Get ready to wiggle your toes and feel the ground beneath you: barefoot shoes are back!
Nearly 15 years after the wave of barefoot running shoes peaked and crashed, barefoot shoes are starting to comeback in new iterations.
Friend of the pod Erica Zazo, recently covered the category and reviewed multiple styles of barefoot shoes for CNN and she's back on the show today to tell us about her favorites.
And since going barefoot is the perfect way to hang out in Hawaii, Gear & Beer Cicerone Justin Housman made today's pairing: a multipack of brews from Kona Brewing. That's why he gets paid the big bucks folks.
GEAR & BEER!
Please follow and subscribe to Gear & Beer and give us a 5 star rating wherever you get your podcasts. Leave a written review on Apple Podcasts and reach out to myrockfight@gmail.com to claim your free Gear & Beer sticker!
Gear & Beer is part of the Rock Fight podcast network. Be sure to check out THE ROCK FIGHT for the best outdoor industry commentary on Apple or Spotify.
Head to www.rockfight.co and sign up for News From the Front, Rock Fight's weekly newsletter!
Want to see your favorite piece of gear or favorite beer featured on a future episode? Send your feedback and suggestions to myrockfight@gmail.com or send a message on Instagram or Threads.
Choose Your Player
Apple Podcasts
Spotify
Captivate
Episode Transcript
Colin (00:01):
Welcome to Gear and Beer, the podcast for Gearheads beer buffs and adventurers with discerning tastes, and the latest edition to the Rock Fight Podcast Network. I'm Colin True. I work for brands and makers in the outdoor industry for over 20 years.
Justin (00:14):
And I'm Justin Housman, senior editor at the Adventure Journal, professional gear reviewer and certified cone, also known as a beer expert from the Cone University.
Colin (00:27):
Is that what it's called?
Justin (00:28):
It's college football season call. I'm practicing my, or I'm sorry, intro. Intro. It's football season. I'm practicing my intro. Yeah.
Colin (00:34):
Who does everyone just do the now I thought that was the, you
Justin (00:38):
Right? No, the Ohio State University is the big one.
Colin (00:40):
Well, today on gear and beer, Erica Zao is back, and this time she's trading in her big, heavy and loudspeaker for something a little more sleek and barely noticeable. Today, Erica is going to tell us all about the latest generation of barefoot shoes. Welcome back to the show, Erica.
Erica (00:54):
Hey, good to be back.
Colin (00:56):
So you've been out doing lots of Chicago adventures lately. Have you been using your turtle box on any of them or has it been a more quiet and peaceful adventures these days?
Erica (01:05):
Oh, probably quiet more. So did we need
Colin (01:08):
A stroller for the turtle box?
Erica (01:10):
Right? I know
Justin (01:12):
The turtle box pram coming this fall. I mean, you're about to have, what is Erica? Have you made a stroller choice?
Erica (01:17):
Oh yes. I have a baby on the way with my wife. We are going with a Thule Aully stroller.
Colin (01:24):
Okay. Keeping it on brand, keeping it outdoor. I have a
Justin (01:26):
Tulle stroller.
Erica (01:27):
Nice.
Justin (01:28):
Yeah, like a jogging one. Mine is like a, it's like a running stroller. I never once ran with it, but it works
Erica (01:34):
Great. That's what we're going for too.
Justin (01:35):
Good choice.
Erica (01:36):
I think it has a baby adapter. Hopefully it'll work out so I don't have to have
Justin (01:39):
A baby adapter.
Erica (01:40):
Yes.
Justin (01:41):
What do you mean by that? I mean,
Erica (01:42):
I don't know. Is that thing okay for babies? Sometimes? I'm like, this is little
Justin (01:45):
Little. You mean like little newborns? Oh, I don't know. Good question. I don't know.
Erica (01:49):
I mean, I think it'll bes stroller. It'll be okay when it's maybe six months, but little
Justin (01:55):
No, you don't put little tiny babies in strollers. They go in the bassinet.
Erica (01:59):
So I need to buy that too. Thank
Colin (02:00):
You for my Oh, you probably do. Yeah, you probably do. I had my new Mor than a burley cart. It was a two person burley cart with a helmet on her head's off to the side. I'm just ripping around on streets. It was great. She's fine. She's in college now. It worked out okay.
