Last Sunday (May 6) was the third annual International Barefoot Running Day (IBRD), sponsored by the Barefoot Runners Society.

According to the official website, "IBRD is a grassroots, inclusive effort to promote barefoot running as a healthy and viable way to run. It’s also about having fun and delighting in the idea of running barefoot with thousands of people worldwide on the same day."

Bare feet make you smile! Notice Tom's awesome official IBRD T-shirt!

We got the following report from Erie’s original barefoot runner, Tom Madura, who invited Erie runners to join him (sans shoes) for a barefoot run at PISP on Sunday.

About the having fun part - mission accomplished.

This year Erie had five participants! Mike Lawrence joined me for an easy 3 barefoot miles. This was Mike's second IBRD run, having eagerly participated last year. Mike is a definite convert to barefoot running - he races mainly in minimal shoes but has been doing a lot of barefoot training for several years. It is apparently paying off, because Mike came in second place overall in this year's ERC Winter Series with a total 28K time of 1:57:44. Woo-hoo!

Also joining us for this year's IBRD were long-time ERC member Dale Werner, his godson Cody Martinez, and Cody's girlfriend Alexis Lyons. Dale walked a mile barefoot, and Cody and Alexis walked/ran a little over 3 miles. All were enthusiastic and enjoyed the benefits of barefoot running and walking on such a beautiful spring day. I hope Cody and Alexis will be up-and-coming barefoot runners and we'll see them at some future ERC events!

Congratulations and thanks to all the participants! Mark your calendars for next year - the first Saturday in May, 2014 for the Fourth Annual IBRD! Hopefully our group of barefoot runners will continue to grow!

Cody, Alexis, Mike, Tom, and Dale

Want to try out barefoot running? Check out this invitation from Erie’s original barefoot runner, Tom Madura

Okay, so here’s the thing.

I have spent most of the  winter nursing an ankle injury (NOT caused by running, in case you were wondering) and have just started running again after about three months, so I’m not up to anything major.

However, this Sunday is the Third Annual International Barefoot Running Day (IBRD), sponsored by the Barefoot Runners Society. And, I do plan on doing a slow 3 miles on Sunday to commemorate it.

Anyone who runs barefoot, or in minimal shoes, or just has an interest in trying barefoot running, is welcome to meet up with me Sunday morning.

I’ll be at Presque Isle at the first parking lot on the Bay side at 10:00 AM.

Come and run as little or as far as you like.

You can read about last year’s event, including three of us from Erie, here .

Hope I’ll see a few folks there!

— Tom

Worth checking out

* 14 Things Every New Runner Should Know

* Water stop rules

* Why you can’t lose weight (pretty solid stuff here)

* Pondering a switch to minimalist running? Some things to consider.

Just for fun

T-shirt of the Week

Available here for $25

Rae Heim

Talk about irony…Eighteen-year-old Rae Heim is running across the country barefoot to collect donations for Soles4Souls, a charity that provides footwear to those in need.

Rae stated in Boston on April 1st and she will finish in Huntington Beach, California, this week. When she finishes (as of last night, she had just 18 miles to go), she’ll be the youngest person to run across the country coast-to-coast.

Keep up with her (if you can) on her Tumblr page.

And here’s a great video about her journey that was made just after she started. In the video she talks about why she started running barefoot and why she decided to embark on this cross-country journey:

Props to Erie’s original barefoot runner Tom Madura for tipping me off to this running news item.

Less shoe for, um, less

Have you seen the prices on minimal shoes and wondered why they charge so much for less shoe? The granddaddy of minmal shoes, Vibram Five Fingers, start at $85. Seems the less a shoe weighs, the more it costs.

There are cheaper options, but you might wonder if they are sub-par. Wonder no more. Gnolls.org has done a roundup review of inexpensive minimal shoes.

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26 point achchoo!

Anyone who has ever done a marathon knows that your big accomplishment often comes with an free and unwanted gift — a cold. Find out why and how you can prevent it here.

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Warmer Planet = Slower Marathoners?

From Yahoo News:

This year saw one of the hottest marathons in Boston, with temperatures on April 16, 2012, soaring into the 80s — about 20 degrees Fahrenheit (11 degrees Celsius) higher than the normal high. Though that race day was unseasonably warm, temperatures in Boston have been rising at a relatively high rate over the past century.

How are these hot temps affecting race times? Read more here.

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Schwings ….for real?

Two questions for the makers of the “wings for your shoes”:

1. Why?

2. Have you never seen SNL?

BTW — in looking for that clip, I stumbled across this little gem: 25 Things You Didn’t Know About Mike Myers’ Classic Comedy.

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H2O on the run

In today’s world of ever-improving gear, there are lightweight, simple, hassle-free and non-cumbersome ways to carry your water. Here’s how.

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T-shirt of the Week

In honor of all of you doing the Erie Playhouse’s Zombie run on Saturday:

Available here for $14.

