Michael: Cinderfella

The pitter patter
Of rain against the windows
Are the rhymes of spring.

Tuesday, December 4, 2018

This is another one of my spins on the Cinderella story.

In Cinderfella we focus on the trail running prince who’s satisfied what’s her face, but has yet to find the perfect companion to his newly beloved Hoka Torrents.

But wait, you ask, if he’s content with one pair of shoes, why would he be looking for another? Oh, you naïve, possibly road loving beginner. No man, nor woman, should be beholden to only one pair of shoes. Haven’t you heard of rotation? Differing terrain? Differing purposes? Differing styles?
But enough of that. I’m looking for a complimentary pair to my Torrents because I’m hoping that changing shoes in longer ultras will pay off in improved performance. How? By changing the stresses on my poor older body and maybe throwing in a placebo boost on top of that.

In the past few months I’ve tried the Salomon Sense Rides, the Hoka Speedgoat Twos and Napalis. None of them have hit me yet as hands down winners. I do like the Napalis, but I did have a little heel pain after my last two hour run. The Sense Rides are growing on me and I’m hoping that it was just a long break in period that was the cause of my worries. But those initial uncomfortable runs still linger in my memory. The Speedgoats have been relegated to work/hiking shoes, which for me is one in the same.

Next up, I’m going to give the New Balance Summit Unknown’s a go. I’m hoping with the right replacement insoles and with their 10 millimeter drop, they’ll be the perfect compliment to the Hoka’s and they’ll both get me through 50-60 miles together. I figure going from the 5mm drop of the Hoka’s to the double the platform height of the Summit’s is bound to shake things up a bit.

Damned, there are a lot of shoes to try out there, and if the Newbies don’t cut it, I have a few others I’d like to try out. But I’ve only got 5 weeks to go, so decision time is coming soon.