Justin (02:12):
Colin's 115 years old. Yeah. You don't remember what it was like when she was a little newborn, baby Colin. That's
Colin (02:18):
Long time ago. I really don't. Well, Erica, you recently wrote a gear review for CNNI wrote CCN in the doc. That's not correct. cnn.com about barefoot shoes. So why barefoot shoes? I mean, they die a slow and horrible death in 2012. What's going on here? Why are barefoot shoes back?
Erica (02:35):
Admittedly don't know the total history. I was never on the Rummm five toe finger, whatever they're called trend back in the day. But I do feel like maybe one idea I have is that shoes have just kind of gotten out of control. There's just so many shoes. We're all about the Hogans with the huge stack height and it is more cushion the better. So I do think some brands are kind of going against that to bring back the basics of a barefoot. So yeah, maybe it's just we've gone a little overboard with everything that comes, goes into a shoe, and I'm a fan of bringing it back to the basics. So
Colin (03:13):
Well, we'll get into the ones you talked about in a second. They definitely look probably different than they did when they were popular over a decade ago. But before we get to that, we got a few housekeeping items for our gear and beer listeners. Be sure to follow and rate gear and beer wherever you're listening, clicking follow on your favorite podcast app and leaving us that five star rating. It is the best way to help the show. And be sure to check out our other podcast called The Rock Fight where we talk about the outdoor industry and the outdoor community. And you can find that wherever you're listening to this podcast and you should also rate it and follow that show. But Justin, where can our listeners follow along and maybe just reach out to us?
Justin (03:50):
Well, if you're within 50 feet of me right now, you come into my garage and have a listen to the
Colin (03:56):
Podcast. How great would it be if someone walked by and it's like, Hey
Justin (03:58):
Man. I mean, I'll see we have a fan in my town. I'll probably see him later this afternoon. I see him almost every day go to this particular pub. Do
Colin (04:04):
You go like, ah, man, just finished gear and beard. Not going to tell you what we talked about. You got to wait.
Justin (04:08):
He'll walk up to me and have a thought. I forget his name. Chris. Chris. Hi Chris. How's it going, Chris? He'll walk up to me and have a thought about it, but I don't think Chris emails us what you should. You can email us at my rock fight@gmail.com. You can follow along with our just absolutely delightful little videos, little promo videos that Colin makes on Instagram where the handle is Rock Fight co. That's Rock Fight CE, and then you can sign up for our newsletter by navigating over to rock fight.co and clicking on join the mailing list. You will not regret that. That's a nice little Sunday pleasure for you. That's what
Colin (04:46):
We, Erica made an appearance in the last time she was on our little video, so we're going to have to talk about what we do this time since she has all the barefoot shoes. I don't think Justin and I are going to have any of the models of the barefoot shoes we're going to talk about. So we'll have to make sure Don, don't think I
Justin (04:56):
Do. I used to have one of the pairs in this list here, an older version, but I don't think I have 'em anymore.
Colin (05:03):
Alright, well let's get into the gear. So we alluded to at the beginning, barefoot Shoes. It's a category that I honestly really can't believe we're talking about. I was a participant, but of all the trends across athletics, outdoor fashion, this is what I really didn't think would come back any meaningful way. I mean, it definitely seems, there's a few styles that have lingered on 'em. You can still buy five fingers. I actually have a pair of New Balance minimus that kind of match when that shoe came out that I wear to the gym and things like that. But here we are, barefoot shoes are back, and I'm actually excited to get an update on what's happening with them. But before we get to Erica's thoughts on them, have you ever tried any barefoot shoes? Justin,
Justin (05:37):
Let me pull up the article here. She has Erica, you have the LEMS Primal,
(05:44):
Which I had, but I didn't really think of them as being a minimalist shoe. I was just stoked because that you could squish 'em down so small. They were built as a travel shoe and you could squish 'em down real tight to put 'em in your luggage and they're really comfortable. So no, don't think I've had any that are build that way. I mean, part of me was like, well do ultras count, but loan peaks, but not really. I mean, I would never in a million years wear the tow shoes things. I mean, I'd literally rather walk barefoot over anything, volcanic lock anything.
