pavedwave longboarding

wafflesole · Joined: 15 Apr 2008 Posts: 82

Although not fully barefoot, i noticed a real difference in my skating on my mermaid. The 1st time i went out for a 15 miler i was wearing knackered rowley ones, hole in my pushing foot.
second time i was wearing a nearly new set of tnt's i almost flung them into the sea after 10 miles.

you cant feel the board and it just feels 'not right'. I find that the toes hanging over the edge on the rear foot give the big pump a bit more feel. and the less sole the better.

i'd do five fingers all day long at dorney. My normal route needs you to push for a few miles just because of the shitty surface.

and eric! you never bloody stop. I've been running about 4 miles once a week at work with the kids and am kinda getting into it. The knees are suffering a wee bit!

pavedwave · Joined: 22 Oct 2007 Posts: 1115 Location: seattle wa usa

I'm almost finished with the book "Born to Run" -- Sheldon let me borrow a version he picked up marked as an Uncorrected Proof, and I've spent the last week reading it while walking barefoot across town.

All I can think is if this book doesn't get you out on your feet, I'm not sure what else will. It's a truly inspiring read with a lot of funny moments along the way, in particular the descriptions of Ted Very Happy

Running has never been my passion but when I have run it's always been long and far, too far for someone who isn't carefully training themselves up to it, and that's probably part of why it had led me to think running in general leads to pain.

As a kid experiencing the general ennui of living in a redneck rural area where shooting traffic signs with a shotgun is considered an athletic event, I'd go run along the roads many miles at a time, but then pay for it the next day. In college I'd run from the UW to Greenlake and back, and be done with running a week later as a result. Over the last 10 years I've done similar, stupidly trying to "ease" myself into running by going a few miles at a time starting out -- and still, paying for it a day later.

Now, I'm finding it pretty liberating to just kick off the shoes and walk the paths and sidewalks barefoot. Running a little, walking a little. Such a simple pleasure and yet being tethered to social norms and habits, we don't think to do it. In Southern California, especially near the beaches people wouldn't even bat an eye, but here in the Pac NW the bare feet really stand out.

The real revelation in running barefoot is recognizing that you're automatically running smarter, not pounding your heels and relying on the foam of a shoe to absorb the shock. When I watched Leah run at Greenlake only a time or two, it looked like she was skipping, floating, flowing across the path. Tiny fast footsteps.

I ran for a couple miles this morning with my dog, both running and walking, and we kept up easily with some sweaty red-faced dude for about a half mile of it.

There's a lot of wisdom in simplicity, I found the same to be true with the skateboarding and the evolution of LDP setups many years back. Step away from the gimmicks, get back to the basics.

"Born to Run" is an awesome read. Very inspiring, highly recommended!

http://www.amazon.com/Born-Run-Hi...oks&qid=1246208675&sr=8-1