Red White and Rose Wine Series.

Ben

Barefooters
Jun 27, 2014
5
11
3
40
Indianapolis
This is a bit old, August 9th 10K run. My first "event" without shoes on the whole time. I did the last mile +/- barefoot. Some gravel and dirt but mostly old asphalt. There are 2 more coming up if anyone is in the central Indiana area and is interested (Plainfield and Martinsville). Will try to remember to post any photos of those when available. Not sure I'm ready to tackle a full 10K bf, but felt great now that I don't let my toes drag.

Pretty sure I was the only BFer there, had a few folks comment/talk but all positive. One runner insisted I was crazy, but he was nice about it.

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A good view of my "penguin" feet:
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Still penguin footed, but some how less goofy looking:
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Crazy? At least you're in good company. Now to take those foot coffins you're carrying and throw them in the trash! :barefoot:
 
Next run in the series in this Saturday in Plainfield at the Chateau Thomas winery. Planning to go for the last 2 mile barefoot, which is the most I've done at once - my first barefoot run (Everything I read said don't start out running a full mile, so I didn't, I did two). I don't see why I couldn't go for longer, but for now 2 mi is a psychological barrier for me. I got blood blisters on my toes from letting them land with the ball of my foot on that run, and putting my shoes back on didn't really help too much after that point.

From what I've been able to tell,and the pictures above seem to indicate I've remedied that. Assuming all is well after 2 miles I want to get a few 5K runs in before the snow starts falling. Should be another picture or two to follow this weekend.
 
Instead of carrying your shoes this time, bring a pair of thick socks. Try them before hand on one of your runs. And don't get injured. You may not be ready for 2 miles yet. Let us know how you do. Have fun!
 
So the race was last weekend, not the one before like I had thought it was. I had the date right, but just thought it was a week closer. I arrived at the check in point about 5 minutes after my group left, I saw the 5Kers leave and then 8 minutes after I should have started I was actually starting. I know the race official had to do something so I could start. I'm not sure if he just changed the machine to 10K from the 5K or if he reset the start time for me. I'm guessing it did since I had to wait for the okay from him and I think the senor triggers when you cross at the start as well. If my total time accounted the late start I blew my previous PR in slowness out of the water. If it doesn't account for the late start then I'm pretty happy, especially for the circumstances. It was a hard race for me, I'm slow and pretty content at being slow because running is just fun and I'm rarely in a hurry to get it over with. One of those "it's the journey, not the destination" things. I had some weird spasms of discomfort in my right foot the day of and before the race, and my right shin wasn't too happy either. I started feeling the need to catch up to my group which wasn't good since I'm not fast to begin with. After a while of running I ended up limping and running and that threw off my form and made things worse. Eventually I took a moment to collect myself and stare up at the clouds floating on by oblivious of me and my petty aches and pains as I ran along. After that things went much much better and by the time I got to the finish line I didn't really have any aches and pains. The first 2 miles were run/walk and the last 4 were almost exclusively running which is how I like it. I also took some humor in the fact that once I took my shoes off my arms immediately got tired. I expect I was the only one running whos greatest wish was to not have tired arms. I had helped somebody move earlier in the day so that what I get for a good deed. Another comical moment was about a .5 miles from the finish when crossing an intersection and cop and motorcyclist jokingly told me I should probably be wearing my shoes. I told them my hands had gotten cold, It was good for a chuckle at least.

Anyways, here is the finishing photo. I think it's a great visual account of how I felt for the first 2-3 miles, and while I was tired (I never really caught my breath again after that terrible start) I felt much much better than I looked. I am grateful for the chance to have worked on my mental fortitude, it's probably my biggest weakness in running. I know I could go much faster and longer if I just pushed, but I'm always too busy having fun with it to bother.With a half marathon quickly approaching I kind of wish I had put some effort into speed, but I'll save the speed for a full marathon next year.
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Next stop: Race 3 and the final race of the series at the Cedar Creek winery in Martinsville.