Erica (06:16):
I physically can't get my foot into those shoes.
Justin (06:18):
It would take me an hour and a half to put them on. I can't do it. I have no interest. I don't care if they're the cure for cancer. I'm not wearing those shoes.
Colin (06:31):
So no. So Erica, have you tried them before you did this review or was this sort of a big indoctrination for you?
Erica (06:36):
I think I used to have, before I even really knew what a barefoot shoe was, some merri minimalist shoes, which probably were, but I feel like that was before. I feel like Barefoot shoes have really become a marketing branding term. Everyone wants to have a barefoot shoe on their roster, and I talked to several foot health folks for my interviewing and Barefoot is really kind of a term that we shouldn't be using because you're not actually barefoot. I think people get confused about that. We really should be saying apparently Minimalists specifically, but I think Barefoot became a marketing trend in a way to talk about what
Colin (07:20):
Well supposed to be mimicking a more natural use of your foot. It's ultimately what it's trying to do
Erica (07:26):
Exactly. But I feel like I've always tended trended towards more simple zero drop shoe because anything with a heel I've despised my whole lifetime. So yeah, I think a lot of it comes down to personal preference because I also really love Birkenstocks and those are very much form fitted arch support, but I think folks need to try Barefoot to really know if it's for them. And we can talk about that a little bit more about the safe ways to be testing barefoot shoes. But yeah, I think they're not for everyone, but maybe give it a try and figure out if you like 'em.
Colin (08:04):
So what was your testing method across the range of shoes? I guess actually let's start with why did you decide the shoes that you decided upon, and then what was your testing method across the range you then decided upon?
Erica (08:15):
Yeah, I mean, you'll notice I didn't test a ton of sandals. There were a couple in my testing, but I really wanted to test every day sort of lifestyle shoe. One, because we're trying to trend that way on CNN underscored just serving content to folks who come from all experience levels. And that starts with, we wanted our first barefoot test to include a variety of more lifestyle. We have some gym shoes in here, a little bit more rugged shoes, like the Vivo barefoot. So we tried to pick a good swath of shoes to try. And then the other aspect of the testing was just me literally wearing them in my everyday. So it was everything from walking around the neighborhood to bringing them on super rugged adventures. I got to go to Morocco Spring and do a gravel bike ride. So I brought the vivo barefoot to try when I was biking, but then I could also wear them when we were hiking around and getting out on the dirt trails that we were on too. And then I had some gym shoes too, so I was just wearing a few that were marketed towards folks who go to the gym. So my goal was just to try as many as I could for a variety of regular life reasons.
Colin (09:19):
I think that makes sense. I mean, you kind of almost answered my next question. I had written on an outline about, hey, do we believe in the category and has it evolved beyond running? And it makes sense, the shoes you are trying or the shoes you tested for this being more every day shows where this category has gone. This isn't just like, Hey, let's bring back another running trend because it was popular in the past. Let's make it popular again. These shoes look very different in your article than what was popular in 2010. So that makes a lot of sense.
Justin (09:47):
Why would you think that that isn't just doing what you said, just with slightly different design, Colin?
Colin (09:54):
Well, I think the way this came out of left field, so Zebra invents the five finger. The five Fingers were the boat shoe originally. That was what their intention was. And the na rose to prominence as when they were featured in Born to Run, which is a running book, and that kicked off the whole barefoot running movement. And the five finger business went from $0 to $90 million in 18 months. It became this massive business overnight success thing. And then it crashed almost as quickly a year and a half after that. There was back down very few sales. So everything, it was very trendy, like, oh, you got to get out and run and Borda runs a thing and people are running races in bare feet or mimicking bare feet. And then as quickly as that came along, then that's when then Hoka started to rise up.
