Preemptive Maintenance on KSO Soles?

[Shiraz-mataz]

My trusty pair of KSO's "fit like an old sneaker" as my father used to say.  I would like to prolong their life but have noticed that the soles are getting very thin in the ball.  A lot of people have posted pictures of holes wearing through in this area and I am wondering if anyone has tried any preemptive repair (before the hole breaks through).  Would slathering a layer of something like Shoo Goo over the ball area work?  If it will adhere then I could simply add another layer when that wears down.  Thoughts?

[UberC5]

I think one of the tradeoffs we are forced to accept with our minimalist shoes is that they will wear out faster then the marshmallow shoes everyone else wears.  This is unfortunate, as ours cost more too.  I dread the day when my blue camo KSO's fall victim to the miles I am putting on them.  But, minimalist doesn't mean "cheap".  I would worry that patching would compromise the dynamics of the sole, and possibly do more harm then good.  I really think that adding layers of shoe goo is, at best, something you should only consider if you're deep in the boonies and need to make it back to the trailhead.  I will be breaking in another pair of KSO's before the soles on Blue wear through.  Same goes with the KSO Treks I'm currently spending the most time in, and the Bormio's that will be here tomorrow.

You asked for thoughts, hope this helps

[jmijares]

I tried adding Shoe Goo to a pair of Bikila LSs and it actually changed the dynamics of my run.  It felt uncomfortable, like I was running on a slab of hard plastic.  After about a week it felt better to run on, but that was because the Shoe Goo wore off.

[JustinB]

Check out this company.  They offer a product to rebuild the sole of a boot. http://www.mcnett-outdoor.com/Repair-Guide/Footwear/218.aspx (about a third of the way down the page)

[UberC5]

Check out this company.  They offer a product to rebuild the sole of a boot. http://www.mcnett-outdoor.com/Repair-Guide/Footwear/218.aspx (about a third of the way down the page)

That's a cool link.  I need to do the toe cap on my work boots.  If only Vibram made an ANSI C/75 Five Finger.....

[ultrarunner100]

Hi all;
I am a new Bikila LS owner, and am really concerned that, after running only 84 miles on the shoes, which happened after running my first ultra, a 54K on a combo of stone dust, asphalt, and dirt trails (about 3/4 stone dust, 1/8 asphalt, and 1/8 dirt), I was shocked to find that the sole of my left big toe was already worn through the gray tread, into the black, and even starting to wear that down.

Here is a photo of the wear with the right and left compared side by side.



Even though I have only been running in VFF's for about two weeks, I seem to be adjusting to them really fast. I had been running in various forms of "minimal" shoes before the VFF's, and have strong calf muscles, so running the 54K was not a problem.
I had thought that running on stone dust and dirt would be much easier on the shoes than asphalt, so I gave it a try.
But looking at some of my old pairs of shoes, I find that every pair shows significantly more wear on the left sole under the big toe. I noticed while running yesterday in a pair of Asics that I was dragging (or pushing) my left foot a bit after the fore or mid-foot strikes.
I did some experimentation, and find that I need to adjust my form, so that I am landing directly under my COG. I have read "Chi Running" and seen the vid. I have basically changed from a heel striker to a forefoot striker, but sometimes that left foot tends to drag, probably mostly when I'm getting tired, and sloppy, and my cadence drops down.

When I ran 6.5Km on asphalt today in the VFF's, I did not feel that I was dragging the foot, but probably while running on the trails on Saturday, especially going down the very steep hills, I was scraping that foot along the ground.

Any suggestions / comments?

Thanks

FW