[pct-l] Insole-nt Question

Thu Feb 6 17:24:01 CST 2014

May I say, because not enough people say it often enough: your
conglomerated brainpower and experience is awesome. Thanks so much for the
feedback, all.

~PE

On Thu, Feb 6, 2014 at 3:22 PM, Ken Powers <ken at gottawalk.com> wrote:

> That foam pad Shroomer spoke of is a Dr Sholls insert sold at nearly every
> grocery & drug store in the US. About a 1/4 inch of padding for the sharp
> rocky trails. When it starts getting flat I pull the pad out. My socks are
> very thin sock liners and the shoes are New Balance Minimus trail running
> shoes. Almost no padding between my feet and the trail.
>
> Ken
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Michael Slusser" <michael.slusser at gmail.com>
> To: "Scott Williams" <baidarker at gmail.com>
> Cc: "PCT" <pct-l at backcountry.net>
> Sent: Thursday, February 06, 2014 1:46 PM
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Insole-nt Question
>
>
> Scott,
>
> Rock on. I think my hesitation was only because so many people kept looking
> at me strangely and suggesting I was going to die if I didn't get a good
> insole. Thanks hugely for this insight (and for the other helpful ideas as
> well).
>
> ~PE
>
>
> On Thu, Feb 6, 2014 at 1:38 PM, Scott Williams <baidarker at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> > That's a good bit of my story as well Professor.  In 2010, I'd been
> > training in light trail shoes all winter with no problem and a month
> > before
> > setting out on the PCT I decided to try Superfeet.  I had plantar's
> > Faciitis within a few days.  I pulled them out, but suffered with light
> PF
> > all across the deserts.  The 5 weeks of snow in the High Sierra in seemed
> > to cure it.  The pace was reduced drastically and the swelling was helped
> > because it was as if my feet were on ice for much of the day, which in
> > fact
> > they were.  Walking wet also chilled 'em out.  I blasted up the northern
> > Sierra and across Oregon hiking 30 to 35 mile days for weeks and did just
> > fine.
> >
> > Then came WA and a tougher trail again, but we kept up the high mileage
> > for the first week or two and bam, the PF came back gangbusters.  I
> padded
> > and cushioned everything I could and  lived on vitamin I all the way to
> > Canada.  Then the worst was that even off trail it didn't go away.  By
> mid
> > November I was getting ready to see a Dr. when I read "Born to Run" and
> > heard  of the importance of not cushioning your feet so that they can
> > strengthen naturally.  I pulled out the heal pad.  Instant relief.  A few
> > days later I pulled out the arch support.  Even better relief.  Within
> the
> > week I had pulled out everything including the insert!  That fast, the
> > pain
> > that had been plaguing me for 3 months was gone!!!
> >
> > So, over the next year, I trained with light shoes with no insert at all
> > and then headed off on the CDT in 2012 and hiked the whole darn thing
> with
> > no pain.  Rocks, scree, snow, roots and being lost in total disasters of
> > overgrown vegetation and downfall, and my feet felt great!
> >
> > I've been training for the AT for the past year and all this winter in
> the
> > oldest trail shoes I have.  They're like walking on thick paper they're
> so
> > thin.  They're about to come through in several places and have no
> > traction
> > whatsoever, but I love them.  They cause my foot to become tough and my
> > ankles strong.  Having to adjust for slippery slopes and rocks makes you
> > become more observant of what you're stepping on and how you're
> supporting
> > yourself.  Not relying on tread makes me conscious of walking with care,
> > and I'm still fast for an old goat!
> >
> > Since 2010, I've come to love the feel of all the rocks and roots.  It's
> > like getting a foot massage whenever I hike.  Going without an insole at
> > first can be kind of scary, and your feet may even get a bit bruised.
>  For
> > this I still carry a simple, flat foam insert to provide a cushion if I
> > find I need one.  But I haven't had to use it since the CDT.  At the GGG
> a
> > few weeks ago, Ken Powers told me he also carries a simple foam pad for
> > hard rock sections.  He'll put them in when he needs them and then take
> > them out when he's back on softer trail.  He and Marcia hike in the
> > lightest "slippers" I've ever seen and they've done huge distances in
> > them,
> > and they're feet stay healthy.  We can build strong feet in spite of all
> > the years of cushioning and padding we've done to them previously.
> >
> > So, if you can persevere, stick with the lightest shoes and insoles you
> > can manage, or so insoles at all.  Don't hurt yourself, maybe keep the
> > insoles in your pack at first.  I carried mine for the first 1,000 miles
> > or
> > so of the CDT and only threw them out in Colorado when it became clear I
> > wouldn't need them, but I still keep a foam pad, just in case.
> >
> > Good luck, I think you're on to something!
> >
> > Shroomer
> >
> >
> > On Thu, Feb 6, 2014 at 1:03 PM, Michael Slusser <
> michael.slusser at gmail.com
> > > wrote:
> >
> >> Here's the short version of my story (no, really):
> >>
> >> About a decade ago, I started having trouble with heel, toe, and knee
> >> pain
> >> and swelling (plantar fasciitis, metatarsalgia kinds of issues)--not
> >> constant, but too often. I tried out Superfeet and had a good results
> >> with
> >> only occasional bouts of trouble, maybe once a month. As I started
> >> prepping
> >> for the thru-hike this year, the incidents started to worry me more, so
> I
> >> tried out half a dozen orthotics. A trip to the orthopedist later, I
> >> still
> >> hadn't found a great solution. I've had Montrails, Solomons, New
> Balance,
> >> and Brooks, all of which performed about the same.
> >>
> >> In frustration, one day I took out all the trappings and walked around
> in
> >> shoes with no insole at all.
> >>
> >> That was four months ago, and since I haven't had a single issue. I'm
> >> afraid to be hopeful that this is a solution, but I'm willing to try it
> >> out.
> >>
> >> The only concern is that, without an insole, I feel a lot of the rocks
> >> and
> >> other detritus on the path. So the question is, does anyone have a good
> >> suggestion for some sort of very, very thin padding to take the place of
> >> the missing insoles?
> >>
> >> Muchas gracias,
> >>
> >> Professor Errant
> >>
> >> --
> >> *Quid sum? Nil. Quis sum? Nullus. Sed gratia Christi, quod sum, quod
> >> vivo,
> >> quodque laboro, facit.*
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>
> --
> *Quid sum? Nil. Quis sum? Nullus. Sed gratia Christi, quod sum, quod vivo,
> quodque laboro, facit.*
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-- 
*Quid sum? Nil. Quis sum? Nullus. Sed gratia Christi, quod sum, quod vivo,
quodque laboro, facit.*