Minimalist Runner - Barefoot, Sandals, Shoes - Since 2007

Minimalist Runner Google Group
Since 2007

This group seeks to dispel the myth that you need an overly supportive, cushioned, orthopedic shoe-boot in order to push the limits of human potential in running and exploring the world.

We welcome discussions on topics brought up in Christopher McDougall's best-selling book "Born to Run". Since 2007 with over 3000 members.

Click here to learn more.

Luna Sandals: the next generation of my huarache company | LESS > MORE

Running in the latest model of Luna Sandals - (*yes, these are the sandals I have been making since 2006...only getting a little better each generation).

It took a while before I really warmed up to wearing my sandals again.  Mostly because barefoot is by far the simplest and freest way to run and move, the most sustainable, the most enjoyable...especially in ideal barefooting situations of temperature and terrain.



The second reason I had not been wearing them as much is because I never found a tying system that I really loved.  Many of the traditional tying methods take too much time...so on and off can be a chore.  I needed a fail-safe slip-on method of tying.  Many over at the Minimalist Runner Google Group had been sharing various tying methods, but none perfectly satisfied...until now.

Maybe you like me have found that here are many situations where a simple slip-on sandal is nice to have.  Luna Sandals are now able to play this role...and look great at the same time.

Indeed, Luna Sandals are about to move into a new phase of production.  I am working with the idea that a sandal company can grow and thrive in the Pacific Northwest.  No overseas materials or labor required.  I am able to personally oversee every aspect of the creation of the sandals: the materials, the designs, the workspaces...all shall be as friendly as possible to both earth and primate alike.

Stay tuned for some exciting news about the next generation of Luna Sandals.

Barefoot Ted aka El Mono

Now accepting Pre-Orders of the Production Model >>> click here
(Starts shipping July 1st., 2010)

(Pictured above: My well-worn 6mm Vibram® sole with hemp laces) 

Google Talk on "Born to Run" and Barefoot Running

Had the pleasure of giving a Google Talk recently and would like to share the video with you.  When I look back on videos of me talking, the sentence below always comes to mind...Christopher's description of me in Born to Run:

"Barefoot Ted talked the way Charlie Parker played the sax: he’d pick up on any cue and cut loose with a truly astonishing torrent of improvisation, seeming to breathe in through his nose while maintaining an endless flow of sound out of his mouth."

In the end, I truly love telling the story of my barefoot journey, primarily because I think that it is a journey worth taking for any sophisticated, 21st century, highly evolved primate with human ancestors.  Done well, running makes us happy and fit...and if done thoughtfully and presently, running reconnects us both to one of our greatest fundamental physical capacities and to the earth.  We are ultimately rewarded with joy.

I say don't obsess about distance and speed...rather seek out that sweet spot of joy in running and let that be your guide.  In the end, joy is a great teacher...of both your mind and body.

BFT

Copper Canyon Ultra Marathon 2010

Copper Canyon Ultra Marathon CUMM 2007 (the second year for me)

Tomorrow, March 7, 2010, will be the start of the running of the 2010 Copper Canyon Ultra Marathon.  I ask all of you to send good energy to all the participants this year. 

To have been blessed to be part of this event has been life changing.  To have gotten a chance to come to know and love the Raramuri people and all the friends of the Tarahumara has been a true honor...a major blessing for me, adding richness and insight to my life in doses so large that it continuously boggles my mind and leaves me with a deep sense of gratitude and thankfulness.

Indeed the Raramuri culture of korima is something that touches all of us with its simple beauty and trust in the human-divine spirit of sharing and mutual love.  Let that spirit live on in all of us as we recognize it in our own lives and in our own circles of friends, family and colleagues...and other co-inhabitants on this incredible planet.

Someday, you too may be blessed to run in the Canyons, to meet Caballo Blanco and touch fingertips with Arnulfo or some of the other local legends.  In the meantime, you can always try and book a trek in the canyons with the ole' Caballo himself (see: www.caballoblanco.com) or support the Norwas de Raramuri - Friends of the Running People - non-profit founded by Caballo (see: www.norawas.org).

May the Raramuri continue to run free and strong...and you too.

