Bikila notes...

[Adam C]

Adam I'm surprised about the strap.  Mine fit so perfectly over the top of my foot that I dont even tighten the strap.  They hug my foot so I just loosely close them and i'm in business. 

Yeah I can't seem to figure out why it rubbed.  I felt it for awhile but just ignored it.  The blister is about the size of dime maybe a little smaller but it's just very irritating.  Hopefully the rubbing will stop!

Marley:  what the heck?  you've been too hurt to run and on your first time out you pop 9?  i'm impressed but dude dont play it safe or anything :-)

Go Big or Go Home! - Marley's Motto!

[marley mission]

might need to change that to 'go big and limp home'

[Adam C]

might need to change that to 'go big and limp home'

 

[Jimmy Hart]

adam where's the blister?  would loosening the strap up change it or maybe tightening it?  i guess it depends on what was actually rubbing.  i would not expect the strap to move at all.  you dont have any random pieces of fabric hanging free from the upper do you? 

Marley you're a man...the man.  that's some long running my friend. 

[FL Runner]

i could see the bikila being the shoe of choice on race day and for long runs - that extra sole cushion could be a benefit when logging long mileage in minimalist shoes - anyway - they felt just fine (with injinjis too) loved the fit and love the look

Just got my Bikilas last night and initial impression is the same, I see Bikilas as my Tempo Run/Race Day and Long run while keeping my KSO's in the Easy run line up. Feels like I may be stuck in my old ways a bit as I always rotated my "normal" running shoes but for some reason it just feels like it will be right.

Will find out more soon, easy run tonight, tempo run Friday and long run Sat. I'll try to update my initial thoughts with actual results on Monday.

[Adam C]

Didn't bring the shoes to work today so I'm not sure if there is a piece of fabric where it is hitting me.  I'll have to investigate prior to my run this evening.  I have a blister on the inside of my right foot, right at the beginning of my arch.  In Classics today as it just barely misses the sore spot on my foot.  Hopefully it was just a loose string that I can snip when I get home tonight.  I didn't even bother to look after the run.  I was just enjoying how my feet felt after jumping out of them

[Jimmy Hart]

there is a seem right where you are talking about.  where the upper, strap, and white inner lining all come together.  the inner lining stops at that point being cut to follow the line of the grey strap leather on the outside.  odds are you were either rubbing there or the material might be a little long.  could also have been that the material is still just a little stiff.  i dont think this should or would remain a major issue though.  good luck and let me know.

[Adam C]

Follow up -

So far I have run 10 miles in total in the Bikilas.  Some positive and some negatives. 

Last night I set out to do a 6'er, no hockey means more outdoor time!

When I got home I took a peak at the inside of the Bikilas to figure out what is causing the blister.  It is certainly the stitching I am trying to figure out what I can do to fix this issue, maybe some toenail clippers to or a file to file down the area that is adjitating my foot.  I didn't want to spend to much time on it so I decided lets run with a band-aid on the blister and move on!
I stepped out the front door and I have a little downhill which leads to a big uphill.  The downhill was amazing!  No more slipping and I felt very stable versus the KSO's or running barefoot which usually has me saying OW OW OW!  Next up the big hill.  I found that running more with a flat foot in the Bikilas was more comfortable kind of gave my calves a break going up hill.  A different feeling but I felt very relaxed. 

3 miles in I felt very fatigued.  I relate this to the fact that I have been doing most of my mileage lately barefoot and the added weight, minimal weight mind you, but, it felt like it was a factor.  Shortly after the 3 mile my foot hurt!  The padding under the strap is really hurting my right foot (left foot is fine).  It felt like my veins on the top of the foot were being constrained and I had to change the tightness from loose to tight, tight to loose.  I am still trying to get these Bikilas to stretch.

Has anyone else experienced the sore glutes in the morning?  I am not sure if it relates to the tread or not but man I feel like my butt got a work out like no other this morning.

I love the heel in the Bikilas, best design ever!  If only I could figure out what to do with the cushion that sits under the strap I may actually never run barefoot again, well on occasion but most of my runs would be in the bikilas.  I love the fact that when my toes get sweaty in these I am not slipping and sliding around.  When I get sweaty feet in the Kso's my feet feel like they are on a slip'n slide. 