(10:40):
The Maximalist thing kind of took its place. So it was very kind much of a running trend that came out of that space. And I have held on to, like I said, my new balance minimus because I like working out in the gym for them. And the one thing that I'll say personally about my use of using barefoot shoes is when I was wearing five fingers and wearing them consistently, I did notice that lower leg strength you get on my mountain bike, I'd get on my mountain bike and notice I felt stronger on my pedals and those kinds of things. So it's not to say they're not without merit, but most of them looked pretty bad. They were more like running
Justin (11:14):
Focused and now they're more whatever you want on this.
Colin (11:17):
So to have a more sort of everyday look to them to say, here's an option for you if you want to, even the way you've described Trail Rus Justin, right about you don't like that sort of sloppy kind of overly squishy vibe in your shoe, you want to feel a little more locked in. This probably eliminates some of that potentially.
Justin (11:34):
Yeah. Okay. Alright.
Erica (11:36):
I also stand to believe that there wasn't maybe enough education around the ways in which you're supposed to wear barefoot shoes, especially when you're doing something as extreme as running. And I talked to a couple of physical therapists, like I mentioned, who there's a lot of studies out there now that are showing the benefits of barefoot shoes. But if you were to go to the extreme and you've never worn a barefoot shoe and you put it on, you start running on the trail, you will experience some pain from that both in your muscles and your feet. So I think helping people get into barefoot shoes at a lifestyle level of just wearing them, figuring out how your feet feeling them, then making your transition into running in them and so on. I feel like brands are starting to appeal to people who just want to try them out instead of use 'em for the extreme environment.
Colin (12:25):
Well, more importantly than that, I think before we go any further, we should crack open a beer. Okay, I agree. And Justin, as the official cerone of gear and beer, what are we pairing with Barefoot Shoes today, buddy?
Justin (12:35):
Well, I mean they're all over the place, but the one thing they have in common is they're minimalist and I referred to as Barefoot shoes. So the only thing I could really think of was something from the Paradisical Islands of Hawaii with the Kona Brewing Company, which is pretty good. Not like the best brewery on earth, but pretty damn good, pretty uncomplicated, reliable, maybe reliable, uncomplicated, not fussy. And when you think barefoot, I don't know if I think barefoot, I just think about the tropics because I'm usually barefoot in the tropics. Basically, as soon as I get to Hawaii, I take my shoes off and I don't really put 'em back on until I get back on the plane. So it just felt right to me.
Colin (13:16):
Alright, which one? What do you
Justin (13:17):
Got? I got the Longboard Island lager kind of. They're the most popular kind of classic easy drinking
Colin (13:22):
Log wouldd you get
Justin (13:24):
Erica?
Erica (13:24):
Oh, I have the Kona Big wave, which is a golden nail. Big wave.
Justin (13:27):
The Golden Nail. That's a great beer.
Colin (13:29):
All right. And then, yeah, I wanted to also have complete the Variety Pack. I did the Hana Lei Island IPA. Any thoughts on the brewery or should we just crack 'em open? Should we just go for it?
Justin (13:39):
Didn't usually I kind of do a little dive into it. I didn't really this because it felt right to not. The whole idea is a minimalist. It's kind of like, you know what? Don't want to think too much about it. Just kind going with it.
Colin (13:49):
Alright guys, let's crack 'em open here. You guys ready? I'm ready.
Erica (13:53):
Got my beer opener
Colin (13:55):
Ready? 3, 2, 1.
Justin (13:59):
I whiffed. I did two. Ooh, it smells like beer. It smells like beer, guys. It smells
Colin (14:05):
Really good. All right. Cheers everybody.
Justin (14:09):
Oh man, that's nice. Also, I love
Erica (14:12):
Liquid. That's really good.
Justin (14:13):
Liquid Aloha is their slogan, which is great.
Erica (14:15):
It's a good beer.
Justin (14:16):
There's no chance This is Brew in Hawaii, by the way. Almost none. I'm sure it was at one point.
Colin (14:20):
It's probably
Justin (14:21):
Born, it's probably Brew in Chicago or something like that. I mean, it'd be insanely dumb to brew it in Hawaii and just ship it all over the country. That'd be really, really stupid. I'm sure you can get counter brewed in Hawaii, but there's no way this actually was, that would not be
Colin (14:34):
Smart. Alright, so let's go through your review, Eric, and go through you anointed some barefoot winners in the categories of the best shoe, best for exercising, best boots and best lightweight. So I thought it might make the most sense to go through your winners to get the variety of the category. So let's go through each one. Do you want to start with Best Shoe? Where do you want to begin?
