Fad

Is Barefoot Running a Fad?

The following discussion appears at the opening of Chapter 10, "Is Barefoot Running a Fad? Or is it the new direction of running?" in "Barefoot Running Step by Step"

I do think it's a fad. In fact, I don't think it exists; No one in my universe in Eastern Pennsylvania runs barefoot. In terms of minimalist shoes and Vibrams - Yes, possibly a tectonic shift there. But in terms of running without shoes, I don't see it. - Amby Burfoot, longtime editor of Runner's World Magazine, winner of the 1968 Boston Marathon, and Frequent writer about barefoot running

To me, running shoes are the fad. In our lifetime, they are the new thing, and unfortunately, they are being tested, not by rats, but by real people - who are being injured. As for Eastern Pennsylvania, where I gave a workshop in Lancaster on June 4, 2010, I didn't see Amby there. Still, I wouldn't go so far as to say, "Amby Burfoot doesn't exist." - Barefoot Ken Bob

Before "Born to Run" came out, I figured maybe 1 percent of the running population would be going barefoot. Everyone would still be hung up on, "Aren't you afriad of stepping on glass?" Now, I wouldn't be surprised someday to see 50 percent of runnners going barefoot or in minimalist shoes - Barefoot Julian

If barefoot running is a fad, then it's a 2 million-year-old fad. From the perspective of evolutionary biology, I can assure you that running in cushioned high-heeled, motion control shoes is the real fad. -Daniel Lieberman, Ph.D. Professor of Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University.

There's a lot more talk about barefooting than people actually doing it. I call it a passing fad. It'll fade. In five years, they'll be saying, "Remember those crazy barefooters?" Same thing for Vibrams. -Kevin "The Angry Podiatrist" Kirby

Lotta Looky-Loos right now. But barefoot running is here to stay as a tool. It's a long process and requires a change to a new mind-set - from a shoe runner's P.R.s and milage to a barefooter's "How uch fun are you having and how little have you been injured?" Real runners are interested. A hardcore will stick with it. -Fred Van Patten, Massillon, Ohio, Barefoot Runner

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