Anton Krupicka is in currently Cape Town, planning to run the Otter Trail
Marathon <http://theotter.co.za/> on Saturday.
He's hosting a talk at a sports store at 18:00 local time. *And I'll be
attending!* Weeee!
For reference, it's currently 11:30 here, so the talk starts 6 and a half
hours after I send this mail. If I can manage the multitasking I'll give
some updates from my phone when I'm there.
Krissy Moehl is also running the Otter and also hosting a talk tonight in
Cape Town. At the same time :-(
Do any of you have suggestions for questions I should ask him?
I don't know what the talk is going to be about or even if there will be an
oppurtunity to ask anything, but I like to be prepared.
I'm going to be at the venue in one hour, the talk starts in 1,5 hours.
On Tue, Oct 9, 2012 at 11:31 AM, Jacques Blaauw <blaauw...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Anton Krupicka is in currently Cape Town, planning to run the Otter Trail
> Marathon <http://theotter.co.za/> on Saturday.
> He's hosting a talk at a sports store at 18:00 local time. *And I'll be
> attending!* Weeee!
> For reference, it's currently 11:30 here, so the talk starts 6 and a half
> hours after I send this mail. If I can manage the multitasking I'll give
> some updates from my phone when I'm there.
> Krissy Moehl is also running the Otter and also hosting a talk tonight in
> Cape Town. At the same time :-(
On Tue, Oct 9, 2012 at 10:34 AM, Jacques Blaauw <blaauw...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Do any of you have suggestions for questions I should ask him?
> I don't know what the talk is going to be about or even if there will be an
> oppurtunity to ask anything, but I like to be prepared.
> I'm going to be at the venue in one hour, the talk starts in 1,5 hours.
> Jacques Blaauw
> On Tue, Oct 9, 2012 at 11:31 AM, Jacques Blaauw <blaauw...@gmail.com> wrote:
>> Anton Krupicka is in currently Cape Town, planning to run the Otter Trail
>> Marathon on Saturday.
>> He's hosting a talk at a sports store at 18:00 local time. And I'll be
>> attending! Weeee!
>> For reference, it's currently 11:30 here, so the talk starts 6 and a half
>> hours after I send this mail. If I can manage the multitasking I'll give
>> some updates from my phone when I'm there.
>> Krissy Moehl is also running the Otter and also hosting a talk tonight in
>> Cape Town. At the same time :-(
On Tue, Oct 9, 2012 at 10:46 AM, Doug Sims <wdsim...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Ask him if a beard is necessary for running ultras. :) If so, I'm half
> way there... ;)
> Sorry, I got nothing. I usually just archive any threads that mention
> "ultra", 50 or 100 in them.
> On Tue, Oct 9, 2012 at 10:34 AM, Jacques Blaauw <blaauw...@gmail.com>
> wrote:
> > Do any of you have suggestions for questions I should ask him?
> > I don't know what the talk is going to be about or even if there will be
> an
> > oppurtunity to ask anything, but I like to be prepared.
> > I'm going to be at the venue in one hour, the talk starts in 1,5 hours.
> > Jacques Blaauw
> > On Tue, Oct 9, 2012 at 11:31 AM, Jacques Blaauw <blaauw...@gmail.com>
> wrote:
> >> Anton Krupicka is in currently Cape Town, planning to run the Otter
> Trail
> >> Marathon on Saturday.
> >> He's hosting a talk at a sports store at 18:00 local time. And I'll be
> >> attending! Weeee!
> >> For reference, it's currently 11:30 here, so the talk starts 6 and a
> half
> >> hours after I send this mail. If I can manage the multitasking I'll
> give
> >> some updates from my phone when I'm there.
> >> Krissy Moehl is also running the Otter and also hosting a talk tonight
> in
> >> Cape Town. At the same time :-(
Well that was fun.
About 50 people pitched up (they didn't have enough chairs).