Erica (14:55):
Yeah, let's start with Best Shoe. I feel like, was it Justin who brought this up? lems. Primal Zen doesn't necessarily scream barefoot because it looks more like a normal shoe, but it totally feels different when you put it on your foot because one thing that I love about this shoe, it has a cork insole. So not that you have to wear barefoot shoes with no socks, but I feel like they do lend themselves to that. And the cork inside of the shoe on the sole there is very comfortable in the insole. But I think this is definitely a newbie minimal issue because it has more cushion inside of it has four and a half millimeters of cushion. But I think this shoe is zero drop. It is very flexible. You do feel what's underneath your foot because the sole is very, it's very much foam versus a hard rubber.
(15:42):
So I think I love this shoe as an entry level pick, which is why I made it the best overall because it's comfortable for most people. It has the elements of a barefoot shoe, but it's not the extreme barefoot shoe. So I thought it would be the best recommendation for most people. Yeah, I wore these fly fishing down in South Carolina. I wore these traveling all the time. They're great travel shoe. Wear 'em around the neighborhood when I'm walking. I think hiking, if you wear them a lot hiking, I think these will probably wear out faster than something what I have further along and in my picks, like the vivo barefoot, which is more burly and rugged. So I think that's the only disclaimer I'd make is these might wear and tear quicker because they're mostly foam and super lightweight. But I think for most everyday use case, very comfortable. Barefoot shoe
Justin (16:33):
Also,
Colin (16:34):
They roll up into a little donut, which is so awesome. Alright, let's move on to Best for Exercising. Who's the winner here?
Erica (16:39):
Yeah, I loved the Zero Shoes Brand Zero Shoes is a brand, a nexus knit is the style of shoe. They are very similar to a fly knit material Nike makes. If you've ever had one of their fly knit shoes, it feels like you're slipping on a sock kind of onto your foot. But they've got a really nice flat base. Similar to what you were saying about the New Balance. Was it Maximus Shoe?
Colin (17:05):
The minimus? Yeah,
Erica (17:06):
Minimus. Not Maximus. We're going minimal here. Are
Colin (17:08):
We talking about the Transformers,
Erica (17:10):
Right? No, they are really comfortable and you feel very connected to the ground and these shoes, which I think lends itself well to lifting weights or doing lunges, squats at the gym. So they're only 9.2 ounces. They're super breathable and flexible, which I love. I do wear them with socks. And I feel like the stretchiness of the shoe was good for a gym experience because most, I hope most folks that were socks when they go to the gym, that sounds sweaty and nasty if you don't. But yeah, really great gym shoe. They look like an exercise shoe, a tennis shoe, but they fit a lot more lighter on your foot, have kind of a wider base and a wider toe box than a normal gym shoe does.
Justin (18:00):
I mean nine ounces, I feel like there's no way that would last longer than six months. I mean, I have socks that weigh more than nine ounces. That just doesn't seem possible.
Erica (18:11):
I mean, yeah, I work out twice a week at least. I wear them only in the gym. I walk to the gym and them from my neighborhood, which is like a 12 minute walk each way. So they haven't really worn much, honestly. The stitching has not come apart. It's all one knit together. There's not seams on this shoe, so they're not tearing at any seams. You can see the stitching and where the laces are. They have it reinforced with a little bit of, I don't know if it's plastic, but something that's a little more durable than that natural fiber. So yeah, they're great if you warm 'em outside a lot. Like I said, with the lems, maybe you'll see some wear and tear if you're running on concrete or something, constantly wearing through. But I haven't seen anything with them.
Colin (18:58):
Alright, let's move into Best Boots. I'm excited about this. We have boot aficionado. Justin has been on the call here. I want to hear about, that's what we do. So let's hear about what one best boot, minimal boot.
