Some days ago I felt nostalgic and thought on running a 10K (a training, not a race) in canvas... Like this famous video from RunnersWorld with this guy painfully heel-striking (just watching him causes pain). Don't worry, my form is pretty good and I do almost all my official training in MT10. I have documented this run somewhere else so that I just want to point out that it feels extremely good.
I am now planning on trying a pair of espadrilles, or better said, a pair of 'espardenyes' the traditional shoes of my homeland; the Valencian Country and Catalonia. There are two sorts of these shoes; the shallow one which is a common espadrille and the laced one. The latter is used as in the traditional dance ensembles and both types are also the footwear used in our traditional sport: pilota.
These shoes are made of canvas with a sole made from esparto (a grass sort) or hemp rope. The sole is quite thick for what we minimalists and barefooters are used too. The traditional sort lacks a heel, but more modern versions include some sort of rubber 'outsole' with a heel for no good reason but that people nowadays seem to think that the absence of heel can cause you foot cancer or so...
Historically, these sort of shoes have been the choice shoes for foot soldiers and landfolk for centuries. It is thus a sturdy shoe that will surely be able to get you through an ultra.
Besides the sheer fun of it I have the a certain scientific interest in learning by experience how soldiers and messengers from our European past used to run. I have never run in them, but I have worn them and I expect an extremely good performance on trails. I guess that roads will be too abrasive for this sort of soles but I aim to try with a few 10k.
I have also another interest in this type of shoes: I aim at finding an ultra-cheap and sustainable option for running besides of barefooting.
I will now begin to find a source of espadrilles.
More to come...
I am now planning on trying a pair of espadrilles, or better said, a pair of 'espardenyes' the traditional shoes of my homeland; the Valencian Country and Catalonia. There are two sorts of these shoes; the shallow one which is a common espadrille and the laced one. The latter is used as in the traditional dance ensembles and both types are also the footwear used in our traditional sport: pilota.
These shoes are made of canvas with a sole made from esparto (a grass sort) or hemp rope. The sole is quite thick for what we minimalists and barefooters are used too. The traditional sort lacks a heel, but more modern versions include some sort of rubber 'outsole' with a heel for no good reason but that people nowadays seem to think that the absence of heel can cause you foot cancer or so...
Historically, these sort of shoes have been the choice shoes for foot soldiers and landfolk for centuries. It is thus a sturdy shoe that will surely be able to get you through an ultra.
Besides the sheer fun of it I have the a certain scientific interest in learning by experience how soldiers and messengers from our European past used to run. I have never run in them, but I have worn them and I expect an extremely good performance on trails. I guess that roads will be too abrasive for this sort of soles but I aim to try with a few 10k.
I have also another interest in this type of shoes: I aim at finding an ultra-cheap and sustainable option for running besides of barefooting.
I will now begin to find a source of espadrilles.
More to come...
