An Evening Run in my New Balance Minimus

I need new running shoes (road & trail), but I’ve been putting off the purchase because I can’t afford them.  All the while, I’ve been switching back and forth between running shoes that I own to try and extend their lives.  But then a friend told me about a Nordstrom’s sale where he recently bought a pair of New Balance Minimus Trail running shoes.  The Minimus shoe is for the mid-foot striker (me).  I can’t fore-foot strike because of a history of toe problems.  And I just plain ole don’t buy into the heel-strike idea (nothing against heel-strikers!!)  Actually, podiatrist’s love heel-strikers.  My last podiatrist (I don’t see podiatrists anymore – they just want to cut up my feet more), bulged his eyes when I said that I didn’t heel-strike.  “You mean you don’t come down on your heel at all?!!!” 

“Well, ya, a little bit,” I lied.  (I thought I was fibbing, but there is slight wearing on the heels of my shoes, so my heel does touch, it just doesn’t touch first).  ANYWAY, I’ve been wanting to try these minimalist shoes for a long time.  It took me just a couple hours after reading my friend’s post, and a phone call to Nordstrom’s to decide to make the purchase.  They were a third cheaper than I could find them anywhere on the internet.  Only thing was, Nordstrom's had to special order my size.  Shipping was free since I ordered in the store.  And so, wait I did.

After a long day, I didn’t much want to attend the run that I posted on my trail running group site.  I posted it for the evening hoping to get people to join who work during the day.  And I’ve heard from some of the members that they’d like runs with lower mileage.  Even though I received no RSVP’s, I knew I had to show up, just in case.  And then, MY NEW SHOES ARRIVED IN THE MAIL. 

As soon as I tried them on, I knew they were different.  They are extremely comfortable.  Unbelievably comfortable.  Like they were meant to be on my feet.  They felt sort of like slippers, like ballet soft-toe slippers (which I wore for many years during my youth).  Though they are so comfortable, I still doubted, because they just seem so thin, fragile sort of, like the trail would tear them up. 

This is what I have to say about the Minimus:  They HUGGED the terrain.  I ran faster, especially down hill.  It seemed like my feet were actually PART OF THE TRAIL.  They were absolutely amazing, almost gripping the earth.

New Balance Minimus Trail Shoes  

Posing on Wood Creek Trail (Overlooking Wood Canyon)

Wood Canyon in the evening (something I never see – because I’m a morning runner )

I ran in such a delightful state that I didn’t realize when I dropped my phone.  I just noticed sometime toward the end of Wood Creek Trail, my front pocket was unzipped – no phone!!  I turned around and ran back.  Then at the end of Wood Creek, I decided, “Hell!  I want to run onward!  I don’t want to search for a phone!”  I saw 2 bikers and asked if they see a blue phone could they please push it to the side of the trail.  They said they’d do better and put it on the bench at the end of Wood Canyon

I felt there was no hope.  And I said to myself – I’m sick of that phone anyway.  I did a little mourning over the contacts that I would have to re-enter when I eventually got a new “freebie” phone,  and ran on.  (Last time I dropped my phone during a run, someone who found it bought over a hundred dollars worth of videos and games!  So, I knew, first thing, I’d have to do back home was report that phone lost.)

I don’t want to fill anymore of this blog with negativity, just as I didn’t want to fill my run with any negativity.  As you might have guessed, no runners responded to the post, therefore I ran solo, which is fine.  And I didn’t see any other runners on the trail.  But I saw lots of mountain bikers.  And the canyon was a whole new world to me in the evening in colors and sounds.

Sycamore stands out front of a symphony of crickets and frogs with a couple bullfrogs added in for syncopation

An enchanted evening on Wood Creek Trail

Entrance to where the fairies flutter about on Coyote Run Trail

Crossing Wood Creek to head back on Wood Canyon Trail

A couple more notes to this evening’s run:

1)  My toe problems emerged quicker in these shoes (that is the pain), even though I was doing a mid-foot strike.  I stopped at one point to remove my orthotics, and that made the pain worse.  And so after about a mile, I put them back in.    I’m not giving up on them yet though (the shoes that is).

2)  Those guys on the mountain bikes found my phone!  Not only did they place it where they said they would, they phoned my home and told my husband where it was.

3)  After that, another, larger group of mountain bikers came upon the phone, they too phoned my home and told my husband they found my phone.  When I finally located the phone, in utter, yet happy, disbelief, I phoned home to say I’d be a little late (because of the earlier phone searching).  Hubby knew before I even told him.  He said laughing “So you found it!”

I guess I’m NEVER going to get rid of that damn phone.  Maybe next time, I’ll ACCIDENTALLY drop it in the creek. LOL.

Miles logged:  5.46 (8.79km)