingly long runs or rugged terrain. Compared to New Balance’s Minimus, the Trail Glove has a similar level of comfort, with slightly better ground feel. Granted, we’re talking about differences of millimeters one way or the other – but if you’re a longtime minimalist runner, you notice these things.

Vibram rubber outsole

For the outsole, Merrell turned to the most prominent name in performance footwear. The Trail Glove features Vibram TC-1 rubber that is cut with moderate “knobbing” throughout and ridges across the front end. Like a pair of FiveFingers, it’s contoured very closely through the arch area and narrow through the midfoot. Durability of the outsole has been excellent after about 150 miles, and traction has been great in a variety of conditions (with a couple of exceptions below), especially on wet surfaces. I’ve worn my Trail Gloves for a handful of knee-deep stream crossings, and I was pleasantly surprised at how secure my footing was on the round, slick rocks beneath the surface. They also remain quite stable in mud, and grip nicely around irregular surfaces like rocks and roots.

The only drawback to the outsole I’ve experienced is some minor slipping on loose gravel on steep hills. Going up, the knobs and ridges don’t grab the dirt, occasionally just pushing it backwards a bit. On steep descents, I’ve had a little bit of sliding on top of the dirt, especially if I’ve run through some wet conditions already and have some lingering mud caked into the lugs. This particular problem isn’t uncommon with other shoes, and I’d rank the Trail Glove outsole slightly ahead of the Vibram Trek or Terra Plana Evo, but slightly behind the New Balance Minimus in this regard.

Overall, Merrell has done an outstanding job of incorporating nearly all the elements of barefoot mechanics while offering a compelling option for traditional runners who are reluctant to go “all the way” to pure minimalist footwear. In an increasingly crowded field, the Trail Glove is a true standout that’s equally suited for ultramarathons or light recreational use. It’s clear that Merrell did their homework in developing this shoe, which isn’t too surprising in light of their extended commitment that I described at the beginning of the post. If their goal is to make minimalism accessible and enjoyable for the masses, the Trail Glove should be considered an enormous success.


Merrell’s Trail Glove retails for $110 from TravelCountry.com as well as other online vendors – but in conjunction with this review, one lucky reader will get a pair for free. My usual “big” contest rules apply here: we’ll do a weighted entry system, with additional entries for links to this post from your blog and/or Facebook page (remember, I double-check sometimes). Leave a comment below for a single entry, and let me know how many additional tickets you’ve earned, for a possibility of up to three total entries. Remember, this is a men’s shoe only – so ladies, you’re entering for your brothers or husbands on this one (which is fine with me), and your own contest will take place later this month.

The winner will be announced on Saturday, April 23rd. Good luck to everybody, and thanks very much to Merrell for sponsoring such an awesome giveaway!

*Product provided by Merrell

**See other product reviews on sidebar at right. If you have a product you’d like reviewed, contact me at info@runningandrambling.com.

Get updates as soon as they're posted! Click here to subscribe to Running and Rambling.
Check out the Running Life book for a collection of our most popular columns.

Read more...

Soft Star RunAmoc Dash Preview; Soft Star Survey Request

I’ve let slip in a couple of previous posts that I’ve been doing some prototype testing for Soft Star this year in preparation for a new shoe that will be released later this spring. Truth be told, the company is developing two new products – and since they just officially introduced one of those models at the end of last week, I figure that gives me license to talk about it a little bit.

This May, Soft Star is releasing a new version of their remarkably popular RunAmoc, which has been my favorite minimalist shoe ever since its debut approximately one year ago. You might think that since I loved the first version so much, the prospect of a new and improved model would have me giddy with excitement … but if you did, you’d be flat out wrong.

In fact, participating in this development process was somewhat distressing at times, partially attributable to the fact that I love the original RunAmoc so much. I didn’t want my favorite shoe to be replaced, and the first models I tested were more than a little bit disappointing. Soft Star made a lot of changes to the original … and I honestly hated almost every single one of them.

To their credit, though, the elves at Soft Star were open to just about every piece of feedback I offered, and graciously hand crafted one pair after another to incorporate little changes here and there as we went along. As of right now, I’ve tested no fewer than 7 different pairs of moccasins so far – and I’m not certain that we’re completely done yet.

