based upon my reading only the 1st edition of his book, and now this review, i suspect that Vonhof may (no disrespect intended) be overly invested in his theory of random variability of foot failure.
i based this on my own suffering and experience concerning the impressive rate at which foot fungus can propagate. i would propose that a solid percentage of seemingly random skin failures under athletic duress are due not to unknown causes, but to fungus growth at unexpected rates.
the enemy of reliable production quality is (excluding management and the government) dysfunctional variability. so any time we (as producers) can reign in a variable or two, that's generally a good thing. considering fungus, i think the author gives insufficient weight to how bewilderingly fast that stuff can multiply given ideal conditions.
other that that one tiny little thing, Buy the Book !
v.