Erica (19:09):
Oh man, yes. These are my absolute favorite shoes ever. These could have taken the top spot because I wear 'em all the time. But I think again, for the everyday user, the lems are probably more approachable for the day. But if you're very into hiking, very into rugged adventure and want a minimal shoe, you can wear pretty much anywhere. The vivo barefoot are my top pick. These are their boot shoe style. I would say it fits more like a shoe tennis shoe versus like a hiking boot. But I like that they're high top. You have a lot of ankle protection in these. They're very stretchy. They've got a similar knitted ankle feature, like the knit material for the ankle, but they're reinforced on the side for abrasion. They've got a higher sole that wraps around the bottom of the foot and really beefy lugs on the bottom.
(20:02):
So I've taken these really a lot of places in my travels over the last two years. I took them to Banff National Park in the middle of winter and I was hiking up Lake Louise hikes there and really icy snowy environment. And they were maybe didn't keep my feet as warm as other boots, but they were really stuck to the ground of the lugs. And then I took these also to Morocco, totally different environment, but I biked in them and everyone was a bit jealous. Everyone said they look kind of like biking shoes, but everyone else was wearing Clipless shoes that you're stuck to the pedal of your bike. And I was able just to hop off and hike a bike with them in the rugged terrain. And you can see in the solo shot that I took of them where I'm, they're in the grass and they look a bit dirty and then I have a picture of me spraying them with the hose. But you can just really get them dirty, soak them, clean them, and they didn't even rip or tear. And I've worn them kind of all over the world. So love these shoes.
Colin (21:04):
Well, so that takes us the best lightweight, which I imagine must've been a tough category given that all of these shoes are pretty lightweight. So what one best lightweight?
Erica (21:12):
Yeah, the Zero Z Trail EV sandals are so lightweight. I mean, they're 5.4 ounces, which doesn't sound much lighter than the one we were talking about, nine ounces. I forget which one those were earlier. But basically these feel thin like a piece of paper when you're holding 'em in your hand and you put 'em on and it's almost like you can't even feel that you have a shoe or a sandal on your foot. But the thing I love about these shoes is that you can walk over rocks, walk at the campground, go on a light hike. You can literally feel every stick in stone under your foot, but it doesn't hurt. I think you have to be careful with that because if you're going long distance and you do that repeatedly without your foot being used to feeling large objects under your foot, it will cause some damage. But I strapped these onto my backpack when I hiked a section of the at this summer. And those are the perfect camp shoe, which I also wrote another story recently for Backpacker Magazine on camp shoes and why they're important to have when you backpack. But yeah, I think in terms of having a super lightweight option when you're camping or if you love that feeling of feeling what's underneath your feet but don't want to have any injuries from it, these are perfect for that.
Justin (22:30):
They look perfect. They seem like the perfect sandal to bring. Exactly. And how you described, just throw 'em onto a backpack because they mean they obviously weigh nothing. I actually see a lot of these. I see probably more of these than my beloved bedrocks around town. That's a crime. I know, but I bet they're awesome and I would very much like to try some, even though bedrocks are probably more comfortable, I would guess. I don't know. I'd be curious.
Erica (22:58):
I feel like these have to be lighter weight than a bedrock sandal.
Justin (23:00):
They have to be. I couldn't tell you what a bedrock sandal is, but I mean the Virum soles in the bedrocks are pretty burly. I mean, that would be the one thing that it has going over these. The bedrocks probably last a lot longer, although a lot of the zeros I see look old as hell. Maybe they're not. Maybe they're only a month old. I don't know.
Colin (23:14):
Well, it sounds like most of these, or at least a couple of 'em have made it in their way into your everyday kit. But before we talk about how you use these shoes, it's really time guys. It's time for the second sip. Today's second sips brought to you by Pacific Adventure Works Haven. We already did
Justin (23:27):
It, man. I already had a second sip.
Colin (23:29):
It's your third sip. But the second during the one you had that was presented by Pacific
Justin (23:35):
Well, who's this one presented by them? This?
Colin (23:37):
This one's just
Justin (23:37):
Yours.
Colin (23:40):
So second tip. Cheers everybody. How's your beer doing? Mine's great.