Consequently, I’m going to wait on posting an official review until the final version - which has a working name of Dash - becomes available on the company website. For today, I thought it might be interesting to show a sampling of where we’ve been – because like I said, it’s been kind of a strange ride. For example:


The first version I tested looked nothing like any Soft Star shoe I had ever seen. The colors were weird, the styling was odd, the construction was problematic, and the fit was relatively poor in a couple of key areas. Have I mentioned that I wasn’t exactly wild about the new RunAmoc? Fortunately, this version quickly gave way to a prototype that at least looked something like its predecessor …


… except that it had laces, which is one of the primary design changes on the new RunAmoc this year. The laces are great for improving the forefoot fit …


… but there was still a lot of modification at the heel over several versions. Initially there wasn’t a heel support cup, and then there were two different styles … and I actually don’t know what the final call on this will be. And this is only half of the heel puzzle …


… as the cut of the heel collar is quite a bit different on this version than the original RunAmoc. It has a high notch at the Achilles area, and tapers downward around the ankle bones on each side. Without the laces that wrap around the heel in the original RunAmocs, a secure fit through the heel has been one of my biggest concerns.

Original RunAmoc on top; first new version on bottom

The toe box shape has also undergone a few variations, and I’m not sure what dimensions will be settled upon for the final version. Although the picture above doesn’t reflect it, the new version is currently running a little bit narrower and a little more rounded than the original, but should still allow plenty of room for natural toe movement.

I’d like to say that the end result of all this is a product that completely blows me away – but truthfully, I’m still not 100% convinced that this new version is an improvement over the original. However, over the course of multiple changes, the new RunAmoc has gradually evolved into something that I’m confident enough to run an ultra in … which is exactly what I did at Woodside a few weeks ago, after which point we went back to the drawing board to address a couple more issues.

53 muddy miles in new RunAmocs

The best news in this whole story is that the original RunAmoc and RunAmoc Lites that I love so much aren’t going anywhere; they’ll still be available on the Soft Star website even as the new version is released, to accommodate folks like me who aren’t quite ready to say goodbye to the moccasin we’ve fallen in love with. Before the new ones are released, Soft Star is soliciting feedback on the stock color they’ll offer; go to their company blog or Facebook page to tell them whether you prefer silver or black.


In the meantime, I’m continuing to test the new RunAmoc as well as the other model to be announced later; my hope is that by the time summer rolls around, I’ll be able to say that one of these new offerings is something truly special.




Get updates as soon as they're posted! Click here to subscribe to Running and Rambling.
Check out the Running Life book for a collection of our most popular columns.

Read more...

Random Shots of Beauty

This week's RSOB wasn't taken from a trail run; truthfully, it wasn't even taken by me. Rather, it's a view of a place that's been on my mind quite often over the past few days:

Yosemite Valley, as seen from the park's Ahwahnee Meadow webcam this morning. We have a family trip planned for later this month, but with the recent threat of a government shutdown, for a while there our chances looked pretty bleak. Needless to say, we're glad that Congress worked things out at least well enough to keep our favorite national park open.

Now if someone could just do something about all that snow ...

Get updates as soon as they're posted! Click here to subscribe to Running and Rambling.
Check out the Running Life book for a collection of our most popular columns.

Read more...

GoLite Tara Lite Running Shoe Review

Have you ever had one of those experiences where you feel like you get to know somebody from a distance – either through e-mails, a webpage, watching them on TV, and so on – before finally meeting them in person, and realizing that they actually look quite different than you had pictured in your head? This spring, some shoe reviewers had just such an experience upon meeting GoLite Footwear's Tara Lite running shoe. And yes, I was one of them.

When the shoes were first announced back in the fall, press releases described them as taking the best aspects of classic huarache sandals, and adding some protection and traction while still allowing the foot to function naturally. And the name of the shoe is a short for Tarahumara – as in the Tarahumara Indians, whom legions of Born to Run fans now recognize as the patron saints of minimalist running.


GoLite also did a well-received advertising campaign in the buildup to the shoe’s release, placing ads in Trail Runner and other magazines with the slogan “Run Natural. Run Wild”. So a certain type of image began forming in people’s minds: huarache, Tarahumara, natural running ... and the easy conclusion was that the Tara Lite would be a cool new minimalist shoe.

Well, we were half-right, because the Tara is a fairly cool shoe - but with specs of 11oz and a 24mm midsole, it’s anything but minimalist. And my initial impression of, “Wow – that looks a lot different than I expected” was shared by others, with some prompt backlash from a few testers who had hoped it was going to be something altogether different.

