When starting out, many of us have felt self-conscious about being seen running with no shoes! I had to overcome this as well.
I realized I would not be able to avoid other people and their comments, so why not make the best of it? I decided at first that I would keep on running until I had 'collected' five comments before heading home. This meant I had to look for other people to run near instead of avoiding them. If I didn't get my quota of comments on a run, I would strike up a conversation with someone. Usually it began with something like "Make way for a barefoot runner!" or else, "Are you really going to let an old barefoot guy pass you?!"
It was nice to find out that most of the comments I received were supportive or at least polite. I came up with some quick responses for those cretins who yelled the obvious stuff.
"Hey buddy! Did you forget your shoes?" "No -- shoes are for wimps! I don't need them!"
"Where are your shoes??" "I out-ran them! If you watch, you'll see them in about 10 minutes!"
"No shoes??" "Yep -- right here!" (showing a bandaid).
"Hey -- did you forget something?" (checking my clothes) "Nope -- I'm wearing my pants today!"
"Aren't you cold?" "Nope -- I'm feeling like hot stuff at the moment!"
"Doesn't that hurt your feet?" "Nope - I've learned not to touch the ground!"
"What about glass?" "Show me some and I won't step on it!"
Some of my favorite exchanges were these:
I stopped running to wait for a red light and traffic. A car across the street was full of gang-banger types. They rolled their windows down and called out, "Hey man, you ain't wearing shoes!" I told them, "Nope, I don't need them!" "But dude, You Ain't Wearing No Shoes!!" "Nope, I run barefoot!" "Listen, man -- I'm telling ya, YOU .. AIN'T .. GOT .. NO .. SHOES .. ON!!!" "I haven't worn them for six years!" They finally decided to just drive away, apparently not comprehending that I actually could run barefoot.
Another time I was running through the streets of downtown Portland. A foot patrol policeman saw me coming along at a pretty good clip. He called out, "You're more of a man than I am!" I just smiled and waved as I zipped past.
Sometimes I run around the waterfront sidewalks in downtown Portland. On one side its called the Tom McCall Waterfront park, and the other is called the East Esplanade. There are often homeless people there. I have stopped and spoken with some of them during my runs. One time I had run up through the streets of the downtown area. I stopped for a red light and a business woman waiting there asked me some things about my running style. Out of nowhere, this street lady appeared and started saying things to her, such as, "Its good for him! He runs like that all the time! It makes his feet stronger! Its a lot more fun that way!" I couldn't believe it -- my own cheerleader!
I was running in Vancouver and was heading towards a high school. It was lunch time and a lot of students were milling around outside. I saw a group of Goth boys, dressed in long black overcoats, lumberjack boots, spiked hair, tattoos, chains and piercings everywhere. I didn't want any trouble and I considered crossing the street to avoid them. What the heck? I ran towards them anyway. When I got close, one of them said, "Duuuude! You've got the original style!" Another one said, "Yeah, man. Native!" and the third one asked, "Doesn't that hurt?" I replied, "Not as much as those must have (pointing to his multiple piercings)" "Oh, right - Good one, man!" They gave me high-fives as their blessing and I ran on my way.
Not far from them, I came up to a few boys sitting on the grass in front of the school. One of them saw me and said, "Oh man, that's the Balls!" The other one said, "Running barefoot? No, man, that's the Ball's Balls!!" I'm still not sure exactly what they meant, but my running seemed to meet with their approval.
Another time in Portland, I was waiting for a light to change. A man and his little girl, about 5 or 6 years old, were waiting there. The girl kept staring and staring at me. I was waiting for the inevitable "no shoes" comment. I laughed, however, when she said to her father, "Daddy, that man doesn't have any pants on!" She thought my running briefs were underwear. Apparently going barefoot was no big deal to her.
Another time in Seattle, I was running near the Space Needle. A mother and her daughter were standing. The mother's face showed pure disgust upon seeing my bare feet. The girl kept staring at me while her mother told her, "Don't look!" "Don't stare!" Then the girl smiled sweetly and waved at me. Kids just "know" that going barefooted is more fun! "She gets it -- she really gets it!" I thought to myself.
I ran past a daycare center one time. The yard was full of kids playing outside. They saw me and almost as if on queue, they all repeated in a chorus, "Be sure to watch out for neeeee-dles!" "I will" I promised them.
For those people who genuinely want to know more about why I run barefoot, I often carry some business cards that have my name and say, Barefoot Runner" going on 6 years now! Natural! Fun! Healthy! Strong! and contain a reference to the running barefoot website. I hand them out so I don't have to interrupt my running to try to explain it all to them.
