More vivobarefoots half off and more today...men's and women

[noahf]

As the title states, the clymb is once again doing vivobarefoot's for soover Half off today again...

My experience with the clymb has always been great. I'll be ordering more vivo's today....

The price is right.. If you need an invite.. Here you go...

http://www.theclymb.com/invite-from/kingsville

Cheers!
Noah

[Mr. Leigh]

I just picked up a pair of white/black Neo M Airmesh.  I have heard good things about these shoes.  This will be my first pair.  You just can't go wrong when the total with shipping is $42.96.  Happy Valentine's day to me I guess.  Now I have to tell my wife what she just got me, LOL.  Easier to ask forgiveness than permission.

[noahf]

I grabbed another pair of oaks. The runners I wanted sold out fast. Oaks are prob my all time fav casual shoes. I wear everything vivo in 44 and I'm torn if the runners will be a tad big since everything except my suede aquas are a tad big....

Anyone have experience comparison of runners to oaks and aqua sizing?

[Kyrah]

I don't think I'll be buying anymore Vivobarefoot shoes ^.^  Every time I've purchased them online, they've ended up being the wrong size(even after following directions & sizing charts on the Vivo site itself)

I love my Brooklyn's and my Franklin's are okay.  I'm starting to dislike the Franklin's more and more though, the front where you tie the laces in to the hooks, there is so little padding by the hooks and I've ended up bruising the front and sides of my ankles many times.

By the way this is just my experience, I LOVE my Brooklyn's overall so I have nothing against people who DO buy Vivo's

[RayKay]

I don't think I'll be buying anymore Vivobarefoot shoes ^.^  Every time I've purchased them online, they've ended up being the wrong size(even after following directions & sizing charts on the Vivo site itself)

This is exactly why I have been reluctant to even try, especially with shipping and duty. Even if I get them delivered to the border store, it is not exactly convenient to drive down to find them not to fit! It is a pain in the butt to return or exchange things.

I thought about the Brooklyn's for a while..but decided I just was not fond of how they looked (this is coming from someone who wears Five Fingers EVERYWHERE so not a usual concern for me). Maybe they look better in person, though. I ended up with some Cushe's instead and just pulled out the molded insole to give them a zero to near zero drop heel (all support was in the insole). Thicker sole than I wanted so no ground feel, but at least they are (very) warm and I get lots of wiggle room for my feet. They aren't incredibly flexible in the sole, but they are not entirely stiff either. The trade off for warmth is worth it - I got frostbite on my toes last year wearing Five Fingers! I'd rather have something that looks good (to me) warm AND more flexible - which my mukluks are, but they are not waterproof and fit really narrow.

Anyway, when it comes to "casual" sporty shoes, I am quite fine with my Vibram's anyway. I like having my toes free. The times I need to don something more "normal looking" for certain events I have found a few reasonable ballet slipper style shoes that are not specifically geared towards minimalists, but certainly work very well!

[pooch]

I find most of the sizing reviews of the VB to be inaccurate.  LeftLane Sports had a VB sale a few weeks ago, and I picked up a pair of the new Neo Trails in Purple/Black for an amazing price (something like $55 shipped).  The site said the Trails ran a size smaller than it's sister Neos (in which I wear a 39) so I ordered a 40.  BIG mistake.  They were too big. I even told the rep on the phone that this was inaccurate, and she seemed a little shocked that it was that off. I shipped them back for a return/exchange, and I am due for my 39s any day now (btw, the customer service at LLS is AMAZING - VERY friendly and helpful, I recommend them hands down). Other than the Brooklyn's mis-sizing (I have it in a 40), from what I can so far tell, VBs basically run true to size, at least on the Neo family of shoes.

This makes 3 pairs of VB I own.  I only wear them for work and casual shoes - not for running.  But I only wear minimalist shoes - at work, casually, running or otherwise (I can't even wear my good ol' Nike Air Rifts more than a few casual hours before my feet start to hurt, and I used to LIVE in nothing but them! They aren't minimalist per-say, but they aren't fully cushioned either).  I think I am good on VBs now - unless there is a good sale on the Lucy, I am set for quite a while on VBs!

