One day #WithoutShoes in 2011

On 4/5/2011, hundreds (thousands?) of people ditched all footwear to experience being barefoot for a day, all to raise awareness for children in developing countries who don’t have the option of using footwear when they encounter treacherous terrain or conditions (see bottom of this post for links to some criticisms of this “marketing” event).

Embedded below is a quick video I made of my experience during one day #WithoutShoes.

A few ruminations from my day #WithoutShoes

It’s nice to be able to really feel the ground and the terrain that you’re standing on, opposed to wearing shoes that remove the majority of foot-to-ground sensations.

Driving is fun without shoes. I like pushing on the brake & accelerator pedals with just one toe.

The ground is HOT (in Phoenix, AZ). My feet were burning as I stood on asphalt. I had to hop around or find shade to stand in to avoid getting burnt feet.

My wife was reluctant to accept my experiment of going #withoutshoes all day, especially since I had to meet her at work to pickup something from her boss. To avoid weirdo-shock, she pre-explained to him about my little #withoutshoes day experiment.

I was afraid of stepping on glass. I did actually spot a few small glass shards while walking around during the day and handily avoided them.

I was worried that the restaurant I went to for lunch wouldn’t let me inside without shoes (we sat on the patio so it was a non-issue). Same thing for dinner, although I went inside anyway and there was no issue.

Your feet get VERY dirty when you walk around barefoot. I know, big shocker, huh? I had to wash my feet before going to bed.

I need to buy some Vibrams! I love being able to feel the ground but I don’t want to worry about cutting my feet open on glass or burning my feet on hot pavement.

For more info on a day #WithoutShoes check out OneDayWithoutShoes.com.

I also enjoyed reading the Primalfoot Alliance critique of one day without shoes and other criticisms of Tom’s Shoes.

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