The talk was about how and where Anton runs (on mountains), what he needs
from a shoe (not much, just some rock protection) and how he helped design
the Minimus line to suit his needs. The bit about the design process was
nice. It was interesting to see how much input he had.
There was a Q&A afterwards where it became apparent that most of the people
there didn't know anything about minimalism.
Krupicka said that on the terrain he runs he doesn't notice any heel drop
lower than 6mm. The current last has a 4mm drop, so it's easier to just
stick with that.
When I asked him about MAF style running, he said that he probably does
most of his training in an aerobic zone, but that he doesn't really try to
go at any specific pace or effort level or HR or anything. He just runs up
the mountain and down again.
Diet came up and he said that he doesn't worry about it too much, he just
eats real food. Except when he's racing, when he only eats gels. He says
the gels are easy to eat, easy to digest, quickly absorbed. Because of the
jostling, eating food while running makes him want to throw up.
Regarding hydration, he says that he mostly only drinks from mountain
streams. If they're far apart, he gets thirsty. Sometimes he'll carry a
400ml bottle with him and refill it at streams.
He ran an 84km race on some mountain in Spain last Saturday and now his
right leg is feeling a bit wonky, so he doesn't know yet whether he'll run
the Otter this coming Saturday.
Oh, and there was a lucky draw and I won a Minimus hamper (shoes, pants,
shirt, jacket) worth about R2000 ($230).
First time in my life that I've won anything. I have yet to get it, at the
moment I just have a voucher.
On Wednesday, 10 October 2012 09:03:38 UTC+1, Jacques Blaauw wrote:
> Oh, and there was a lucky draw and I won a Minimus hamper (shoes, pants, > shirt, jacket) worth about R2000 ($230). > First time in my life that I've won anything. I have yet to get it, at > the moment I just have a voucher.
Sound cool. Lucky you. Thanks for being our reporter!
On Wed, Oct 10, 2012 at 7:27 AM, Chris Bonner <clawrence.bon...@gmail.com>wrote:
> Nice followup, you lucky man!! :)
> On Wednesday, 10 October 2012 09:03:38 UTC+1, Jacques Blaauw wrote:
>> Oh, and there was a lucky draw and I won a Minimus hamper (shoes, pants,
>> shirt, jacket) worth about R2000 ($230).
>> First time in my life that I've won anything. I have yet to get it, at
>> the moment I just have a voucher.
On Wed, Oct 10, 2012 at 7:29 AM, Tuck <tuck...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Sound cool. Lucky you. Thanks for being our reporter!
> On Wed, Oct 10, 2012 at 7:27 AM, Chris Bonner <clawrence.bon...@gmail.com>
> wrote:
>> Nice followup, you lucky man!! :)
>> On Wednesday, 10 October 2012 09:03:38 UTC+1, Jacques Blaauw wrote:
>>> Oh, and there was a lucky draw and I won a Minimus hamper (shoes, pants,
>>> shirt, jacket) worth about R2000 ($230).
>>> First time in my life that I've won anything. I have yet to get it, at
>>> the moment I just have a voucher.
On Wednesday, 10 October 2012 08:16:39 UTC-4, Doug Sims wrote: > ...but, does the beard help?
> On Wed, Oct 10, 2012 at 7:29 AM, Tuck <tuc...@gmail.com <javascript:>> > wrote: > > Sound cool. Lucky you. Thanks for being our reporter!
> > On Wed, Oct 10, 2012 at 7:27 AM, Chris Bonner <clawrenc...@gmail.com<javascript:>>
> > wrote:
> >> Nice followup, you lucky man!! :)
> >> On Wednesday, 10 October 2012 09:03:38 UTC+1, Jacques Blaauw wrote:
> >>> Oh, and there was a lucky draw and I won a Minimus hamper (shoes, > pants, > >>> shirt, jacket) worth about R2000 ($230). > >>> First time in my life that I've won anything. I have yet to get it, > at > >>> the moment I just have a voucher.
Ugly to talk to Ian Adamson yesterday! One of my idols from back in the day... Look him off if you don't know him. But before I got into ultra running, he was the king of my prior sport of choice.
