More on the Vibram Five Fingers Bikila (2010 Catalog Photos)

Don’t ask how, but I have managed to get my hands on a couple images of the Vibram Five Fingers Biki

05.06.10 – The Vibram Five Fingers Bikila is out!

Don’t ask me how, but I have managed to get my hands on a couple images of the Vibram Five Fingers Bikila that were taken from the 2010 catalog, which was on-hand at the recent Outdoor Retailer Trade Show. These images show off one color option each for the men’s and women’s fivefingers Bikila!

The men’s VFF Bikila is grey/green, a color combo which bears a striking resemblance to the grey/green KSO:

And the women’s Bikila pictured is orange/pink/grey soled:

The above (apparently) stock photos do the Bikila more justice than the original overhead (cameraphone?) photo we saw via voycontigo. In short, these Bikila’s look awesome.

Things I notice:

  • more aggressive tread — reminds me a bit more of the soles you might see on a running shoe. It’s partially obscured, but it looks like the focus of the tread takes its lead from the midfoot pad of the foot.
  • heel structure — I don’t know what else to call this, but there is a distinctive lip around the lower ankle of the Bikila. Perhaps this is to provide sufficient adherence to the heel (and account for the elimination of a rear strapping mechanism). I also wonder if the bit of added material here won’t help with wicking moisture away or at least absorbing it. Based on looking at these photos, I don’t get the impression that this heel design actually provides any real ankle support.
  • thin fabric throughout — like the KSO, the upper fabric looks to be a very thin material.
  • some sorta protective covering on the toes — don’t know how else to describe the shimmery bit I see on each toe (particularly noticeable on the women’s). Maybe this is reflective material? Maybe it provides some structure to the thin fabric toe upper? Your guess is as good as mine.
  • reflective material on the strap — I think I see silverish reflective material on the little dashes on the right side of the strap. This would make sense in light of the Bikila being geared to on-street running.

All in all, like the upcoming fivefingers Trek is geared to trail running or hiking, the fivefingers Bikila seems to be designed to compliment street/asphalt/concrete running. It’s exciting to see that Vibram is expanding their line and taking a concerted stab at providing a VFF running solution!

Of course, it’s going to take some time for Vibram to gear up and get the Bikila’s out on the street, so I for one am already looking forward to 2010!

I wonder how many times we can twiddle our toes to pass the time until then …

Other posts regarding new models:

By Justin

Justin Owings is a deadlifting dad of three, working from Atlanta. When he's not chasing his three kids around, you'll find him trying to understand systems, risk, and human behavior.

24 replies on “More on the Vibram Five Fingers Bikila (2010 Catalog Photos)”

Those are AWESOME! As a running I really appreciate Vibram’s attempt to get the running market – both with these and with the Trek for trail runners. Words cannot describe how much I want the Bikilas, though.

One thing: I have to disagree with you about the ankle support (of course, I could be completely wrong!). It looks to me like the raised end gives the heel cup some Achilles tendon support…like many running shoes do currently (with a stiff insert underneath the fabric). That being said, that’s based off of looks- there’s no way to know what it would actually be like until one had it in-hand.

I’m extremely excited for these though – they look like they would make awesome racing shoes for both XC and track.

Also, I would be willing to bet these are extremely flexible – much more so than previous VFFs – as the tread is very segmented. I hope so.

Anyway – great find, however you managed to come across these ;D ! Thanks for posting this!!

You might be right no the ankle. I was basing my comment based on the apparent thin-ness of the fabric beneath the protruding part.

And of course, you are correct on the difference to the KSO strap.

This model might actually work better for tennis and racquetball. I wrecked a pair of classics playing racquetball and have never ventured to try my KSOs on the court, for fear of wrecking them too. If these are a little stronger in the uppers, then that might be just the ticket. I just hope that the soles aren’t too padded… I like my FiveFingers having good ground feel.

Another great post. Just wanted to let you know I included your website in a roundup of Vibram Related information.

I agree that they look totally cool, but at the same time I have to ask myself a question, are they getting too crazy?

I mean, the only way I will consider a new line of Vibrams “better” is if they more closely mimick barefoot running. And if anything, the Bikila’s look like they might even be a bit further from barefooting than KSO’s, sprints, and classics.

