[pct-l] Socks... And Fire...

[Scott Williams]

Yeah, cartoon feet!  That's it Jeffrey.  And what that gives your feet is
an almost barefoot feeling inside the oversized shoes.  My feet flop around
in my shoes which only provide protection from sharp rocks and other stuff
on trail.  But with no insole, my feet are free to claw and twist and move
anyway they want inside those floppy shoes.  The shoe is loose enough not
to impede my foot's natural movement.  The proof for me was no pain over
the entire CDT in spite of no support or stiffness, features most shoe
salesmen will try to sell you on.  And we carry a pack, walk with grit in
our shoes (I rarely wash my feet during the day, only at night when I don't
want to bring those filthy feet into my sleeping bag, however, I do believe
it is a good idea to stop and wash, I'm just lazy) and we do it day after
day for thousands of miles.

People have asked me if it's a problem going downhill for long stretches
when your foot can slip forward in the shoe and your toes jam into the
front of the shoe.  This does happen, but is not uncomfortable and never
caused a problem for me.

Think of the Tarahumara of the Copper Canyons running 50 and 100 miles in
huaraches, loose open toes sandals with old tire tread for a sole.  Our
human feet are potentially very tough and strong.  The most important part
of getting that toughness and strength for me has been lots of training,
lots of grit, lots of hiking in all conditions and not supporting them with
the crutches, the supports and pads, that keep them from becoming strong.
 For me, "less is more."

Shroomer


On Wed, Feb 12, 2014 at 6:59 PM, Jeffrey Olson <jjolson60 at centurylink.net>wrote:

> Man - there are so many opinions based in wealth of experience. Socks.
> Such an easy place to share.  My perspective...
>
> Use socks that are as tight and thin as possible.  You don't want thick
> heels or toes that can rub back and forth, back and forth - foot rubbing
> against sock.  You want your sock to be a part of your foot, totally
> separate and distinct from your shoe.  If there's any rubbing going on,
> it's between the shoe and sock not between the sock and foot.
>
> The combination of loose shoes, tight socks and rhythmic walking let
> your feet thrive after 100, 300 500 miles and beyond.  Feet spread over
> the weeks and tight socks and loose shoes allow for expansion.
>
> Common wisdom is to take breaks and air your feet out.  If you wear
> tight, thin socks in big ole shoes, the need to stop and air is
> lessened.  Your sweat evaporates better.  Blisters form because of heat
> plus friction plus dampness.  Get rid of the friction and dampness, and
> you can deal with the heat.  No blisters is the consequence of "dealing
> with the heat."
>
> Imagine you're a cartoon character with giant shoes, goofy and
> indolent.  Two months into the hike those goofy, slapping, shifting
> shoes receive the spreading foot.  You'll see it happen after a couple
> seeks.  Six weeks later, your flapping, tightly socked feet are now
> little slapping platforms helping you maintain 20 mpd...
>
> Once you've got control of your foot reality, you can educate your
> fellow hikers about the inadvisability of making fires anytime or
> anywhere except in  case of EMERGENCY.,..  And emergency doesn't happen
> very often.  You can be stupid about your feet and socks and shoes and
> the only one that suffers is you.  If you're stupid about fire, you can
> be responsible for lots of pain in the world.  DON'T BUILD FIRES PERIOD...
>
> Jeffrey Olson
> Rapid City, SD, soon to move back to Laramie, WY...
>
>
>
>
>
>
> On 2/12/2014 7:02 PM, Diane Soini wrote:
> > I think you just get what you like best. Personally, I like short,
> > thin socks best. But everyone is different.
> >
> > On Feb 12, 2014, at 10:00 AM, pct-l-request at backcountry.net wrote:
> >
> >> From: Jake Handy <jakers329 at yahoo.com>
> >> Subject: [pct-l] Injinji socks
> >> Hello all!  Due to the high number of people that recommended
> >> Injinji toe socks on here I gave them a go, and I must say they
> >> were awesome!  I'm going to switch to them for sure!  Two questions
> >> tho, I tried the short ones that just cover my foot and don't go
> >> too far up the ankle.  Should I stick with those or buy the ones
> >> that go up the calf? Secondly,  how many miles can I expect out of
> >> a pair? Til now I was using plain cheap men's polyester dress socks
> >> but was chewing thru those in 20-30 miles!!  I hope the Injinji are
> >> more durable!
> >> Thanks!
> >> Jake
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