[Stefanie]

I find most of the sizing reviews of the VB to be inaccurate.  LeftLane Sports had a VB sale a few weeks ago, and I picked up a pair of the new Neo Trails in Purple/Black for an amazing price (something like $55 shipped).  The site said the Trails ran a size smaller than it's sister Neos (in which I wear a 39) so I ordered a 40.  BIG mistake.  They were too big. I even told the rep on the phone that this was inaccurate, and she seemed a little shocked that it was that off. I shipped them back for a return/exchange, and I am due for my 39s any day now (btw, the customer service at LLS is AMAZING - VERY friendly and helpful, I recommend them hands down). Other than the Brooklyn's mis-sizing (I have it in a 40), from what I can so far tell, VBs basically run true to size, at least on the Neo family of shoes.

This makes 3 pairs of VB I own.  I only wear them for work and casual shoes - not for running.  But I only wear minimalist shoes - at work, casually, running or otherwise (I can't even wear my good ol' Nike Air Rifts more than a few casual hours before my feet start to hurt, and I used to LIVE in nothing but them! They aren't minimalist per-say, but they aren't fully cushioned either).  I think I am good on VBs now - unless there is a good sale on the Lucy, I am set for quite a while on VBs!

So you are a solid 39 in VB's? (except for the Brooklyn.. which is a whole different story).  How do you feel they compared with Stems, VFF's, and Merrell Pace gloves as far as comfort/toebox/ground feel?

[PB Junkie]

So you are a solid 39 in VB's? (except for the Brooklyn.. which is a whole different story).  How do you feel they compared with Stems, VFF's, and Merrell Pace gloves as far as comfort/toebox/ground feel?

Stef - hope you don't mind if I give my 2 cents.

I have the VB Neos and Off Road High, in a W41 (I wear W40 in VFFs). I don't have the Stems, so I can't comment on them. 

When I wear something other than VFFs (which is rare), my "go to" shoes are my VB Neos.  I took out the insole.  The toebox is roomy enough for me, ground feel is excellent and these are very comfortable.  I have run in the Neos, but prefer my VFFs as I find the Neos a bit "sloppy" or lacking a customizeable fit. 

I also have the pace gloves, but I don't wear them as they seem too stiff to me, probably because of the rock plate.

[acc]

The Dharma is was actually cheaper on TheClymb than when Vivobarefoot had them on Ebay for $60 +25 shipping (http://myworld.ebay.com/terraplana254/?_trksid=p4340.l2559). Pretty impressive, except they only had size 45-47.

Little rant:
I find Vivobarefoot's athletic shoes (Evo/Neo/Aqua Lite/Lucy Lite) to be enormously overpriced because in the actual store they sell them for 2 pairs for $80 or $50 each for the clearance stuff, as opposed to $140-160. I can stand Vibram marking up 25-40% (but we're talking about up to 250% markup for Vivobarefoot.

The only thing that warrants Vivobarefoot to charge more than standard shoes is the development of their 3mm sole technology (the toeboxes on athletic models on anything but the Aqua Lite/Lucy Lite are pretty standard), but the parent company is Clarks / C&J Clark International Ltd...which is ridiculously profitable (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/8545195/Profits-at-Clarks-boosted-by-North-American-appetite-for-shoes.html ; the founder of Vivobarefoot is of Clarks family http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1355357/Are-shoes-killing-Modern-footwear-harm-health.html).
There's nothing stopping you from grabbing a pair of wide-width Mary Jane/ballerina flats from Payless for <$30 if you're a woman or if you're a man, resoling a pair of wide-width driving mocs or loafers with 1mm Vibram toppers like women do with Loboutins. The cobbler was able to completely resole a pair of my father's 30+ year old Bally loafers, so I suspect if you were to rip off the entire heel and put 1-2mm Vibram topper material it would possibly be better than Vivobarefoot.

Case in point: http://www.saveyoursole.co.uk/shop/

[Horse Rider]

It depends on what you do with the shoe. I could not wear a Bally loafer to run in snow and slush. I agree paying full price for VB is to be avoided, and I did, got mine at LLS for less than half the price. But I don't see any other shoes that can meet my needs as well as the Evos right now in a winter running shoe: ground feel (4mm sole with insole removed is real good), reasonable sole flexibility, toe box, stability (foot not moving around in the shoe), grip on snow and ice, protection from cold, water resistance, dirt resistance and good looks. And I still haven't seen any winter boots that meet my needs as well as the VB Off Road Hi. There is a lot of personal preference that comes into play when choosing a shoe.