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Minimalist/barefoot shoes and gaiters


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Viewing 14 posts - 1 through 14 (of 14 total)
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  • #1314496
    Cesar Valdez
    Member

    @primezombie

    Locale: Scandinavia

    So after several years of telling myself that taking off my shoes and shaking out pebbles, dirt, pine needles, and twigs was no big deal, I finally broke down and ordered a pair of gaiters after a pine needle managed to turn into an annoying splinter over a month ago. I settled on a pair of MLD Superlight gaiters, and they arrived last week just in time for a section hike this weekend.

    Overall I really like the gaiters and how they preformed. They kept my feet free of debris, plus as an added bonus slightly dryer and warmer. And 60g total for the pair is not bad, especially considering how much weight I save using barefoot shoes.

    Yet something I didn't think about and that is an issue is that I wear barefoot shoes (Merrell Trail Gloves). After just one trip of around 35km total, the elastic string that goes under the shoe (and meant to be in the gap of the heel) got shredded.

    Anyone else have this problem? Not sure what to do. My friend that came with me on the hike said I could attach Velcro to both my shoes and the gaiters, but this seems like it's a bit much. I was thinking I could just attach thinner string and replace it often, but that's kind of annoying and a bit wasteful too (not that string weighs that much, but still). Then I thought maybe I could try and find a really tough and flat piece of fabric, maybe leather, to tie on my gaiters.

    Thoughts? Tips?

    EDIT: Fixed total weight of gaiters (without bottom straps).

    #2083436
    Adam Rothermich
    BPL Member

    @aroth87

    Locale: Missouri Ozarks

    I have a pair of Dirty Girl gaiters which do as your friend suggests and uses a piece of velcro on the heel instead of a string/strap under the foot. I haven't tried using them with my Trail Gloves but as long as you can get the velcro attached to the shoe it should work great. I've found Shoe Goo works ok for gluing the velcro on, the self adhesive stuff didn't hold up long for me, especially through water crossings.
    The velcro only needs to be about an inch long so it shouldn't add much weight to your footwear system :)

    Adam

    #2083440
    Troy Childs
    Member

    @tchilds

    I attached velcro to the sides of my barefoot shoes and made gators out of an old swimsuit from goodwill.

    Works pretty good cost me $5 and 30 minutes.

    #2083462
    Nick Gatel
    BPL Member

    @ngatel

    Locale: Southern California

    Run the string through a piece of vinyl tubing or similar. Do a Google search and you can find gaiters that are manufactured this way.

    #2083672
    Gerald L
    Spectator

    @mtngeronimo

    Locale: SoCal

    NM

    #2083675
    BlackHatGuy
    Spectator

    @sleeping

    Locale: The Cascades

    Why not just use a thin piece of strong wire – should hold up well, I'd think, without being too thick to be bothersome.

    #2083739
    michael levi
    Member

    @m-l

    Locale: W-Never Eat Soggy (W)affles

    These NB110's breath really good, semi waterproof like em. I use these in all but hot sunny conditions! mt110w

    #2083742
    Justin Baker
    BPL Member

    @justin_baker

    Locale: Santa Rosa, CA

    The solution to this is some kind of direct to heal attachment, like velcro. Velcro isn't very good though because it can collect debris, get detached easily when hiking through brush or stepping in snow, and in some cases the velcro attached to the shoe can get ripped off without you noticing.

    A more secure attachment is something I would like to see.
    Something sticking off the back of the shoe and a small loop to slide over the thing sticking of the back of shoe would be the best. I guess you could drill a screw through the back of your shoe and sew a loop on your gaiters. There was a guy on the forum who did this but you need a non minimal shoe with a substantial sole to do it. Even if you stepped through brush it wouldn't pop off like velcro.

    This is definitely something I've struggled with.

    You could always sew gaiters directly into the shoes (roger caffin mentioned this).

    5 fingers shoes seal perfectly around the ankles. In the summer around here we get grasslands with dense little grass quivers and stickers that will flood your shoes and torment you. The only shoes I wear in California grasslands during the summer are my leather vibram 5 fingers.

    #2083775
    Greg Mihalik
    Spectator

    @greg23

    Locale: Colorado

    Here is a Recent Thread on the subject.

    Clean shoes and McNett's SeamGrip will assure a long lasting velcro attachment.

    And this is Altra's Lone Peak solution to fuzz collection and velcro protection –

    AltraLonePeak

    #2084066
    Cesar Valdez
    Member

    @primezombie

    Locale: Scandinavia

    Thanks everyone for tips and info. Had no idea about the other thread. Somewhere Anna is shaking her head at my shameful lack of searching BPL (sorry!).

    What I am going to try first is the most simple possible solution, which is to simply remove the bottom strap and use the gaiters without them. These gaiters have elastic around the bottom, so maybe having no bottom strap will work (or at least work good enough).

    If that doesn't work, I have some flat nylon webbing straps that is pretty tough that I will try and attach.

    I am not crazy about the Velcro solutions, as it will get dirty and be tricky to attach to my shoes in the first place. I often go stomping ankle (and sometimes knee) deep in bogs/mud, so it would only be a matter of time before the Velcro fibers get jammed up with crud.

    #2084102
    Max Dilthey
    Spectator

    @mdilthey

    Locale: MaxTheCyclist.com

    If you're banging around knee-deep in mud, you're gonna lose the gaiter with no strap at all.

    I see two solutions:

    1. Use barefoot shoes like the Vibram KSO or the New Balance reccomended above with an integrated gaiter. These won't need cleaning out, you save weight, and the string problem is done.

    2. Use a pair of "barefoot" shoes that have a slight rise so that there's empty space in the midsection. A few different Inov-8 shoes have room in the middle. That way, the string won't touch the ground at all.

    #2084177
    Ash Nat
    Spectator

    @maritan

    I'm surprised no one has mentioned this yet. I have no experience with these (will be buying a pair shortly), but they seem like a good option for you. They are not waterproof, and you shoes will need to have laces for these to work.

    Simblissity Levagaiter

    They are unavailable for purchase till March 24th, apparently.

    #2084194
    Michael Gillenwater
    BPL Member

    @mwgillenwater

    Locale: Seattle area

    I've tried the levegaiters with minimalist shoes and was not a fan. Also used the Mt hardwear gaiters. Favorites are definitely Dirty Girls with minimalist shoes.

    #2084199
    Valerie E
    Spectator

    @wildtowner

    Locale: Grand Canyon State

    Instead of gluing velcro to the heel of the shoe, what about gluing on a small snap, like the ones in a Thermarest Snap Kit? Then you can sew a matching (male/female) snap onto the back of the gaiter — it stays in place, and no strap necessary.

    (Edited a typo)

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