Unwise To Trust

Whatever I have accepted until now as most true has come to me through my senses.  But occasionally I have found that they have deceived me, and it is unwise to trust completely those who have deceived us even once.
—     René Descartes
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Attitude

Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal;  nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.
—   Thomas Jefferson
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If The Mind Is Not Tired

Now if you are going to win any battle you have to do one thing.  You have to make the mind run the body.  Never let the body tell the mind what to do.  The body will always give up.  It is always tired in the morning, noon, and night.  But the body is never tired if the mind is not tired.
—     George S. Patton Jr.
U.S. Army General
1912 Olympian in the modern pentathlon
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Irrationally Crazy

Every child deserves to have at least one adult who is irrationally crazy about them.
—    Urie Bronfenbrenna
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2nd Pair – Shoe Review

I’m on vacation this week!!
This morning I got up and jogged another 4 miles.  No big deal, but I decided to switch to my 2nd “shoe review” pair of shoes.  This pair is made by Speedo and is called:  “Men’s Seaside Water Shoe”.  I got them at Big5 for $19.99 (on sale from MSRP $24.99).
Product Details (as stated on the Speedo site):
Mesh and jersey upper for ultimate ventilation.
Quick adjust bungee lace with toggle closure.
Durable TPR outsole for maximum traction.
Soft removable EVA insole.
Import.
Initial Impressions:  I tried the shoe on for about a half hour yesterday and it almost blistered my right foot.  The shoe has drawstring laces and at the center of the foot, on the inside of the shoe, there is a patch of raw, psuedo-leather which will chafe the heck out of bare skin (at least it did mine!)  By the end of the half hour, I couldn’t wait to tear them off.
These are definitely “shoes”.  Unlike the Ahnu Delta Water Shoe, these have a top, sides and back which feel like a canvas-ie shoe.  I’d say they even feel “padded”.
Slipping them on and off is not a big deal because they come with grip loops at the tongue and heel.  You just loosen the laces and give them a good tug.
Having learned my lesson with the pre-wear session yesterday, today I wore socks for my jog.  What a world of difference!  No chaffing at all.
Now as for jogging in them – I pulled the laces pretty snug to make sure there was a minimal amount of slippage.  There was none to speak of.  The soles are extremely flexible and soft.  I’d say they feel like a very soft pencil eraser type of rubber.  In terms of jogging, I’d say they feel like the soft rubber of an old-fashioned dessert boot (crepe soles).  They have “ssh-ssh” sound when you jog, instead of the normal “slap-slap” of running shoes.  They almost make you feel like you’re running lighter than you actually are.
Ok, now the not so good news…  After barely four miles, the bottoms are already starting to wear.  The bottoms have a real “aggressive” knobbing pattern on them, which I suppose gives them good traction.  Well, the knobs on the outer edges of both shoes already look about halfway worn down.  The wear pattern goes all the way thru the mid-ball of the shoes.  I will be shocked if these soles last 100 miles, let alone the 140-150 of the Ahnu’s.  Just to put this in perspective, the industry standard for “real” running shoes is to replace them every 300-400 miles due to loss of the shock-absorption in the cushioning materials.
Time will tell…
On other related matters:
Here’s a link to a review of Vibram FiveFingers in Wired Magazine:  Shoes for Nerds
Here’s a link to a “Nature” article with information about endurance running and how it may have affected our evolutionary development.
Here’s a link to a site that discusses the biomechanics of running by Dr. Daniel E. Lieberman (PhD).  To see / hear the Barefoot Professor discuss barefoot running.
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Ahnu – Gesundheit!

Ok, so here’s the first shoe review…  You may recall from my post on 29 May 2010 (Adult-Onset Athlete) that I promised to start reviewing minimalist running shoes and the first would be the Ahnu Delta Water Shoe.  The prior “initial review” gave my first impressions.  To recap:  I purchased the shoes at REI in Concord, CA for $40.00.  Not a great price, but relatively cheap for a running shoe.  (Yes, I know it’s not a running shoe.)
Total distance:  140 to 150 miles jogged.
Other actual use:  minimal.  I wore them one day in the office.  (more on this later)  Other than that, only used for jogging / walking / running.
Types of runs:  split about 50-50 between flat asphalt and flat treadmill.
Wear:  Very good!  After about 100 miles the bottom outside mid-sole began to show wear as would be expected from Chi / Pose running style.
Comfort:  Although I had initial misgivings, the shoes turned out to be very comfortable.  There is plenty of room for your toes to spread out and the upper mesh is very breathe-able.  I did wear them one day (with socks – at work) and I found them extremely comfortable!  Cool and airy!
Other uses:  I would only use these for running in flat and fairly dry conditions – but on any solid surface.  As mentioned in my earlier review, my foot did not stay in place when I was walking / jogging on a treadmill with a mild / faint incline.  (My feet slipped off the back and would have blistered my heels with extended use.)  I would not recommend them for jogging / running any steep inclines or trails.  Even though the shoes are nominally for water use, I would not use them in any strong current situation.  Again, because they don’t have laces or some type of tying mechanism to secure them to your feet, I think they’d be pulled off in a forceful current.   Just as I think they’d be sucked off your feet if you were jogging / running in mud.  Having said this, I admit, I haven’t tested either mud or current.
Would I get them again?  Yes, because the wear was surprising good.
Would I recommend them over other minimal running shoes – too early to tell, but based on just price (twice the price of the next highest priced shoe and almost three times the two bottom priced shoes) probably not.
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