Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Meet the TOEKAs


The latest rage in the running shoe world is minimalist shoes. "Less is more. My shoe is lighter than your shoe." A lot of runners are even running barefoot, but because of runners not wanting their feet ground into hamburger meat, an invention in footware evolved.The Vibram Five Fingers. These shoes mimick barefoot running, besides looking cool. For the record, while I am intrigued, I prefer a armored tank on my feet. My choice of late has been the Hoka One Ones.These shoes are amazingly light, which might appeal to the minimalist, but they are HUGE! A water skiier could no doubt ski on these. Hokas do not look like trail shoes, but they excel on the trail--and the more technical, the better. I ran Rocky Raccoon (which ironically has NO rocks but pertified demonic roots that can beat a runners feet to a pulp) and my feet felt fresh as if I had not even ran. My legs were toast, as 100 miles will lead to that, but the Hokas were as performed as advertised.

I propose a hybrid shoe--one that takes the best points from the Vibrams and the best points from the Hokas. Meet the Toeka.These shoes will give you the sensation of running in toe shoes, but will keep those piggies riding in comfort.Despite the appearance of being a wee bit on the heavy side, Toeka counteracts the larger mass by injecting helium into the space-age soles, which makes for the most cushioned ride on the planet. This transfers to less weight on your feet as you stride down the trail. Less weight means less wear and tear, and you can expect these shoes to last up to 80% longer. For added performance, the inner chambers can be re-injected with helium, but do so with caution. Over-inflating may necessitate tethering the shoes, as they may become airborn.

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