I realized I would not be able to avoid other people and their comments, so why not make the best of it? I decided at first that I would keep on running until I had 'collected' five comments before heading home. This meant I had to look for other people to run near instead of avoiding them. If I didn't get my quota of comments on a run, I would strike up a conversation with someone. Usually it began with something like "Make way for a barefoot runner!" or else, "Are you really going to let an old barefoot guy pass you?!"
It was nice to find out that most of the comments I received were supportive or at least polite. I came up with some quick responses for those cretins who yelled the obvious stuff.
"Hey buddy! Did you forget your shoes?" "No -- shoes are for wimps! I don't need them!"
"Where are your shoes??" "I out-ran them! If you watch, you'll see them in about 10 minutes!"
"No shoes??" "Yep -- right here!" (showing a bandaid).
"Hey -- did you forget something?" (checking my clothes) "Nope -- I'm wearing my pants today!"
"Aren't you cold?" "Nope -- I'm feeling like hot stuff at the moment!"
"Doesn't that hurt your feet?" "Nope - I've learned not to touch the ground!"
"What about glass?" "Show me some and I won't step on it!"
Some of my favorite exchanges were these:
I stopped running to wait for a red light and traffic. A car across the street was full of gang-banger types. They rolled their windows down and called out, "Hey man, you ain't wearing shoes!" I told them, "Nope, I don't need them!" "But dude, You Ain't Wearing No Shoes!!" "Nope, I run barefoot!" "Listen, man -- I'm telling ya, YOU .. AIN'T .. GOT .. NO .. SHOES .. ON!!!" "I haven't worn them for six years!" They finally decided to just drive away, apparently not comprehending that I actually could run barefoot.
Another time I was running through the streets of downtown Portland. A foot patrol policeman saw me coming along at a pretty good clip. He called out, "You're more of a man than I am!" I just smiled and waved as I zipped past.
Sometimes I run around the waterfront sidewalks in downtown Portland. On one side its called the Tom McCall Waterfront park, and the other is called the East Esplanade. There are often homeless people there. I have stopped and spoken with some of them during my runs. One time I had run up through the streets of the downtown area. I stopped for a red light and a business woman waiting there asked me some things about my running style. Out of nowhere, this street lady appeared and started saying things to her, such as, "Its good for him! He runs like that all the time! It makes his feet stronger! Its a lot more fun that way!" I couldn't believe it -- my own cheerleader!
I was running in Vancouver and was heading towards a high school. It was lunch time and a lot of students were milling around outside. I saw a group of Goth boys, dressed in long black overcoats, lumberjack boots, spiked hair, tattoos, chains and piercings everywhere. I didn't want any trouble and I considered crossing the street to avoid them. What the heck? I ran towards them anyway. When I got close, one of them said, "Duuuude! You've got the original style!" Another one said, "Yeah, man. Native!" and the third one asked, "Doesn't that hurt?" I replied, "Not as much as those must have (pointing to his multiple piercings)" "Oh, right - Good one, man!" They gave me high-fives as their blessing and I ran on my way.
Not far from them, I came up to a few boys sitting on the grass in front of the school. One of them saw me and said, "Oh man, that's the Balls!" The other one said, "Running barefoot? No, man, that's the Ball's Balls!!" I'm still not sure exactly what they meant, but my running seemed to meet with their approval.
Another time in Portland, I was waiting for a light to change. A man and his little girl, about 5 or 6 years old, were waiting there. The girl kept staring and staring at me. I was waiting for the inevitable "no shoes" comment. I laughed, however, when she said to her father, "Daddy, that man doesn't have any pants on!" She thought my running briefs were underwear. Apparently going barefoot was no big deal to her.
Another time in Seattle, I was running near the Space Needle. A mother and her daughter were standing. The mother's face showed pure disgust upon seeing my bare feet. The girl kept staring at me while her mother told her, "Don't look!" "Don't stare!" Then the girl smiled sweetly and waved at me. Kids just "know" that going barefooted is more fun! "She gets it -- she really gets it!" I thought to myself.
I ran past a daycare center one time. The yard was full of kids playing outside. They saw me and almost as if on queue, they all repeated in a chorus, "Be sure to watch out for neeeee-dles!" "I will" I promised them.
For those people who genuinely want to know more about why I run barefoot, I often carry some business cards that have my name and say, Barefoot Runner" going on 6 years now! Natural! Fun! Healthy! Strong! and contain a reference to the running barefoot website. I hand them out so I don't have to interrupt my running to try to explain it all to them.