To keep it somewhat on topic, he works for Newton now...
/Sean
On Oct 10, 2012, at 1:27 AM, Chris Bonner <clawrence.bon...@gmail.com> wrote:
> On Wednesday, 10 October 2012 09:03:38 UTC+1, Jacques Blaauw wrote:
>> Oh, and there was a lucky draw and I won a Minimus hamper (shoes, pants, shirt, jacket) worth about R2000 ($230).
>> First time in my life that I've won anything. I have yet to get it, at the moment I just have a voucher.
> -- > "Minimalist Runner - Barefoot, Sandals, Shoes..." hosted by Barefoot Ted
On Thu, Oct 11, 2012 at 4:51 PM, Sean Butler <s...@2sparrows.org> wrote:
> Ugly to talk to Ian Adamson yesterday! One of my idols from back in the
> day... Look him off if you don't know him. But before I got into ultra
> running, he was the king of my prior sport of choice.
> To keep it somewhat on topic, he works for Newton now...
> /Sean
> On Oct 10, 2012, at 1:27 AM, Chris Bonner <clawrence.bon...@gmail.com>
> wrote:
> Nice followup, you lucky man!! :)
> On Wednesday, 10 October 2012 09:03:38 UTC+1, Jacques Blaauw wrote:
>> Oh, and there was a lucky draw and I won a Minimus hamper (shoes, pants,
>> shirt, jacket) worth about R2000 ($230).
>> First time in my life that I've won anything. I have yet to get it, at
>> the moment I just have a voucher.
> Sean, I hope you typed that on your phone... "Ugly to talk to..." and
> "Look him off..."
> That's some good autocorrect there...(I think I got the gist of it at least ;)
> On Thu, Oct 11, 2012 at 4:51 PM, Sean Butler <s...@2sparrows.org> wrote:
>> Ugly to talk to Ian Adamson yesterday! One of my idols from back in the
>> day... Look him off if you don't know him. But before I got into ultra
>> running, he was the king of my prior sport of choice.
>> To keep it somewhat on topic, he works for Newton now...
>> /Sean
>> On Oct 10, 2012, at 1:27 AM, Chris Bonner <clawrence.bon...@gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>> Nice followup, you lucky man!! :)
>> On Wednesday, 10 October 2012 09:03:38 UTC+1, Jacques Blaauw wrote:
>>> Oh, and there was a lucky draw and I won a Minimus hamper (shoes, pants,
>>> shirt, jacket) worth about R2000 ($230).
>>> First time in my life that I've won anything. I have yet to get it, at
>>> the moment I just have a voucher.
Anton Krupicka had to pull out of the Otter trail marathon because of a
nerve issue. His leg probably still hurt from the run in Spain the
previous week.
> Anton Krupicka had to pull out of the Otter trail marathon because of a nerve issue. His leg probably still hurt from the run in Spain the previous week.
> "US legend Krissy Moehl from Colorado took first place in a time of 5:24:59."
> -- > "Minimalist Runner - Barefoot, Sandals, Shoes..." hosted by Barefoot Ted
I've received the hamper!
I contained: socks, running shorts, a technical tee, a light jacket and a
pair of MT1010's. Everything is from their Minimus line.
I've worn the shoes on two short runs now. First impression: I can run on
ANYTHING!
No, seriously. Anything. I've run 100% barefoot for a bit more than two
and a half years now. I've done a total of less than 30km (20 miles) in
KSO's. These shoes make a huge contrast. I can step on golf-ball sized
rocks and hardly feel them. I can run on badly laid, broken up paving
without noticing any difference. Small pebbles melt into the background
noise. Grass feels weird; as if there's a random amount of cushion for
every given step, and the ground also moves up and down. Smooth cement
feels the same as smooth trail - I can't feel those huge pods on the soles
(this might change if you run for long enough, but I probably never will).
Other thoughts:
- Ground feel is almost non-existent, but this is kind of the point.