BFT

PS.  The photo montage above I made in 2007 shortly after returning from my second year of participating, the year after McDougall came down, the year following the year covered in the book "Born to Run".  It is an amazing tribute to the beauty of the experience.

Radio Interview about Barefoot Running with Barefoot Ted

Please enjoy listening to this radio interview with me and Cody Stoots of 1560 AM The Game, a sports radio station in the glorious city of Houston, Texas, where my grandfather graduated from high school with Walter Cronkite in the 1930s.

In this interview, you will learn about how I came to start running barefoot, how I found Vibram Fivefingers and how Christopher McDougall's book "Born to Run" has helped facilitate a paradigm shift in the running world...suggesting we are not broken by design.

Duration: 30 minutes


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PS. Cody it was great talking with you today! However, I must protest the description of me as "the Michael Jordon of barefoot running"...as flattering as it sounds. I feel more like the little kid who pointed out that the king has no clothes in the classic tale.

Minimalist Runner - Barefoot, Huaraches, FiveFingers...

Howdy Folks

You may have found your way to my blog after reading "Born to Run" by Christopher McDougall. If so, welcome.

Many of you are probably looking for answers to the question how to run barefoot or with Vibram Fivefingers or with huarache sandals. You can learn from my experiences over the last 5 years recorded in this blog or participate in one of my coaching seminars.

However, to be up-to-date and part of a larger and growing community of footwear minimalists and barefoot explorers I suggest you check out the Minimalist Runner Google Group I started a couple years ago. You will find many like minded folks who are sharing their insights from a growing body of research and personal experience.

The mission of the Minimalist Runner Google Group is to share experiences running with minimalistic footwear, footwear that allows the foot to feel and to develop strength naturally, barefoot being the gold standard.

This group seeks to dispel the myth that you need an overly supportive, cushioned, orthopedic shoe-boot in order to push the limits of human potential in running and exploring the world. As a matter of fact, many in the group like me suggest that not only do you not need them, you are better off without them.


Please feel free to join and share YOUR experiences and YOUR adventures, big or small.

BFT

PS. The photo above ALMOST became the cover of "Born to Run" but I did not have a high enough resolution photo of it...a kind of self-portrait taken in the Verdugo Mountains near Burbank.


PSS.  Learn more about making or buying your own huarache sandals at Luna Sandals www.lunasandals.com

Born to Run by Christopher McDougall

As far as I know, this is the first ever public review of the book.

This is a masterpiece. A work on running that will define running for a new generation of runners.

Christopher McDougall asks a simple question: Why does my foot hurt?

His answer spans the centuries and brings us to the cutting edge of running revelations that are as old as our genes.

Our generation of runners have seen it all. Many today thinking that to run is dangerous and that the foot is a death-trap injury appendage waiting to happen. Makes sense, for many runners running today have never known of any other way to run than with big, overly cushioned orthotic boots...cuz our feet are no good and need lots of help, right?

Christopher tells a great tale using an obscure race and race director, a tribe of beautiful people and a rag tag group of ultra runners to weave a story that brings us to a place where rediscovery of our primal connection to running...free of marketing and big bucks and bad science...leads us to new possibilities and a change of thinking that is applicable to any human being wishing to locomote herself on two legs.

This book is at-one-and-the-same-time an adventure tale of impossible possibilities and a cutting edge running research journal entry.

Take a wild trip and read this book. You're gonna love it.

BFT

PS. The book I am reading is an uncorrected proof. Actual book to be published on May 7, 2009.

PSS. Did I mention I am one of the most garrulous characters in the book? Buyer beware.

PSSS. For the latest information about the race, i.e., the Copper Canyon Ultra Marathon, be sure to check out Caballo Blanco's website here: www.caballoblanco.com you can read this year's race report here.

Link below takes you to Amazon.com to preorder ORDER:

Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Super Athletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen

Link below to audio book preorder ORDER:

Born to Run AUDIOBOOK

Original cover photo by Luis Escobar...Billy with Caballo seated

>>>SPECIAL OFFER: order a signed copy of "Born to Run" with McDougall's signature and my footprint. Limited supply! (click here)

NOTE: The official fan site for the book is located at www.borntorun.org

Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Super Athletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen

....
Now available Born to Run T-shirts