Justin (23:43):
It's really good. What's interesting about this beer, and I've never really thought about it before, but for just a, it's not like it's cheap, but for just a run of the mill, I'm just going to grab this logger and not think about it. There's a nice hop quality to this longboard lager. There's a little bit of a pine just like, Hey, I'm in here. Don't forget about me, by the way. I looked it up. They just made in Colorado. But again, you're not going to make all this beer in Hawaii where things cost a fortune and then ship it across all
Colin (24:13):
Over. Did it at least start in Hawaii? I mean,
Justin (24:15):
Well, yeah, it has to have. I hope to look that up because don't want to. It doesn't matter though. Hawaii is, I mean, Hawaii is wonderful, but paradise is really a state of mind, isn't it?
Colin (24:26):
We did find out that Kona bikes were founded and based in Washington, so it wouldn't be that weird, I guess for a Kona Brewing to be founded based in Colorado.
Justin (24:34):
I'm sure it wasn't founded in Colorado. I'm sure it's from Kona, Hawaii.
Colin (24:40):
Sleeping in your car truck is all the rage with outdoorsy folks these days. But let's face it, there are decisions that have to be made. Do you want to buy a van to crash in too expensive? Do you want to build a platform in the back of your truck too big and heavy to move? Do you want to sleep on a backpacking pad in your Subaru? Come on now. What the hell are we doing? Enter the Hideaway platform from Pacific Adventure Works, the first adjustable sleeping platform, perfect for wherever you want to put it. Put it in your SUV. Yep. Better than a cot. The back of your hatchback hell. And the legs are telescoping, so you'll sleep flat every night. How about the back of your truck? Not only will it fit, but you can store your gear underneath and easily remove the platform, roll it up and stow it when you're not using it.
(25:22):
And the best part, these things are modular and can always be fitted to accommodate whatever vehicle you drive in the future. Save yourself the headaches and sleep better at camp tonight with the Hideaway platform from Pacific AdventureWorks. Head to pacific adventureworks.com to get yours today. Alright, let's get back into the gear. So I guess thinking about them all now, you've tried out a bunch of other ones, which we didn't even mention. It's in the review. I'll link the review in the show notes so people can check it out. But if you had the name sort of one barefoot shoe two rule them all, what's your shoe?
Erica (25:51):
Despite what my story says, I do think Vivo barefoot really has a Hold on. What a rugged outdoor shoe. All of us and probably all of our listeners would want to be wearing. I think it's really hard to pick. I probably would go the boot that I have in my story because it's just I love a high top and I wore it so often.
Colin (26:20):
She She's bringing it into the, there it is.
Erica (26:22):
Yeah.
Colin (26:22):
It's like a celebrity
Erica (26:23):
Smile. I hope not.
Colin (26:25):
We can't tell.
Erica (26:25):
But yeah. But I would say they make so many models of their shoe too. They have low tops, they have ones that don't have laces and they have a pole strap to make 'em tighter. I think folks run in them, they have more lifestyle shoes. So I think they've unlocked what a true barefoot shoe should feel like. Yeah, on my story you'll see that they're labeled WRSG and it's like what does that mean? And it means a water resistant for soft ground. And so they also, they make hard ground versions of their shoe that I think do better on if you were probably running on concrete or walking in them a lot on normal ground. But their soft ground are more for trail and getting off the beaten path. I think a little bit more and water resistant. They're definitely not waterproof. I don't think any of their shoes are truly waterproof, but especially if you treat them with water resistant spray and earlier when you have them early on and when you buy them, they do bead the water beads off of them unless you're totally stomping around in a puddle. But yeah, they're great.
Justin (27:35):
So you can just buy sheets of outsole material from brm. You could go ahead and just buy yourself some of that. Trace your foot out and just staple some shoe laces to it. Bam.
Colin (27:51):
Well that's what the
Justin (27:52):
Ari use tires take the old tires. Brilliant. I have so many old bicycle tires. Why am I paying for shoes? I got duct tape and I have old
Colin (28:00):
Tires. Have narrow feet if you're going to use bicycle tires.
Justin (28:02):
Good point. No, these are pretty burly. I got some three inches. I can say
Colin (28:05):
Fat tire. Fat tire
Justin (28:06):
Would work. That's what I mean. I got some three inch casings lying around.