- Proprioception is way down, but not enough that my reflexes can't
easily handle it.
- I don't notice the 4mm heel-drop. The last pair of shoes I ran in
were Asics Hyperspeed 2 racing flats with, if I remember correctly, 7mm of
drop. This caused me constant PF. Apparently 4mm is okay (for short
distances, at least).
- They weigh 220g, which sounds extremely heavy, but I haven't noticed
much difference in my stride. My hamstrings were a bit sore after running
in these, but that may also be because of all the things I jumped onto and
off of.
- Stack height is 17mm front and 21mm rear. This is a lot more than I'm
used to (0mm). For now, it just feels weird and unnatural. I'll have more
to say about this when I've put a few miles on them.
- The construction seems very durable, but I haven't really been in the
bushes, so I can't say anything definitive.
- The lugs are very aggressively shaped, I can't wait to test them in
mud. And on loose dirt. I have a 8km in two weekends with a steep
downhill section with very loose dirt/rocks on top.
In all, I'm quite happy so far. Extremely happy that I won anything, very
impressed by the quality/cost/size of the prize. I didn't expect to ever
buy/wear running shoes again, so this is whole experience is quite
interesting.
On Mon, Oct 15, 2012 at 2:19 PM, John Kemp <j...@jkemp.net> wrote:
> "An Olympic swim distance across Bloukrans River"
> Interesting :)
> Cheers,
> John
> On Oct 15, 2012, at 7:57 AM, Jacques Blaauw <blaauw...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Race results are out.
> Anton Krupicka had to pull out of the Otter trail marathon because of a
> nerve issue. His leg probably still hurt from the run in Spain the
> previous week.
> I've received the hamper!
> I contained: socks, running shorts, a technical tee, a light jacket and a
> pair of MT1010's. Everything is from their Minimus line.
> I've worn the shoes on two short runs now. First impression: I can run on
> ANYTHING!
> No, seriously. Anything. I've run 100% barefoot for a bit more than two
> and a half years now. I've done a total of less than 30km (20 miles) in
> KSO's. These shoes make a huge contrast. I can step on golf-ball sized
> rocks and hardly feel them. I can run on badly laid, broken up paving
> without noticing any difference. Small pebbles melt into the background
> noise. Grass feels weird; as if there's a random amount of cushion for
> every given step, and the ground also moves up and down. Smooth cement
> feels the same as smooth trail - I can't feel those huge pods on the soles
> (this might change if you run for long enough, but I probably never will).
> Other thoughts:
> - Ground feel is almost non-existent, but this is kind of the point.
> - Proprioception is way down, but not enough that my reflexes can't
> easily handle it.
> - I don't notice the 4mm heel-drop. The last pair of shoes I ran in
> were Asics Hyperspeed 2 racing flats with, if I remember correctly, 7mm of
> drop. This caused me constant PF. Apparently 4mm is okay (for short
> distances, at least).
> - They weigh 220g, which sounds extremely heavy, but I haven't noticed
> much difference in my stride. My hamstrings were a bit sore after running
> in these, but that may also be because of all the things I jumped onto and
> off of.
> - Stack height is 17mm front and 21mm rear. This is a lot more than
> I'm used to (0mm). For now, it just feels weird and unnatural. I'll have
> more to say about this when I've put a few miles on them.
> - The construction seems very durable, but I haven't really been in
> the bushes, so I can't say anything definitive.
> - The lugs are very aggressively shaped, I can't wait to test them in
> mud. And on loose dirt. I have a 8km in two weekends with a steep
> downhill section with very loose dirt/rocks on top.
> In all, I'm quite happy so far. Extremely happy that I won anything, very
> impressed by the quality/cost/size of the prize. I didn't expect to ever
> buy/wear running shoes again, so this is whole experience is quite
> interesting.
> On Mon, Oct 15, 2012 at 2:19 PM, John Kemp <j...@jkemp.net> wrote:
>> "An Olympic swim distance across Bloukrans River"
>> Interesting :)
>> Cheers,
>> John
>> On Oct 15, 2012, at 7:57 AM, Jacques Blaauw <blaauw...@gmail.com> wrote:
>> Race results are out.