I received the following note from ERC’s barefoot runner,  Tom Madura:

Well, International Barefoot Running Day 2012 is history.

According to the organizers of IBRD, The Barefoot Runner’s Society, there were 40 officially registered events in 17 states and 11 other countries, as well as dozens of “unofficial” events.
For photos from one of this year’s largest gatherings, over 120 runners in Slovenia, click here: Slovenia IBRD 2012
They are still tallying the number of barefoot runners who participated wordwide, but it will certainly be in the high hundreds, hopefully over 1,000. Last year’s inaugural IBRD had over 400 participants report in.

I am pleased to report that Erie was represented in this year’s event!
Our unofficial event held Sunday at Preque Isle attracted only three runners, including myself, but it was a beautiful morning and we had a great run.

Joining me for the 5K run were Mike Lawrence and Dennis Albrewczynski.
Mike and Dennis both attended the barefoot running clinic held last year at Asbury Park.
Since then Mike has been doing a lot of his running shoeless. He credits incorporating barefoot training for his success in completing last year’s Erie Marathon. Not quite ready to race barefoot yet, Mike has definitely caught the “barefoot bug”.

Expect to see more of him and his feet at ERC races!

Dennis has dabbled with barefoot running but on Sunday he chose to run in his brand new New Balance super lightweight trail shoes. Having run a trail half-marathon on Saturday he didn’t feel his feet were up to a full-barefoot 5K.

Who could blame him?! It was great that he showed up to participate!

Maybe with Mike and Dennis’s help I’ll be able to convince more folks to join the barefoot ranks and look forward to next year’s International Barefoot Running Day!

Here’s a few photos that tell the story – A beautiful day and happy runners! (PS – A big thanks to my wife Cindy for shooting the terrific photos!)

From Erie’s barefoot runner, Tom Madura:

Just over a week to go ’til International Barefoot Running Day!
I hope you’re all out there ramping up your barefoot mileage!

I don’t put much faith in long-range weather forecasts, but
Accuweather says sunny and 74 for Sunday May 6th! Now that’s some good
barefoot running weather!

If you missed the details earlier:

•WHEN: May 6, 2012 9:00 AM
•WHERE: Presque Isle; Stull Nature Center (near Beach 1)
•HOW FAR: Fun runs of 1-mile and 5km
•WHY:
◦To bring awareness to barefoot and minimalist running
◦To show support for this sport we love
◦To have loads of fun in a worldwide moment of barefoot solidarity

Runners in minimalist footwear (Vibram Five-Fingers, etc) are
welcome, as well as those in normal running shoes willing to at least TRY SOME
AMOUNT of barefoot running.

This is strictly a non-competitive, non-timed event. I will provide water and snacks afterwards.
The main idea is to have fun!

Tom Madura

Planning to participate in International Barefoot Running Day?  Order your commemorative T-shirt now!  Here’s a note from Erie’s barefoot runner, Tom Madura:

Anyone that is planning on participating in International Barefoot Running Day, there are commemorative T-shirts available. It is not necessary to purchase a shirt to participate, but they are a nice memento if you’re planning on it. The design was determined by a contest held by The Barefoot Runners Society.

There are regular T-shirts, micro-fiber T’s, long-sleeved T’s, and sweatshirts available.

You will have to go to the website and purchase these yourselves. There should still be plenty of time to order them and get them in
time for the event on May 6th.

Website is here:  http://www.zazzle.com/barefootrunnerssoc/

I already got mine! I got the micro-fiber T and it’s really nice.

 

OH…and check out this super cool barefoot running infographic that Tom sent me, too.

This one’s for Tom Madura.

A note from Tom Madura, Erie’s original barefoot running guy:

Just over five weeks until International Barefoot Running Day!

Organized by the Barefoot Runner’s Society, “International Barefoot
Running Day is a grassroots, inclusive effort to promote barefoot
running as a healthy and viable way to run. It’s also about having fun
and delighting in the idea of running barefoot with thousands of
people worldwide on the same day.”

I’ve had a couple of people say they’ll join me on Sunday May 6th to
participate in IBRD.
I would like to get as many as I can!

Here’s what I have planned:

•WHEN: May 6, 2012 9:00 AM
•WHERE: Presque Isle; Stull Nature Center (near Beach 1)
•HOW FAR: Fun runs of 1-mile and 5km
•WHY:
◦To bring awareness to barefoot and minimalist running
◦To show support for this sport we love
◦To have loads of fun in a worldwide moment of barefoot solidarity

Runners in minimalist footwear (Vibram Five-Fingers, etc) are welcome,
as well as those in normal running shoes willing to at least TRY SOME
AMOUNT of barefoot running.

This is strictly a non-competitive, non-timed event.
I will provide water and snacks afterwards.
The main idea is to have fun!

Tom Madura
Barefoot runner for 12 years and counting!