Shoe Shopping

Brooks: Run (Un)happy

After what has seemed like an endless training cycle, my next marathon is seven days out. As if sick cubiclemates, the impending Frankenstorm, and the reemergence of some suspicious aches and pains weren't enough to worry about, I've had a last-minute shoe freak-out. A few weeks back, I realized I was due for a new pair. Unfortunately, I discovered that sometime during the last 500 miles, Brooks "upgraded" the model I had grown quite fond of, and there were no more Ghost 4s to be found anywhere in my size. I grudgingly bought the Ghost 5s, despite my qualms about changing shoes so close to race day. Today my concerns were sadly validated when I finally figured out that the blister-inducing irritation to my heels was courtesy of the seams Brooks introduced to the new model. (As best I can tell, they just serve an aesthetic purpose - my heels may be in agony, but the lining is two-toned!)

See what I mean with the seams?

Cue the panic. This last-minute shopping assignment seemed akin to trying to find a flattering dress the day of one's high school reunion. Actually, I viewed it as a even higher-stakes endeavor: running shoes can literally make or break you (as I learned when Vibram Fivefingers likely caused my pelvic stress fractures).

Enter the Asics Gel Nimbus. (I know, I know - a brand change! So close to race day! Am I crazy?) I marched into a running store today to make sure they hadn't been drastically retooled since I last ran in them. I stopped wearing Asics about a year ago, after I became frustrated that pair after one-hundred-forty-dollar-pair disintegrated on me too quickly. Desperate times call for desperate measures, though: I plunked down the money knowing I just need these shoes to last me 26.2 miles. That is if pneumonia, a hurricane, or injury doesn't prevent me from stepping up to the start line in the first place.