Truthfully, we probably should have just paid closer attention, because one word that GoLite never used throughout its marketing (trust me, I went back and checked) was "minimal". Rather, the Tara is part of the company’s BareTech series, which aims to achieve a balance between minimalist footwear and traditional trail running shoes. It is designed for runners who want to adjust their biomechanics but aren’t ready to make a complete shift to minimal shoes, and delivers what the company describes as a “natural ride with full protection”.

GoLite Tara Lite

Understanding all that, and setting aside my disappointment that this wasn’t a minimalist offering, the Tara was still an interesting shoe to review. It has several design innovations, some of which work, and some of which seem more clever than truly practical. And it has one element that’s perhaps the best of any shoe I’ve tested – but for that, you have to keep reading.


Many of the innovations are noticeable right off the bat, in that the Tara looks nothing like your traditional running shoe – instead, it looks like a hybrid of a moccasin and a sandal. The upper isn’t a mesh fabric, but a stretchy synthetic “second skin” that feels comfortable and is excellent at keeping grit out, but also runs a little warmer than traditional ventilated uppers. Crossing on top of the upper is an adjustable fit strap system that takes the place of standard laces, and works something like the strap system on Vibram KSOs. This is a creative design, but I wouldn’t call it a home run; when I tighten the straps, I notice an improved fit across the top of the foot, but not always down the length of the midfoot like you do with laces.


The front of the strap passes through the little hole in the top of the upper and is anchored into the midsole as a thong post like you have in a pair of flip-flops or with traditional huaraches. The performance advantage of having this post is that it serves as a forward motion block on steep downhills to prevent your toes from sliding to the front of the toebox. However, it causes one significant practical adjustment: you can’t wear standard socks with the Tara Lite, unless you want to scrunch the material between your 1st and 2nd toes down enough to wrap around the post.


To accommodate for this, GoLite provides one free pair of notched socks that are perfect for use in the Tara, although I suspect that most people will just use Injinji socks. If you don’t happen to have several pairs of Injinjis stockpiled, you might have a hard time making the Tara your everyday shoe. Some folks will probably go sockless, and the second skin upper feels fairly comfortable against bare skin, but I usually prefer to wear socks (regardless of what shoes I’m using) when I’m logging high mileage on the trail.


A similar strap mechanism is located behind the heel to adjust the fit of the ankle opening. Between the ankle strap and the forefoot system, there are a lot of possibilities for customizing your fit, so I’d be surprised to hear if anyone has a hard time making the shoe feel secure around his foot. However, this degree of adjustment and customization takes a bit of trial and error to find the various tensions that work the best.

There’s also some degree of customization with the insole system that GoLite uses for its running shoes: the insoles can be thickened, thinned out, left neutral, or removed completely, resulting in various degrees of toebox height and width. The toebox is naturally roomy even with the standard insole; in fact, I’d suggest that the shoes run slightly large, as my regular size 11 felt noticeably more roomy than the same size in other brands.


Last fall, GoLite was a groundbreaker in introducing zero-drop midsoles in its Amp Lite men’s shoe and Micro Lite women’s shoe. A similar midsole is used for the Tara, which is 24mm thick at both heel and forefoot, and it uses the same Soft Against the Ground (SATG) technology employed in those other two models. SATG quite literally turns conventional shoe construction upside down, with the softest material closest to the ground, and a firmer platform under your foot. GoLite claims that this technology decreases ground impact and reduces rear foot movement by up to 33%; the impact claim is a hard one for me to qualify, since any shoe with a midsole is going to feel excessively spongy, but I can attest that the rear foot area is quite stable.

There’s also one major drawback of the thick EVA midsole that’s best explained by demonstration …


You know how I usually include pictures of a rolled-up shoe when I’m reviewing minimalist footwear? Well, this is as close as I could get with the Tara. In the above picture, I’m pushing down as hard as I can – and the midsole is barely budging. So if you’re looking for flexibility, this obviously isn’t the shoe for you.


Finally, here’s the overwhelming strength of the Tara Lite: its sticky gecko outsole that is perhaps the most grippy, stable, and versatile outsole I’ve ever tested on a trail shoe. Yes, it’s that good. It’s inspired by the setae (that’s a frequent spelling bee word, by the way) on a gecko’s feet, and is composed of over 350 lugs of various sizes, effectively creating an enormous amount of surface area for the rubber to grab the trail.

I found the outsole to perform exceptionally well in all sorts of conditions, from rocks and loose gravel to rain and mud and river crossings to snow (yes, really) and slush. However, when I was testing the outsole in wet conditions, another quirk of the Tara came to light: water seeps in through the thong post hole on top of the upper, but doesn’t evaporate very efficiently through the second skin material. Therefore, even though the outsole is designed for the most demanding conditions, you may have some discomfort in other parts of the shoe to make you think twice about taking them on.

