Check out these bad boys...

I thought these were a spoof when I first saw the image, but it appears they're a genuine product and the pair in the picture is trail shoe!?

The technology

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Way back in April last year, I found myself in Orlando, Florida for work and I took the time out one day to travel to the edge of town to go pick up a pair of Vibram Five Finger Bikilas (and a pair of Merrell Trail Gloves). They cost me about $140, which at the time worked out to about £88.

I recently purchased a pair of Vibram Five Finger Seeyas

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The posty came to see me again today to drop off my newest order...

Let me hear you all say "Ooooooo".

These will now be my primary road shoe, though I think I might rotate them with the Spyridons. Now I can finally retire my Vibram Five Finger Bikilas and my Merrell Trail Gloves, both of which you can see day through the soles. My colleague who sits next to me will also be pleased with this new arrival - the Bikilas are starting to rot they smell so bad at times

Look what the guy from the postroom just dropped off at my desk...

So those who were curious as to which option I went for when deliberating over my next pair of trail shoes, now you know.

I was browsing Wiggle the other day and happened across these rather attractive looking, from an aesthetic and spec perspective, minimalist running shoes from Inov-8...

These are the Inov-8 Bare-X 180

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This is quite interesting... Adidas appear to be taking a brave and bold step into the world of "barefoot shoes" (what a silly expression) with their own Vibram Five Finger-a-likees, the Adidas Adipure:

Photos from Gizmodo

As I see it, this is an interesting development. First, Adidas appears to be making a much bigger statement about the potential impact of minimalist shoes on their market than any of the other major brands have dared do - Nike Frees are NOT minimalist or "like barefoot". I don't care what Nike say. Secondly, Vibrams are currently suing Fila for patent infringement. Has Adidas licensed these patents from Vibram or are they going in guns blazing and hoping to dig themselves out when the pooh when it hits the fan?

I've already got 3 pairs of Vibram Five Fingers (VFF) and really enjoy running in them. I also quite like the look of these new Adidas Adipures and if the planned price is anything to go by, they'll be offering a good alternative to VFFs at a comparable price. The pictures and the Gizmodo review however concern me a bit: they seem to indicate a fair bit of cushioning so I'd like to try these on before coughing up my cash.

I've just received this newletter from Terra Plana in which they announced these rather strange looking "fully moulded performance sandals"...

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For a long time I've thought putting kids in shoes too much and too soon is wrong. I spent a lot of my childhood completely barefoot as it's the norm in South Africa. Looks like forcing your kids to wear shoes may have a long term impact on their health and development.

A great post in which Ian Griffiths smashes the 4 common myths used by almost every running shop and publication, including Runner's World, when it comes to selecting running shoes for a runner.

Whilst this isn't barefoot specific, it is running related and certainly worth a read.