Vibram Five Fingers – First Look

UPDATE: The newest review after I sorted out all my Vibram Five Finger issues (I got a pair of KSO’s and put the customer service issues I talk about below behind me)
is right here: Vibram Five Finger Real-World Review. I test my KSO’s everywhere!

Update: I was seriously taken aback by my first conversation with their customer service rep who wasn’t very helpful (at all). Today, I got a call from Darryl (x212) and he was really great. He’s working with me to get my new size shipped out as soon as possible.

Vibram Five Fingers "Sprint"

In my quest to eliminate my knee pain and improve my running form, I decided to buy & try a pair of Vibram Five Finger “shoes”. Any quick look will tell you that these aren’t your traditional running shoes, but after reading their site I felt compelled to give them a try: (from vibramfivefingers.com)

“The benefits of running barefoot have long been supported by scientific research, coaches, and athletes who’ve offered ample evidence that training without shoes allows you to run faster and further with fewer injuries.

No footwear comes closer to recreating the experience and natural sensation of running barefoot than Vibram® FiveFingers. It delivers all the health and performance benefits of barefoot running—with less the risk of injury.”

So; I plunked down my $80 to give them a try (actually, I input my credit card into their site, but “plunked down” sounds more impressive) and waited anxiously 7 days for them to arrive. I wasn’t the only one excited to get ‘em, my running partner (@jasoncwarner) ordered a pair as well so we can both train in them. He was bummed that they didn’t get to AZ before he left on a trip to Denver. Yes, he went to Newton Running HQ, and no, I don’t want to talk about it.

I was excited to see the box on my porch today, and practically had the box open and my shoes off before I made it into the house.
First thought: “Wow, these look cool”… quickly followed by “wow, these are a lot redder than they looked online; they seemed a little more orange.”
My wife’s first words: “Ooh, I like the color, these look comfy. They don’t look nearly as goofy in person. Can I try one on?”

These weren’t the first pair of shoes I’ve purchased that have instructions, and the first fitting was really pretty easy. I was already looking forward to wearing these to work tomorrow and then sprinting the soccer fields at lunch for training. I snugged them up to each toe and got the fit all set and took a few steps on the carpet.
“Ouch.” My little toe on both feet are absolutely crushed. One thing that can be said about shoes that hug each toe; when they are too tight there’s no wiggle room. A few steps later I had to take them off; as I stepped on the ball of my foot my toes couldn’t even spread without crushing the tips. I cut my toenails last night in preparation, so those couldn’t be any shorter — it seemed I just bought the wrong size. Frustrated, I go back and measure my size exactly like it says on the site.

Maybe I needed to really squish my toes down to get the right length. initially, I measured them at 10″. If I squish ‘em flat, I can get my longest toe just under 10 1/4″. So if my longest toe is 10″, that’s a size 40. At 10 1/4″ I’ve got to swap mine out for a size 41.

Argh; I was really looking forward to using these ASAP.

So, here’s the test: How good is their return department? I’ve had some great experiences with other shoe companies (Newton cross-shipped a new pair of shoes twice! At one point, there were (3) pair to try on and get the best fit before (2) got sent back). So, the ball’s in Vibram’s court. I’ll keep you posted!