Trail Freak II WP
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Reddit Reviews
I use Vivo Barefoots with the extra tread on the soles. Works really well for me.
My vivo trail freaks lasted 1100km 😨. The new pairs are shiet after 200km. Can not a simgle company make a durable shoe anyone, no one cares about reusing plastic or shit adheasive that is good for the enviroment, but fails in 6 months. My New balance minimus 10v1s from 2006 are better then every single shoe i've tried, they're bomb proof.
I got some Vivo Barefoot trail shoes and I've been loving them. If you're not used to wearing minimalist shoes then it won't be fun at first, but they do help strengthen foot muscles that don't get used with normal shoes.
5 fingers are good but bear in mind they have no stubtoe protection, so a stray rock in the path can really mess up your day (ask me how I know). I’d favor a shoe with a toe box, like vivos.
Vivos are amazing, I have the trail and training shoes and they’ve both held up well to disc. Before I went to Vivos I was using New Balance barefoot trail shoes and they struggled to last more than a season or two. The fit and grip was excellent though.
So glad it’s not just me! The only shoe I’ve found are Vivo barefoot shoes but you can’t run any distance in them sadly.
I tried vivo and found they were a really poor fit. Unfortunately, we have to either get expensive custom shoes or settle for compromises.
I wear minimalist/barefoot/zero drop shoes day to day. I also hiked 1300 miles of PCT including all of JMT (well, the large part that overlaps) wearing a mix of Altras and Topos. I much prefer the Topos as simply much more durable and a bit more supportive, well worth the small weight penalty. Currently rocking the Traverse model. The year after my big hike, I attempted to hike a pretty tough 120-mile section "off the couch" using Vivo barefoot shoes instead of tried-and-true Topos. It was a total disaster. By mile 13, the soles of my feet were two giant blister cushions. I hobbled out the next day nearly crying from pain and hitched home, utterly defeated. Turns out padding and isolation from scorching hot jagged/sloped black basalt surfaces is important. So yeah, as u/_m2thet says, barefoot is good for maintenance of foot strength and gentle tread in normal, less demanding life conditions. Then when you put your feet to a hard test, you still want all the protection you can get.
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