Clearly, the Tara is something of a mixed bag, with some very cool innovations alongside some features that sort of miss the mark from a performance standpoint. It’s far too high and too heavy to be an everyday shoe for me, but there’s definitely a lot of potential for future development.

Throughout the time I was testing them, I couldn’t help but ponder what my ideal GoLite shoe would be: a thin, breathable mesh upper with a strap fastening system that doesn’t use a thong post, affixed directly on top of the gecko outsole, resulting in a low, lightweight, flexible minimalist shoe that can handle any trail challenges imaginable. Perhaps a shoe like that is coming one day; in the meantime, the Tara presents an interesting option for runners who like classic shoe structure but want to incorporate some elements of natural biomechanics when taking on the trail. Zero drop shoes are becoming fairly well-established, and for a certain cross-section of runners, that may be as close to natural biomechanics as they ever want to get.

GoLite's Tara Lite retails for $115 from Amazon.com as well as other online vendors.


*Product provided by GoLite Footwear
**See other product reviews on sidebar at right. If you have a product you’d like reviewed, contact me at info@runningandrambling.com.




Get updates as soon as they're posted! Click here to subscribe to Running and Rambling.
Check out the Running Life book for a collection of our most popular columns.

Read more...

Adventures in Geocaching

It was during an otherwise normal hike on a beautiful autumn day in Garland Park a few years ago that our family decided to rest for a minute right here:

It’s known as the homestead site, and was formerly the location of a shelter belonging to some of Carmel Valley’s early inhabitants. Today, very little remains except for the crumbled remnants of a brick hearth – barely visible near the center of the photo above - slowly succumbing to the native vegetation over many decades of neglect.

My kids started rooting around the area – I’m not telling exactly where, for reasons I’ll explain shortly - and it wasn’t long before they came across this unexpected find:

A metal ammunition can with a large “Official Geocache” sticker plastered across the face of it. They opened the can to discover a handful of small toys, trinkets, and an information sheet explaining that the cache we had stumbled upon was intentionally hid as a small piece in a vast network of similar outdoor treasures.

At the time, our family was what’s referred to as “muggles”: an absolutely perfect term snatched from the Harry Potter lexicon to describe everyday folks who are unaware of the secret identities and happenings of a much more interesting world that exists all around them. The good news was that unlike the rigid requirements for entering the wizarding world, anybody is welcome to join the world of geocaching at anytime. You don’t have to be born a geocacher; you simply have to sign up online and start playing.

So that’s exactly what we did. We did some Google searches to learn more about the activity, found the official geocaching website, made an investment in a nice handheld GPS (we chose this one from Amazon.com), and presto! Our family was transformed into a merry band of geocachers.

Ever since then, our hikes are more than hikes: they’re purpose-driven outings, either to discover as many caches as we can in one afternoon, or to reach some distant cache that gives our kids added incentive to get out and explore the great outdoors.


Our missions have taken us to the backs of deep canyons, to the base of hidden waterfalls, or – most frequently in our local exploits around Carmel Valley – to the top of a high ridgeline somewhere. These are places that our kids would enjoy exploring anyway, but sometimes the added motivation of searching for a small treasure box is just what they need to overcome the initial sense of “Why exactly are we doing this again?” inertia.


In fact, I’m convinced that if my kids thought there was a box of goodies awaiting them at the top, they’d will themselves up the peaks of the Himalayas.


Fortunately, they haven’t had to climb any extreme mountains yet, but they’ve enjoyed some pretty cool vistas, such as this one where they hunted down a geocache near the top of Soberanes Canyon in northern Big Sur.

So what exactly is a geocache? Until you find them, you never know for sure. Sometimes it’s a large ammo can full of stuff like the one pictured earlier …


… and sometimes it’s a micro canister tied to the small branches of a tree (look closely above) or nestled under a rock – places that appear completely innocuous unless you happen to know you should be looking for something there.


Most times, the containers are big enough to hold a handful of small items that can be traded and replaced. This is the main excitement for my two daughters, as they know to bring a knapsack full of toys with them to make exchanges at any container they find; each toy they take out is replaced by one from the bag, which probably came from another geocache anyway. Amusingly, most of the toys never make it out of the knapsack once we get home, but the thrill of getting something “new” is simply too much for them to resist.


