#trailglove7 — Public Fediverse posts

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Yesterday during my walk I bought a new clam shell cap. It’s the type of cap that you can take off, fold and put in a pocket. The one I had before this one was used daily for years, and eventually became bleached by the sun and sweat. It went from dark grey to light grey. What I really appreciate is that aside from the colour fading it’s fine.

## Trail Glove 7

Today I noticed that my second pair of Trail Glove 7 are worn out. The base on the left foot is worn to the point of almost being punctured. The time has come to retire this second pair of shoes.

It’s interesting. The wear pattern on my two pairs of Trail Glove 7 is the same so my walking style hasn’t changed over the last few months. The left heel wears out faster than the right. The toes are also worn out. The centre of the shoe looks almost intact. So does the top of the shoe.

## Heel Pain

I know when it’s time to replace these shoes because they go from being comfortable to my heels hurting after long walks. It’s when the heel starts to heel that I know that it’s time to retire the old pair of shoes and replace them with new ones.

## Biggest Weakness

Their greatest weakness is that they are not waterproof so if it rains or you step in a puddle your feet will get wet. Although this is a weakness they dry very fast. I never worry about drying these shoes, if and when they get wet.

I worry about how thin they are, in case I walk in long grass and insects or snakes attack my feet. I have been stung when wearing sandals but haven’t come close to stepping on a snake. I have seen or two, but recently they have been dead, killed by cars

## Cost Calculation

Since participating in the On Running shoe Cyclon program I think of shoe pricing differently. On running rental shoes cost about 35 CHF per month, if you replace them every three or four months. I have worn my Trail glove 7 for at least three or four months so the cost is about 30-40CHF per month. I try to buy my trail glove 7 at the cheapest price.

As I wrote this blog post I bought a new pair of Trail Glove 7 monument shoes, like the ones I am using now, for 86 CHF rather than 104 CHF. For a brief time I had three pairs of trail glove 7 because I like them so much, but after wearing through two pairs I am now down to the last pair. That’s why I ordered a new pair. I like to have a backup pair, ready to go, for when I retire the active pair.

## And Finally

For years I have worn the [Eclipse cap](https://www.berg-freunde.ch/sunday-afternoons-eclipse-cap/), in rain, sun and heatwaves. It has worked well for me, and I like that it folds so easily into a pocket when I go indoors.

I moved to Trail Glove 7 shoes because I was tired of cheaper shoes wearing out on the heel before the sole of the shoes did and I didn’t like that the top of the shoe scraped at my toes when walking. I wear the Trail Glove shoes because I think they’re comfortable.

https://www.main-vision.com/richard/blog/sun-bleached-and-worn-out/

#hats #shoes #trailGlove7 #wear #worn

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Yesterday I tried an experiment which could have been a silly one. I tried to do the Lavaux hike from Puidoux to Vevey with Trail Glove 7 shoes. They are barefoot minimalist shoes so I could have regretted it. I didn’t but mainly because of the preparation before hand.

## The Preparation

I have worn through one pair of Trail Glove 7 shoes before switching to the pair that I am using now. In that time I have walked at least 800 kilometres with one pair and an unknown amount with the second pair. The second pair is starting to show signs of wear. I think the left heel is about to fail.

The key difference between barefoot shoes and normal shoes is that barefoot shoes do not offer much padding for the heel. Every time your heel hits the ground it hits with more force than it would with normal shoes.

With the Vapor Glove seven, trail glove 6 and meindl barefoot shoes I find that the padding is not enough for my normal walks so I wear them very little, especially when walking my usual walking routes.

## The Walk

Yesterday my shoes felt fine for almost the entire walk. They felt fine when going downhill and they felt fine when going uphill. They also felt fine in terms of temperature despite the snow. I think this is due to walking fast enough not to feel uncomfortable with the temperature.

It’s near the end of the walk that I could feel that my left heel was starting to hurt. It wasn’t excruciating pain. I was simply aware that my body was getting tired. You would expect this. It’s hundreds of meters of climbing and descending as well as a reasonable walking distance.

It’s 11.3km of walking with 447 meters of climbing and 636 meters of descending over three hours of moving time and three and a half hours overall.

