Finding the perfect summer travel shoe can be an overwhelming task. No one wants to tote around a suitcase full of sneakers and sandals, but it's hard to have fun on vacation with blisters or a limp. Can you hike all day and walk into a nice restaurant for lunch? What if your travel plans include a morning run? Will French people stare at me if I'm wearing these?
Is there a shoe out there that is at once durable, sporty, good for water, and good-looking? Or should I just give up and put my Chacos[1] back on?
With one minor caveat, I can announce that my search is over. For the past few weeks, I’ve been running, hiking, wading through rivers, and meeting friends for lunch in Vivobarefoot’s Primus Trail Swimruns.
The Swimruns were originally designed for a Swedish race series called the Ötillö Swimrun, which can be described as an off-road triathlon sans the pesky biking portion. These versatile kicks are light, athletic sneakers that are designed to fit like a sock, with a breathable and draining mesh upper for when you go into the water and a durable, sticky, bright orange sole.
You don’t need to be a dedicated barefooter to enjoy these shoes, but if you plan on running in them, you probably should be. I’ve been running for ten years in successive pairs of Merrell Trail Gloves[2], and even I needed a little time to adjust to the Swimruns. But once you have, you probably won’t want to take them off.
Fun Run
I’m not a doctor, so I can’t exactly recommend barefoot running as a method of injury prevention. But anecdotally speaking, I took up barefoot running ten years...