Each container also has a sign-in sheet to record your visit, and to see the last time the cache was found as well as how many people have been there before. When you get home, you log the cache as “found”, and your profile is updated to show the total number that you’ve claimed since joining the website. Our family has about 150 caches logged; some users have bagged tens of thousands.
Geocaching is a global pastime, which creates some fun collateral aspects of discovering caches. Some users create their own designer coins indicating their place of origin, allowing other users to collect coins from geocachers in every state, or multiple countries, and so on. There are also “travel bugs” which are basically metal dogtags with a code printed on them; when you enter the code on the geocaching website, you can see all the locations that tag has visited. It’s not uncommon to find tags that have touched different continents before passing through your hands – especially here in coastal California, where foreign vacationers are plentiful and planes land after crossing the Pacific every day.

Sometimes you’ll find an item with a specific objective; for example, one day in the Sierras we found this little girl named Alicia, along with a note telling us that she started her journey in Florida. Alicia had a goal of reaching the Pacific Ocean, so we let her hitch a ride from us and eventually dropped her in a geocache off of Carmel Beach. Before we did, we posted this picture to the website, so her owner would know she made it:


Alicia looks happy, doesn’t she? Sometimes it’s so easy to make somebody’s day.

I’ve mentioned before how I’m a bit of a spy geek - and for me, that’s the coolest aspect of geocaching. One of the ground rules is that you’re supposed to keep all of your activities secret; if you’re hunting for a cache and some “muggles” happen to walk by, you pretend like you’re just hanging out and enjoying the beautiful day. Many of the caches are hidden in plain sight, and especially in urban areas, part of the challenge is to see if you can make a grab in a “high muggle” area without being detected.


After a while, this whole spy mentality changes the way you look at the world; everyday trees at the side of a trail like this aren’t just pretty scenery, they’re potential hiding places (yes, there’s one somewhere in the tree pictured above). Benches in the middle of a park aren’t just places to rest – their metal supports are great locations to hide small magnetic canisters. Gradually, you develop a “geocache sense” that helps you discern where a box might be hidden, even if you don’t have a GPS to give you the exact coordinates. (For what it’s worth, my wife is WAY better than me at this; maybe she’s the one who should have been a spy.)


On the rural trails we hike, muggle traffic isn’t such a huge issue, but you still have to look around a couple of times when your GPS is pointing you to a footbridge like this …


… to make sure nobody will come along to see your family snooping the heck out of it. I like to act as the lookout when everybody else is hunting, and the kids all know the drill: if I shout a warning, they quickly act like they’re just little busybodys burning youthful energy by bustling around the side of the trail. As soon as the coast is clear, they resume hunting high and low until they find the hidden cache.

If you’re wondering whether your family can start doing this stuff, trust me – it’s far easier than you think. No matter where you live, there are probably a ton of geocaches near you that are waiting to be discovered, and new ones are probably being added even as you read this. It’s one of those weird situations where the popularity of the activity will ultimately threaten its effectiveness – it’s hard to keep something a secret if everybody else already knows about it – but there’s still plenty of time to get in the game ahead of your muggle friends and neighbors. Registering on geocaching.com is almost completely effortless, and the site is extremely user friendly in the way you download, track, and log your caches.

For us, that autumn hike at Garland Park was a completely serendipitous occasion – because ever since stumbling upon it by accident, geocaching has become one of our family’s favorite activities to do together. There’s something in it for each of us – but perhaps the most important thing from my standpoint (yes, even more than the spy thing) is that it’s a great way for our kids to spend the day outside, indulging their sense of adventure, while steadily gaining an appreciation for the beauty of our surroundings and the abilities of their youthful bodies to explore them.

Get updates as soon as they're posted! Click here to subscribe to Running and Rambling.
Check out the Running Life book for a collection of our most popular columns.

Read more...

Somnio Nada Running Shoe Review

As much as I try to stay aware of what’s going on in the world of minimalist footwear, every now and then a company kind of sneaks up on me. Such is the case with Somnio.

The small company from the small coastal town of La Selva Beach, California has dabbled in traditional training shoes for a little while, and until very recently had distinguished itself by creating an adjustable component system which creates a customizable fit for each user. This year, they set that strategy aside in order to test the minimalist waters – and for a first-time entry, they’ve done a fairly remarkable job.

Somnio Nada

The product in question is the Nada, which - depending on who you ask – stands for No Anterior Drop Applied, or is the Spanish word for “nothing”. Both descriptions are accurate, as the Nada is a zero-drop trainer that is so lightweight that it feels like there’s almost nothing attached to your foot.