## And Finally

The advantage of barefoot shoes, once you get used to walking with them is that they are light and malleable. You have a more direct contact with the ground. I tried them because I started to find cheap shoes uncomfortable, and wanted to try something new.

I knew that this walk would be on tarmac and concrete so I wasn’t worried about deep muddy puddles and more. I still had spare socks in case. I switched to these shoes because I was curious and stuck with them because I find them comfortable.

https://www.main-vision.com/richard/blog/can-you-with-trail-glove-7-around-lavaux/

#barefoot #hiking #lavaux #tarmac #trailGlove7 #trailglove

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This Autumn is different because I have worn running, shoes, normal shoes, and Trail Glove 7 in the rain. I was very happy with the Trail Glove 7 during the entirety of the heat wave. I had no issues with them but now that we’re moving into winter I feel the need for shoes with greater ground clearance for when I walk through puddles, or streams of water running down roads while the rain falls.

A few days ago I walked in a wet forest on a rainy day with the Trail Glove 7 and although I expected to feel that they were completely inappropriate I didn’t. I found that they felt comfortable when walking through scrub, on the stony path and when they were wet.

These shoes will not protect you from thorns and other spikes. The base of the foot is safe but the top of the shoe is made of soft fabric that could be pierced. Despite this I didn’t feel as uncomfortable as I would have expected. In fact, I felt comfortable. I just had to be slightly more careful than usual, about where the top of my shoes scraped.

Avoiding Deep Puddles

The one unpleasant bit was when I was walking through deep puddles. Once or twice I felt the water rush into my shoes and wet my feet. It’s unpleasant for 20 seconds or so, until the water in contact with my feet warms up, and then it’s comfortable again.

A big fuss is made about the need for shoes to be waterproof, and in the middle of winter it will be essential. but this Autumn I feel fine, so far.

For years I have walked with waterproof shoes so I am in the habit of walking through deep puddles and I often experiment with their failure point and think “oups” as I feel water trickle into the shoes. With normal shoes puddles have to be several centimetres deep for water to run into the shoe. With barefoot shoes they need to be a few millimetres deep.

Waterproof Shoes Collect Mud

Although waterproof shoes are great in the rain they have one disadvantage. Their tread is excellent at collecting mud so although I have two pairs of shoes that are waterproof one is worn out and should be recycled and the other collects mud too easily and I think it’s at the limit of giving me blisters.

If I could walk in the mud I would be less exposed to cars. If I was less exposed to walking by cars I would not have stopped walking two or three of my favourite routes. The most enjoyable walking period was during 2020, when, thanks to lock down, roads were almost empty of cars.

Waterproof Shoes Dry Slower If They Get Wet

The problem with waterproof shoes is that you need to help them dry, if the interior gets wet. With non-waterproof shoes, if they get wet, you wear them until you get home and by the time you take them off, after a short drive, they will be almost dry, and by the next morning they will be fully dry.

I have got three pairs of shoes wet in recent weeks and I haven’t had to worry about drying any of them.

And Finally

I was pleasantly surprised to find that these shoes felt fine walking through the woods on a rainy day. I didn’t worry about the soles of my feet at all. I found that walking through scrub wasn’t more uncomfortable than with normal shoes. When rain falls vertically onto my shoes I don’t mind. It’s when I have to walk to the side of a path rather than straight through a puddle that I see the limitations of my barefoot shoes. In theory I could spend over one hundred and 50 francs to get waterproof barefoot shoes, but I can get normal waterproof shoes for 35 CHF. I have hiking boots for when it’s snowy and I have comfortable shoes for when it’s dry. It’s for Autumn and winter rain that I need to be responsible enough to wear cheap waterproof shoes.

At this time of year, especially on rainy days, when you’re forced to walk in the grass by cars, it makes sense to wear waterproof shoes, to keep feet comfortable and dry. If walking paths existed between villages and towns, rather than walking along the road side, I wouldn’t need waterproof shoes.

I could wear hiking boots but if I wear those, and I drag mud into the apartment building, neighbours will complain. I wear inappropriate shoes for the weather, because if they get muddy I can clean them in seconds, because we live in the age of drivers, and drivers never encounter mud.

https://www.main-vision.com/richard/blog/trail-glove-7-in-autumn/

#autumn #barefoot #cold #merrel #puddles #rainy #trailGlove7