Gear Time-kicks

Our running shoes are really erasers. Every step erases a memory of a past failure. Every mile brings us closer to a clean slate. Each foot strike rubs away a word, a look, or an event that led us to believe success is beyond our grasp.

John Bingham

I found this quote last night while checking out other running blogs and I fell in love with it. It is so true how your shoes help you "erase" the past with every step you take. If you read my story, you know how running helped me overcome difficulties in my life. I continue to run because I love it and it does so much for me, not just physically but emotionally. There is nothing like the high you get when you finish a great race or a great training run. 

So what shoes do I use?

As you know, I had a rough start in the shoe department. Since I was broke when I joined my first training team and knew nothing about running, I wore an old pair of New Balance All Terrain Shoes. Hey, they worked for gym class, right? Wrong.

Ouch.

After that I went out and got a relatively cheap pair of Nike running shoes from Kohl's. Again, not the best decision, but they worked. I did make the rookie mistake of getting a pedicure about 2 weeks before my first race and ended up having to stick moleskin over my blisters so they wouldn't get any worse. 

When I started training for my first half I decided it was time for some real running shoes, so I headed down to a running store in the city and got fitted for my first pair. They were Sauconys.

Oh man...do I love my Sauconys! I am to the point that I will wear no other brand.  I have since tried on other brands, but they just don't feel as good so I have stuck with the Sauconys. My first pair of Sauconys were motion control. I have found that I tend to walk on the side of my feet and at the time had done some research on pronation and decided I needed some motion control. These shoes were great and super comfy, but a little bulky. After I ended up at the sports medicine doctor she had me bring in my shoes. She watched me run on the treadmill in slow motion, held up one of my shoes and said, "Are these motion control?"

"Umm...yes? Is that bad?"

She looked at me like I was an idiot. Apparently I am a neutral runner even though I have a tendency to fall off the sides of my feet while walking in Danskos. Or maybe that is just Danskos...or anything else that is tall. Maybe I am just a clutzy idiot. Hah, I dunno...

Anyways, I continued to wear them because I had just spent a lot of money on them and wasn't going to just toss them aside. A year later when it was time for half marathon #2 I went and got a new pair cause the old ones just weren't cutting it anymore.

I got these...

The Triumph 7! I loved these shoes, and yes one of the main reasons I wanted this one was because it looked cool. I know...I know...you are not supposed to buy running shoes based on looks...but I saw these and my heart fluttered. And they felt awesome. And they turned out to be a lot lighter than my other shoes which meant I actually ran faster.

I wore these shoes out pretty quick because I ran in them THAT much.

A few months back I decided they weren't cutting it anymore, my feet were hurting after running so they got retired to "anytime" shoes and are now in the back of the closet covered in mud. One day I will clean them off...

So I went back to the running store and told them I wanted the Triumph again...which they didn't have in stock...but they did have the ProGrid Ride 3. I was a little nervous at first, but they ended up being lighter and more comfortable than the Triumphs. I didn't think that was possible, but apparently it is. I bought them, went home and looked them up on the internet...and found them cheaper...and in BLUE!

Oh yea, I bought those bad boys.

I train in the boring white ones and save these for races. The crazier the shoe, the happier I am, so needless to say these make me VERY happy. By rotating my kicks I have been able to keep them going a little longer than the others. Next time I buy a pair, I am searching the internet BEFORE going to the shoe store to try them on.

Haulin' a$$ in my blue Sauconys!

So, long story short, I love Saucony. I highly recommend them. They really do know running shoes. Like their add campaign says, "We know, because we run." And that's true.

Here's some interesting facts about Sacouny I found out as well.
"The company's first factory was founded in 1898 at Kutztown, PA on the high banks of the Saucony Creek^. In 1910, Russian immigrant Abraham Hyde started a shoe company in Cambridge, MA called Hyde Athletic Industries. Over the years, Hyde became known for making athletic footwear including brands such as SpotBilt and PF Flyers; Hyde Athletic Industries bought Saucony in the late 1960s, and moved it to Cambridge. By the late 1990s, when Saucony became Hyde's dominant brand, the name of the company was officially changed from Hyde Athletic Industries to Saucony.
Saucony's shoe boxes once had the phrase "sock a knee" printed on them. The Saucony brand represents the Saucony Creek's constant flow, and the boulders lining its creek bed."-Wikipedia

Oh and it's pronounced just like that, "sock-ah-knee". I'm glad I finally know how to pronounce the name, because in high school everyone called them "saw-coneys". Way off there fellow Eagles.

I also love that the symbol is a creek. Pennsylvanians are crazy about their mountain creeks. I should know, I am married to one.

Pine Creek-where my in-laws live. Ain't she purdy?

 What is your preferred brand of running shoe? What do you love about it?