Erica (28:11):
I just had this core memory from my outdoor retailer experience where there was this brand. Do you all remember it was like a sock brand and they had rubber on the bottom of the sock.
Colin (28:21):
Of
Justin (28:21):
Course. Exactly. Do you remember what it was called? I kind of feel like I've seen this sort of sock before. I know those
Colin (28:27):
Hospital socks, right? With a little bit of grip on.
Justin (28:29):
Well kid socks often have that. I've seen socks that are just straight up. You know what, yeah, I've seen socks that straight up have an outsole. You know what, we're a shoe now. That's what we are.
Erica (28:38):
They're called, what are these called? They're called Skinners Skinners Comfort
Justin (28:42):
Socks. I remember Skinners. I do remember that.
Erica (28:45):
Yeah. That's hilarious. So no, I just totally forgot about those. But go on the web. Yeah, guys lifting in socks. Just wearing socks at the gym.
Justin (28:54):
I've seen that. That's hilarious. Now that's the ultimate minimalist shoe is the side.
Erica (28:58):
Yeah. Maybe we'll have to review those next. There you
Justin (29:00):
Go. I think so. Who needs an outsole? Just give me three millimeters of wool. I'm good.
Colin (29:05):
We'll send two of us into a gym. One with Skinners on the other, one with five fingers on. We'll see who gets the weirdest looks. Well let's wrap it up with the final sip guys. When can get our final gear and beer impressions? Cheers everybody. Final sip. I mean it's not the final sip, but it will be. It's the final sip for the show.
Justin (29:20):
Still good. Still enjoying it. And what would make it nicer is just some nice minimalist sandals
Erica (29:27):
And a sunset at Hawaii.
Justin (29:30):
I'm really,
Colin (29:31):
Really, Justin. What's your final thoughts on the barefoot shoe movement we talked about today? You going to try those zero boots? Are you going to give 'em a go?
Justin (29:38):
No, I'm not because of the reason that I like regular boots. We've talked about it before. I don't want to fuel every pebble. I 100% understand the philosophy behind it and I think it's pretty cool. But if I'm going to wear minimalist, I want minimalist. I mean, I've talked about this before. I like bedrocks and I like my boots. I would happily try out those zeros and I love, or the sandals
Colin (30:01):
Anyway,
Justin (30:02):
Those I'd go for a full hike or the lunar running sandals. I would love to try those and see what they're like. But I'm not really interested in anything in between. Gotcha. At least I mean around town. Sure, why not? I mean, I'm wearing my mountain clogs right now from Bedrock and it's like they're obviously not that light or minimalist, but that's fine. But yeah, I'm not that interested in a boot that's a minimalist. I'd rather just have an actual boot
Colin (30:22):
Since the test has ended. Erica, how have you continued to use some of these products? Or do you continue to use some of these products?
Erica (30:29):
Yeah, I mean, like I said, I wear my Magna like vivo barefoot shoe pretty much all the time. If I'm going out for an adventure. My sandals, they've been a great summer. It's been so hot and humid in the Chicago and it just feels like I have nothing on my feet when I wear those Sierra sandals. So mostly in life, I'm like a type one fun. I just like to chill and outside and I feel like the barefoot lifestyle lens to that.
Colin (30:58):
I love that. Good for you. Let's defend type one. Fun. Alright, well we can wrap it up there. Gear and beer. It's a production of rock Fight LLC for Justin Hausman. I'm Kyle True. No producer today. Dave's under the weather producer. Dave's under the weather and probably he would've messed it up and not gotten some Kona Brewery, so it's a good thing he wasn't here. But big thanks to our guest, Eric Zo, for coming on second time. Hope to have you on again in the future real soon. And here to take us out. It's the voice of the Rock Flight Podcast Network Krista makes. He's going to perform the gear and beer theme song just for you. We'll see you next time.
Chris DeMakes (31:39):
We have experienced lots of tails to tell, just like pal out on the We Outdoor adventure gear there with the perfect beer. Now let the games begin. So glad that you're here at the break, the trailhead, we're going to crack the by beverage where we can celebrate those losses. We so close line.
Comentarios