In times before barefoot/minimalist running came into my consciousness, I did sports such as skateboarding and cycling. Shoes that I liked for these activities are classic Vans, such as the Era, other shoes that make up their Off-the-Wall series, etc and their predecessors. The problem inherent to them though is their footshape, especially that of the toebox. It's nowhere comfortable to your toes.
I've blown through enough of these shoes that I have a good idea as to how they're constructed. It's essentially a rubber sheet that's approximately 3/8" thick for the sole, with a flat insole glued to the top and a rubber strip bonded to the edge, all around and extending far enough upwards to form a sidewall, which is in turn bonded to the canvas material that makes up the upper.
It would be very easy for the footshape of these shoes to be changed for the better. Just redraw the contour of the sole sheet to the better shape. Once the sole sheet has the better shape, the shoe can be assembled in the conventional manner, to get a result that's actually comfortable and useful to the foot.
If a shoe like this existed, I'd happily buy it for skateboarding and cycling. While thin-soled minimalist shoes are the best in my opinion for running, I can't see them viable for these other activities that I enjoyed, due to economical reasons. The thin sole would be blown through in a matter of hours.
I've blown through enough of these shoes that I have a good idea as to how they're constructed. It's essentially a rubber sheet that's approximately 3/8" thick for the sole, with a flat insole glued to the top and a rubber strip bonded to the edge, all around and extending far enough upwards to form a sidewall, which is in turn bonded to the canvas material that makes up the upper.
It would be very easy for the footshape of these shoes to be changed for the better. Just redraw the contour of the sole sheet to the better shape. Once the sole sheet has the better shape, the shoe can be assembled in the conventional manner, to get a result that's actually comfortable and useful to the foot.
If a shoe like this existed, I'd happily buy it for skateboarding and cycling. While thin-soled minimalist shoes are the best in my opinion for running, I can't see them viable for these other activities that I enjoyed, due to economical reasons. The thin sole would be blown through in a matter of hours.