>> Anton Krupicka had to pull out of the Otter trail marathon because of a
>> nerve issue. His leg probably still hurt from the run in Spain the
>> previous week.
>> Both the men's and women's records were broken:
Not that it really matters, but I really find this surprising (and also Krupicka saying he didn't notice <6mm). I'm not sure exactly what level of drop bothers me, but I can notice as little as 2mm drop. I wouldn't imagine I'm especially sensitive to this, maybe just that I'm 99.9% zero drop/rise so any difference is more noticeable to me...
Maybe you and/or Krupicka are meaning that it doesn't bother you rather than it isn't noticeable?
> Not that it really matters, but I really find this surprising (and also Krupicka saying he didn't notice <6mm). I'm not sure exactly what level of drop bothers me, but I can notice as little as 2mm drop. I wouldn't imagine I'm especially sensitive to this, maybe just that I'm 99.9% zero drop/rise so any difference is more noticeable to me...
> Maybe you and/or Krupicka are meaning that it doesn't bother you rather than it isn't noticeable?
> -- > "Minimalist Runner - Barefoot, Sandals, Shoes..." hosted by Barefoot Ted
On Mon, Oct 29, 2012 at 11:28 PM, John (NoVa) <eile...@gmail.com> wrote:
> "I don't notice the 4mm heel-drop."
> Not that it really matters, but I really find this surprising (and also
> Krupicka saying he didn't notice <6mm). I'm not sure exactly what level of
> drop bothers me, but I can notice as little as 2mm drop. I wouldn't
> imagine I'm especially sensitive to this, maybe just that I'm 99.9% zero
> drop/rise so any difference is more noticeable to me...
> Maybe you and/or Krupicka are meaning that it doesn't bother you rather
> than it isn't noticeable?
I think, for me at least, that running with shoes at all is such a huge
change that there are some elements that I just missed. Like there's maybe
too much information and my brain just ignores some of it. When I get used
to the larger differences, I think I might start noticing other things.
I'm also quite surprised that a 4mm drop is something I don't notice
immediately. One thing to mention is that the drop isn't a step, but
rather a slope. Sort of like the second picture:
[image: Inline image 1]
This means that there's no arch support trying to interfere with my plantar
fascia.
Fair point, there's a lot more "noise" on a trail so signal/noise ratio falls in a sense. I guess to be more specific I'm talking about smooth flat ground where it's easy to detect the disconnect between what your eyes see (zero slope) and what your feet say (downhill slope from heel rise).
My point, if I have one at all here, is just that if the heel rise is detectable under any conditions, it is likely affecting how you run in other circumstances even if you're not consciously aware of it. But I know for some people a minimal amount of heel rise can be helpful or at least not harmful. I'm just someone who doesn't like heel rise and am pretty risk averse to including even a minimal amount of it.
On Monday, October 29, 2012 8:12:08 PM UTC-4, Sean Butler wrote:
> On trails or roads? I notice 4mm on roads but not trails. Well, some > trails!
> /Sean
> On Oct 29, 2012, at 5:28 PM, "John (NoVa)" <eil...@gmail.com <javascript:>> > wrote:
> "I don't notice the 4mm heel-drop."
> Not that it really matters, but I really find this surprising (and also > Krupicka saying he didn't notice <6mm). I'm not sure exactly what level of > drop bothers me, but I can notice as little as 2mm drop. I wouldn't > imagine I'm especially sensitive to this, maybe just that I'm 99.9% zero > drop/rise so any difference is more noticeable to me...
> Maybe you and/or Krupicka are meaning that it doesn't bother you rather > than it isn't noticeable?
I used to think that heel-drop was (for me) the most important thing to avoid in a shoe. But having now run significant distances (at last 200 miles each) in both Altra Instincts (0 heel-drop, but cushioned) and NB MT10s (4mm heel drop) I have to say that I'm beginning to think that the cushioning is more unpleasant for me.