The refelective meterial is to stop the top toe fabric (on top) from ripping when you “stub” your toe. I had my KSO’s for less then 3 days and on my first run, I “stubbed” my big toe and it ripped a hole through the top fabric. Now I have to use Aqua Glue to fix it. I think the addition of this stub guard is just what is needed on ANY VFF that could be used for the outdoor use. Thank Birthday shoes for all of your advice and follow-up on one of the best items to be made for the human body.

I really hope the women’s option comes in another color. I love the look on the Bikila, but man am I ever not a fan of the orange/pink combo. Orange on its own would be fantastic, but the combination is just not doing it for me.

I’m on my second pair of womens KSO’s. I can’t wait to buy the new Bikila. However I really hope that the women’s one is offered in a different color because I REALLY DISLIKE that pink/orange color. I like the men’s color though. I’d like to see them use some yellow in their VFF’s.

I just ran my first half marathon in Vibrams KSO. I loved it! I have had multiple injuries and recovering from a stress fracture to the heel in January and had to stop training for 6 weeks. I am running my 2nd half in Nasville on Sunday. They are awesome and I can’t wait for the Bikila model to be available.

Goodness me! I’ve was all excited for the women’s Bikila’s till I saw the colors! What *were* they thinking when they picked that horrific color combo of pink/orange?? I’ll take the men’s green/grey any day!

I do like the ground feel, but maybe a little additional padding will allow me to go past 8 miles no pain?

Maybe it is just me, but doesn’t it seem like this model is pretty much a racing flat with toes? Seems like it will violate the idea of wearing 5 fingers to replicate being barefoot.

I just purchased a pair of Bikila’s yesterday at City Sports…very comfortable. I thought I would have more trouble putting them on but this morning, it was easy. I hope that they prove to be durable.

My brother and law and I just received our Bilika’s… I ran a couple miles in them and so far I love them, but felt as if the right foot fit “differently” than the left. We both noticed our velcro straps are sewn incorrectly, and the shoes also have a few other minor flaws in the way they were sewn together. My sister’s bikila’s are fine…

So I took some pics of both pairs of shoes, can some of you current bikila owners take a peek at yours and see if you noticed the same thing? Basically, if you have the shoes on and strapped, take a look at the distance of the top of the shoe to the strap. Notice in the pics below, the left shoe has a small gap, the right foot has a huge gap.

Dan

http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k190/TurboSN95/bikila/bikila003.jpg

http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k190/TurboSN95/bikila/bikila002.jpg

http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k190/TurboSN95/bikila/bikila001.jpg

http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k190/TurboSN95/bikila/bikila004.jpg

Lets hope this is all the tinkering they do – I can foresee platform five fingers or stiletto ones at the rate they keep messing with them – Ive never had a problem with the ankle strap pinching my Achilles on my kso’s although the more aggressive tread would be nice there have been a few times where my KSO have felt like racing slicks! I tell you what they can work on is finding a better a rubber that doesn’t stink so bad – its quite embarrassing if you or others catch a whiff of them (and yes I wash them but it doesn’t seem to help and NO I don’t have swamp feet).

Been wearing KSO for almost two years but only use it at the gym. Tried out my new Bikila today for a 7 miles run. Boy my calves hurt but not as bad as I thought. Definitely better than KSO as the BoF is padded just right if you are trying to do Chi-Running as I am. Think it will take some time for me to get used to it.

Me, not a big fan of either of the color combinations… but I do love wearing mine(men’s).
I’m learning to be a runner still and over did it on mountain trails when I got these shoes- I think I strained my achilles- could barely walk for about 2 weeks… Back in them now and planning to return to the trails soon (meanwhile strengthening my calves to help avoid injury this time round).
One thing I’d like to mention for anyone getting their first V5- although they may feel INCREDIBLY tight when putting them on at first, tight feels good as your foot and the shoes adjust to each other, and you become comfortable not being able to cross your toes inside your shoes : )

Thanks for all the great content here, Justin

Just finished my first bikila run. After having worn traditionalrunning shoes I found the VFF’s to be so much more fun and entertaining. I felt my run was actually quicker, although I neglected to take the gps with me. I can tell you I have very weak calf muscles due to the pain on the outside of them. After I stopped running and began my cooldown, I felt as if my legs were still running. I wanted to keep going. I didn’t from the information I got from the various VFF blogs about transitioning gradually. I didn’t heel strike at all until my legs felt as if they were about to fall off and then I just stopped all together. Two miles on my first VFF run and it felt awesome. Only minor calf pain…..tonight lol.

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