I plan on wearing the Bikilas all weekend to stretch them out a bit and will be doing a 10 miler on Sunday to prepare for the Half Marathon on May 29th.  My first half marathon.  Pretty stocked about it.  Hopefully by Sunday I will have figured out how to strap the shoe so I don't have to adjust it on the run.  I am half tempted to cut the strap off on the right foot if it doesn't stretch.  I guess my right foot is slightly larger then my left.  Maybe I will purchase a pair of 44's and wear a 43 on the left and 44 on the right.  Time will tell.

The Band-aid helped up until the 5 mile mark then I started to feel the band-aid! I CAN'T win!

[balsam0]

That is why I am waiting for my local store to get them in.  If there was an issue with extra threading they would put some moleskin on it for me.  Then I wouldn't have to worry about it.  That is what they did for my sprints when the threading on the strap was cutting my foot.  The manager took them to a back room and applied moleskin to the strap and they feel great.  Only problem is the stretching of the pinky toe.  That is a standard issue that everyone experiences and it goes away pretty quickly. 

[Jimmy Hart]

adam nice report and yes i too had the glute pain but only on my right side.  that's the side that i had my knee rebuilt so i took this as just a compensation response.  maybe it still is but more of a from thing than just my one leg thing.  it's a good response though as it means we're working those muscles more and the more muscles you can incorporate the more efficient you will be. 

i would say that after or around the ten mile mark in the shoe plus the 9 hours at work is when i really felt the shoe fitting my foot.  i'm thinking the sweat from running helped the material stretch out some and now the shoes are perfect for me.  so much so that a guy at my running store tried them on and he said he could feel that they were molded to my foot already!  amazing thought for a vff. 

moleskin over the seam could be a good idea as it would put a smoother and softer surface over the seam.  outside of that you just have to remember that on longer runs you break down some and you're gonna feel everything. 

[Adam C]

Quick follow up. 

About 30-35 miles in the Bikilas so far and I have noticed some changes.  As I reported before, the strap was irritating the inside of my foot and causing a blister on the inside part of the strap.  This issue has been resolved!  After running a couple times with a band-aid to prevent further damage to the are the Bikilas have stretched quite a bit.  Tonight I was doing a training run for the 20k I am running on May 29th and noticed that I had to tighten the Bikilas up tonight. They seem to have stretched a bit to much.  I was actually a bit loose in the shoe tonight.  I could certainly tighten the strap a bit more but I didn't want to change it mid run. 

I LOVE THESE SHOES!  I can't say that enough.  Yes I have had some minor issues with them but overall the very best Vibrams out there! 

[Adam C]

Another training run last night... focused more on speed work then length.  Pretty excited to say I LOVE THE BIKILAS!  Still... I am having minor issues with the fit but I am sure some adjustments to the strap will help.  I may have said this already but it feels as if the Bikilas stretched out a bit too much.  Although I can't reall complain about that because I do prefer my shoes to be a bit looser.  After I started sweating and got the blood going they felt find.  No blisters! 

I did however notice last night that I had some calf tightness after I ran.  I don't think I changed form last night as I felt pretty comfortable even at the higher speeds so I am blaming this on poor eating.  I didn't eat very well yesterday, and by eat very well I mean, pretty much ate nothing.  All in all a great run and I have been promoting the heck out of the Bikila.  I think it is the easiest of the Fives to get someone to try since they look like a normal running shoe, well besides the wiggly toes

Looking forward to this 20k I am feeling pretty confident at this point.  Some major hill training is in store this weekend so will see how the Bikilas fare.

-Out!

[Jimmy Hart]

i havent seen any over stretching in mine and i logged a half in them in wet conditions.  they seem to have stretched enough to have a perfect fit and went ahead and stopped there for me :-)

adam to your calf soreness that could be attributed to the speed you were running as well.  you said you were doing some speed work which will call on the calves a lot more and the bikila does create some differences in foot strike.  it's not great but the shoe is designed to help in that area so both of those along with your lack of nutrition could be causes. 

[JohnnyIdaho]

I haven't seen anyone comment on this, I'm sure they have, but I probably missed it. If you were to buy only one pair of vibrams that you only use for road running, would the Bikila be choosen everytime over the KSOs?  I haven't seen the Bikila's in person yet so i'm super curious.

[iPhreak]

I do not own a pair, but from everything I have read the answer would be yes, the Bilikas would be the way to go.