The cushioning seems to stop my toes from spreading naturally, which hurts my feet and ankles eventually, but not until I've run over 10 miles. A 4mm heel drop doesn't seem to make any significant gait change for me, at least up to full marathon distance, and hasn't yet been the obvious cause of any pain...
On Oct 30, 2012, at 9:40 AM, "John (NoVa)" <eile...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Fair point, there's a lot more "noise" on a trail so signal/noise ratio falls in a sense. I guess to be more specific I'm talking about smooth flat ground where it's easy to detect the disconnect between what your eyes see (zero slope) and what your feet say (downhill slope from heel rise).
> My point, if I have one at all here, is just that if the heel rise is detectable under any conditions, it is likely affecting how you run in other circumstances even if you're not consciously aware of it. But I know for some people a minimal amount of heel rise can be helpful or at least not harmful. I'm just someone who doesn't like heel rise and am pretty risk averse to including even a minimal amount of it.
> On Monday, October 29, 2012 8:12:08 PM UTC-4, Sean Butler wrote:
> On trails or roads? I notice 4mm on roads but not trails. Well, some trails!
> /Sean
> On Oct 29, 2012, at 5:28 PM, "John (NoVa)" <eil...@gmail.com> wrote:
>> "I don't notice the 4mm heel-drop."
>> Not that it really matters, but I really find this surprising (and also Krupicka saying he didn't notice <6mm). I'm not sure exactly what level of drop bothers me, but I can notice as little as 2mm drop. I wouldn't imagine I'm especially sensitive to this, maybe just that I'm 99.9% zero drop/rise so any difference is more noticeable to me...
>> Maybe you and/or Krupicka are meaning that it doesn't bother you rather than it isn't noticeable?
> I used to think that heel-drop was (for me) the most important thing to
> avoid in a shoe. But having now run significant distances (at last 200
> miles each) in both Altra Instincts (0 heel-drop, but cushioned) and NB
> MT10s (4mm heel drop) I have to say that I'm beginning to think that the
> cushioning is more unpleasant for me.
Any amount of heel drop will involve some cushion. Solid rubber is too
much cushion for me, so I'm pretty hopeless in any heel drop.
On Oct 30, 2012, at 10:00 AM, Denise Skidmore <deniseskidm...@gmail.com> wrote:
> I used to think that heel-drop was (for me) the most important thing to avoid in a shoe. But having now run significant distances (at last 200 miles each) in both Altra Instincts (0 heel-drop, but cushioned) and NB MT10s (4mm heel drop) I have to say that I'm beginning to think that the cushioning is more unpleasant for me.
> Any amount of heel drop will involve some cushion. Solid rubber is too much cushion for me, so I'm pretty hopeless in any heel drop.
And some of us like/need a bit of cushion, at least at this stage in our running lives. :-) So it's nice to have all the options -- though I think for most it probably takes a 2-3 years to figure out what works best for them.
I can run 4-5 miles on pavement or a treadmill totally barefoot, I've fun 6-8 miles on pavement in 6mm or 8mm luna's, which while that thickness are fairly hard vibram so cushion is minimal. On the the other end of the spectrum I'll use a shoe like a kinvara which has both cushioning and a decent stack height for long road runs (where long = 10+ miles). (I also use it on shorter road and treadmill runs, just to remain familiar with it, since I don't often run roads for 10+ miles. :-) )
And then there are middle ground options in there as well. I might soon switch to the Saucony Pro Grid A5 for long road runs -- maybe I'm ready for a bit less shoe there now.
> I think for most it probably takes a 2-3 years to figure out what works
> best for them.
I have the "advantage" of a major issue in my hip. Marshmallow
shoes aggravate it in an hour, 4 mm huaraches take several weeks,
moccasins, sock foot or bare seems to be the only ways for it to improve.
Maybe in 2-3 years it will heal and strengthen enough that I can wear
other shoes again...
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