Wednesday, April 29, 2009

When good ideas fail to catch on

I have four pairs of Nike Air Kukini running shoes. It is the best running shoe I have ever had, period. It is light weight, has excellent cushioning, and great ventilation. It also has velcro closures. I vowed to never buy a running shoe again until I found one with velcro closures. It is the greatest idea in running shoes ever. It is fast, it is easy to adjust and best of all, it never, ever comes loose. I have run thousands of miles in Kukini's and I have never had to stop to adjust my "laces."

The original Air Kukini, before Nike messed with it and then dropped it

When I found out Nike discontinued the shoe, I bought every single one I could find on eBay and other web stores. I only wish I had known earlier so I could have bought more.

I have talked to every shoe manufacturer I met about velcros and none of them seem to get it. I would have bought Newton shoes at Ironman Arizona, but they did not have velcro. I would have bought Spira Stingers in Boston but no velcro. So I continue to run in my Kukini's. I will run in those Kukini's until they fall off my feet.

Perhaps the manufacturers are not the culprits. It may well be that runners are so old-fashioned they can't see the benefit. You can get all kinds of laces but no velcro. Cyclists wear velcro and they put a lot more stress on the uppers of their shoes than runners do. I have ridden with velcro cycling shoes for the last 20 years.

As for training it has been a while since I posted. Here is a summary:
4/20 Boston marathon
4/21 travel to Berkeley
4/22 3K swim in pool
4/23 20 miles mtn bike in redwood park
4/24 8.5 mile tempo run on treadmill
4/25 3K swim in pool
4/26 30 miles mtn bike in redwood and chabot
4/27 8.5 mile tempo run (8.3 mph for one hour)
4/28 20 miles mtn bike in redwood park
4/29 3K swim in pool

1 comment:

Joe Small said...

I agree. Best shoe I"ve ever worn for Triathlons and OCR. Most comfortable, excellent grip in trails and drain water better than any. I've been using 2 pairs of old stock only for races for the last 10 years. NIKE - please bring these back for OCR racing- Velcro doesn't adsorb water or mud!!!!