That's how I think the story will end. Shoes were made to protect our feet and they've lasted for a reason.
I go barefoot whenever I can, but that doesn't include uncontrolled environments.
Also, I wonder if the shop owner would have let him in just having shown the shoes and shirt... The signs usually say you have to have them, not that you have to -wear- them. ;)
I still bought them, convinced myself that I'd give them a decent try and at least wear them on the awful hot beach or something if they suck completely.
I love them. I only wear regular shoes now on rare occasions. The first two days were a constant source of laughter and I tried to walk on every type of ground (and - stuff) I could find. Childish? Hell yes, but fun!
Now they are comfortable like no pair of shoes that I owned before. While having no proof I do believe that I walk more straight with them and you relearn to roll your foot instead of stomping around.
If anyone wants to try this experiment and thinks about shoes like this: Don't give up after 5 minutes in the shop..
If Vibram ever makes a shiny black leather version, I won't have to wear anything else.
It feels good; your feet get accustomed to it pretty quickly. The OP mentioned his eyes were really needed to watch where his feet were going, but if he keeps up this habit this won't be the case near as much.
Small bits of broken glass or things like this will tear through most tender footed westerners, but just a few dozen miles over a few weeks barefoot will toughen up your feet very quickly so that gravel and tiny-sharp things won't bother you at all.
I just feel 'better' with barefeet. After the winter, and I can take my shoes off and rub them in the grass, after so little stimulation; it's nearly orgasmic.
Increased awareness with barefeet? Likely. Intelligence.. mm not so much.
Sure, he could have watched where he was going and made sure his soles were tough. I'd just rather minimize the chances of stepping on a sharp chunk of metal, or a syringe. I think I'm at my smartest when I'm not worrying about tetanus.
I'm a big fan of VFFS (vibram five finger shoes) and I can attest that you can feel terrain changes through vibrams, this also means that you will watch where you step to avoid the occasional large rock, etc which can be extremely uncomfortable.
Barefoot shoes provide much of the positives highlighted in this article while dramatically reducing your exposure to the perils of walking barefoot, I'd recommend the author give them another chance.
My feeling is that we cut of sensory inputs as a defensive mechanism, fewer sensor inputs, more cycles to focus on our thinking. And yet when we're 'not' thinking we don't necessarily un-block those inputs. One of the engineers at NetApp was well known for walking around in socks all the time. I always attributed it to his scottish ancestry and not wanting to put excess wear on a perfectly good pair of shoes, but perhaps he was ahead of his tims in this foot thing :-)
It's something to try every once in a while for a change of pace.
Is this a case of mind over body? When on vacation, going barefoot to the beach, the short blacktop pavement crossings make me feel like I am burning my feet.
