The rest of the family was going on a bike ride. I had declined that because of bouts of dizziness and nausea for the last couple of days, but I felt better enough to run and it sounded like fun. It was still below 80 degrees at Wilson Creek Wayside and I had my faithful dog.
I didn’t think I’d be able to run barefoot on the gravel at all. I really planned on doing the barefoot part of my desert run on the desolate asphalt road that ran by the isolated dairy farm. That is, until I saw the huge double-tank milk truck go by, followed not too much later by the extra long horse trailer rig. Then the lonely gravel road seemed more inviting. So, I put my Vibrams in a plastic grocery sack, tied it to my fanny pack strap, and gingerly exited my vehicle.
The parking area and the first 50 feet of the road were covered with a sharp gravel road mix. My running was so slow that I felt like I was moving through a time warp in slow motion. I gave up the idea that I would be able to cover any significant distance and decided to set time goals. My 1/2 miles barefoot on the asphalt the previous week were taking me about 5 minutes, and I had been walking all over various terrain in my acre yard, so I chose 10 minutes in this situation.
After the road mix, the route had everything from slimy miniature ponds to large stones. Fortunately there was room to get around most of the muddy areas, and the large stones tended to be smooth and decently spaced to allow for reasonable footing. Most of the smaller rocks were pointy. All of the insects seemed too busy with their daily routines to bother me. I had been very concerned about thorns and puncture vine, but only encountered one large burr. It didn’t cause me any discomfort because my foot responded so well that I instinctively did not step down when I felt it. I just stopped for a split second, brushed it off, and continued on. Still, 10 minutes up the moderate incline, my feet were ready for a break. I found my faithful dog’s fluffy tail was ideal for (gently) wiping off grit before putting on my Vibrams. Thus, I floated up the remainder of the hill in 12 minutes, turned around and proceeded to glide 12 minutes down without feeling any stress on my knees, ankles, or feet. I could tell that the initial 10 minutes barefoot had been very beneficial to my form.
I took my Vibrams off again in order to run 10 more minutes completely barefoot, but 6 minutes and 38 seconds later my soles were telling me they had absolutely had enough for now. I slipped the Vibrams back on to finish my approximately 3 mile effort.
The soles of my feet felt very “activated.” I ventured a look at them to discover they appeared … completely … normal! No blisters. No cuts. Nothing to validate 17 minutes of barefoot running on a wild road in the desert. Would anyone believe me?