Weighing in at just 3.5oz (the official spec is for women's size 8; my size is closer to 4oz), the Nada is clearly one of the most lightweight running shoes on the market. With a midsole height of only 6mm in the heel and forefoot, it’s also one of the lowest to the ground. Its construction features some of the basics you’d find in road racing shoes, and a few design elements that make it barefoot-friendly. The only drawback I have is that it’s strictly a road shoe, with poor crossover potential for use on trails, largely due to the outsole.

But we’re getting ahead of ourselves … so let’s go back and start at the top.

Breathable mesh upper with protective coating at toes

Uppers of the Nada consist of a very breathable stretch mesh that’s ideal for hot days, but still insulates well with a good pair of socks. TPU overlays help secure the upper against the midfoot area, and there’s plenty of width in the toebox for natural splay at foot strike. Laces are asymmetric and do a great job of maintaining tension through the midfoot and across the top.

Thin heel collar and barefoot-friendly interior

The heel collar area is extremely thin as well, and wraps very securely around the ankle. The sockliner is a soft fabric that’s comfortable against sockless feet if that’s your preference. There’s a thin layer of “roadblock rubber” at the heel and tip of the toebox for additional abrasion resistance.

6mm midsole at heel

Specs through the midfoot are simple: 6mm of compression-molded EVA in the heel, and 6mm in the forefoot. It’s a flat platform, just low enough to the ground to be authentically minimalist, but providing a tad bit of cushioning for comfort.

EVA outsole suitable for road use; definitely not for trails

Nada’s outsole is fairly simple as well; it’s primarily a 2mm extension of the midsole material with some token traction lines cut into it for gripping the road. The good news about this design is that with a resultant height of 8mm (6mm midsole plus 2mm outsole), the Nada is only 1mm higher than the shoe I consider the gold standard for road minimalism: Vibram’s FiveFingers Bikila, which has a 4mm insole plus 3mm outsole. The bad news is that there’s very little grip to the outsole, making the shoe practically ineffectual for any off-road use. Obviously as a trail runner this is a major drawback for me, but dedicated road runners shouldn’t have a problem with it.

Super flexible outsole!

If traction of the outsole is the main limitation, here’s its main strength: complete flexibility to allow natural foot function. There’s nothing about this construction that will prevent your foot from moving the way it wants to. Combined with the barely-there weight of the shoe, the Nada might be the closest you’ll come to feeling barefoot while wearing something resembling a traditional running shoe.

To their additional credit, Somnio recognizes the caution that goes along with venturing into minimalist running, so each purchase of the Nada also comes with a training DVD developed by Phil Wharton, a renown musculoskeletal therapist who has an ideal resume to help people safely transition to running with less shoe. The DVD includes form drills and strengthening exercises designed to address running efficiency and prevent injury.

Considering that this is their first effort with minimalist running shoes, Somnio has done a commendable job of incorporating the important elements of natural foot motion along with a bare minimum of traditional design aspects. I'd love to see them develop a trail version in the near future, but in the meantime, the Nada is a solid choice for minimalist road running.

The Somnio Nada is a unisex model that retails for $80 from the company website as well as other online vendors.

*Product provided by Somnio
**See other product reviews on sidebar at right. If you have a product you’d like reviewed, contact me at info@runningandrambling.com.

Get updates as soon as they're posted! Click here to subscribe to Running and Rambling.Check out the Running Life book for a collection of our most popular columns.

Read more...

Rokit Fuel Giveaway Winners; Random Shots of Beauty

Last Saturday, I was slogging through 12 hours of mud and rain; this weekend it's sunny and 70 degrees, and I'm taking the day completely off. What a difference a week makes, huh?

As usual, we'll knock out the giveaway winners before getting to this week's RSOB - so Brandon, Jennefer, and Drew: e-mail me your address; you've won the Rokit Fuel giveaway contest! Thanks to everyone else for entering, and special thanks to Rokit Fuel for sponsoring it.

**

This week's shot is a leftover from a few weeks ago that didn't make my recent post about running in Fort Ord. It also stars my 12-year-old son, and was taken during one of our bike rides:

(click to enlarge)

Considering the number of times we've ridden together in Fort Ord, it's safe to say that my son's no stranger to the local fauna either.

Get updates as soon as they're posted! Click here to subscribe to Running and Rambling.
Check out the Running Life book for a collection of our most popular columns.

Read more...