Five Finger Discount

For the past several weeks, I've been wearing possibly the most comfortable shoes on the planet. And they aren't much more than what my mammy gave me.

The first time I saw a pair of Vibram Five Fingers, I remember thinking, "Those things are so ugly. I don't care how comfortable they are; you'll never see me in a pair." But when a friend of mine started singing their praises, I took a moment to listen.

"Dude, they are so comfortable! I never want to wear anything else."

"But they're ugly as sin," I countered.

"You have to try them out. I don't know how stylish they are ..."

"They're not," I interjected.

"... but they feel amazing. It's like walking barefoot."

"I don't enjoy walking barefoot that much. Why would I buy shoes to emulate something I don't really care about?"

"Just go try on a pair and see if you like them. I'll show you mine." So AJ went to fetch his pair of VFFs and with some difficulty managed to get into them. "They aren't the easiest shoes to get on," he added. When the straps were secured he stood up. "Ta-da!"

"You look fucking ridiculous."

"Oh," he managed, deflated. "I think they're pretty cool."

Vincy had heard about the VFFs as well, so she suggested we find a place to try them on when I mentioned them. The problem (at least in this area) is that they are so damned popular that basically no one has them in stock -- especially in my very common shoe size. We settled on Zombierunner in Palo Alto, but they didn't have any in stock either. I had to pre-order a pair in my size just to try them on. Vincy tried on a pair that was close to the correct size for her, but they weren't a perfect fit. She got on the pre-order list, too.

A couple of weeks later I got a call from Zombierunner saying that my shoes were in. I knew I was under no obligation to buy, but given that it had taken two weeks to get the damned things in stock, there's no way I wasn't going to make time to try them on. Besides, in the time I had waited, I had begun to make peace with the shoe's odd appearance. I was sure that odd footwear would be embraced at my workplace -- especially given that the manager of my old group goes everywhere barefoot. And I spend a good deal of my waking time at work, so in the worst case I'd only look ridiculous there.

Vincy was able to meet up with me for a caribbean lunch in Menlo Park and another trip out to Palo Alto to try on the shoes. When we got to Zombierunner, I removed my motorcycle boots and socks. I tentatively spread and flexed my toes. The salesperson handed me the first shoe saying, "Okay, to put these on, put your toes in first. Once you've got them all in, pull the back up over your heel." So I did. And I stood up.

"Hmph." It's still hard to explain how the shoes feel. It's like like having wet suit on your foot that goes between your toes and a little rubber between your foot and the ground. It mostly feels like there isn't much there, and there isn't. And they want $85 for them.

I started to walk around. "How do they feel?" Vincy asked.

"They feel good." I stood on my toes. I flexed my foot. I had the distinct sensation that I can do things in VFFs that I can't do in normal shoes, but I wasn't sure that would justify the cost. On the other hand, I was intrigued. I wanted to wear them for longer to see how they performed, and that meant they were going to have to go home with me. "I'm going to get them. We'll see if they're as good as AJ says they are."

Vincy asked if they had the shoes she had pre-ordered in stock as well. They didn't, but they had an alternate color to that admittedly looked way better on her than the black would have. They were a perfect fit, and she looked really happy in them. "You gonna get 'em?" I asked.

"Uh uh!" And just like that I had grown excited about my own purchase. New shoes!

For the next several days, I wore my black Vibram Five Fingers KSOs (keep stuff out) any time I wasn't on the motorcycle. The shoes provide no support, instead forcing your bones and musculature to support you. It's how we were designed. The shoes only provide a bare minimum of protection against sticky surfaces and sharp objects. You can pretty much step on a piece of bubblegum and tell what flavor it is. It's hard to state why such a sensation would be desirable, but let's just say for now you're far more connected to the ground on which you walk.

Vincy found this great article that discusses the damage that modern shoes are doing to our feet in great detail. It's a bit on the long side, but it's a fascinating read. And it might just send you running out to buy a pair of VFFs.

After wearing them nearly every day since the end of last month, the only real criticism I have of the VFFs is that since they are essentially a sock-less shoe they can get funky. In fact, there are very long threads on VFF funk (which apparently is the same as river gear funk) on a number of message boards. To save you the trouble of figuring out how to kill the bacteria that a simple machine wash does not, here is the current antimicrobial solution I employ:

1. Place the VFFs in a gallon bag.
2. Add one cup of vinegar.
3. Fill the rest of the bag with water and seal.
4. Let the VFFs soak for 5 hours.
5. Empty the bag and thoroughly rinse (or machine wash) the VFFs to purge the vinegar smell.
6. Dry in the sun or in a dryer on an "air only" setting.

I just got my second pair yesterday because I wanted some color variety, and I'm considering buying a third and final pair. Despite not being the cutting edge of fashion, I frequently get stopped by people asking about my footwear. "Those are neat!" or "What are those?" or "Those look comfortable!"

No one ever thought to say a thing about my silver printed Adidas shell toes, and I thought they were pretty fly.