Brand new!
This is a story of how I bought some new trainers. I got some Adidas Duramo TR 5’s on sale, as I was on a bit of a tight budget. I’ll start by doing a bit of a review of the shoes: They’re alright; they are breathable, reasonably lightweight, they feel comfortable and for the money, excellent value. Now that’s out of the way, what was I talking about? Oh yeah…
New, ish…
As a runner and trail runner; I’m talking about that little window you get between having brand new trainers, to them just being… Your trainers. Usually this is about 15 minutes; 20 if you’re careful.
That first mile you run in brand new trainers; it’s horrific! Maybe this is just me, but I find myself spending an inordinate amount of time during that mile, running all over the place, avoiding mud, adjusting stride to go over the puddles; expending twice the energy and probably covering about 6 miles inside every mile for a while (maths was never my strong point).
Until you hit that one, fateful, ill-judged footstep. That one when you were only half paying attention. Your mind occupied by weather patterns maybe, or potential rainbows immerging in the background. You step in the mud. Not just that thin mud that splashes up the sides a bit; I’m talking about that really thick, treacherous, malignant mud that you know about instantly.
You know about it from the sound and that squelching, sinking feeling as the muddy water seeps through; soaking your socks, your feet… And your soul. In frustration, you follow this up by trying to leap the next puddle, but comically misjudge it slightly to execute the classic: Scoop water from the edge of the puddle up with one foot (somehow), aaaand… Kick it, perfectly with the other foot (I can’t be the only person to have done this).
The despair hits, and you can literally feel the mud marinating indelibly into the fabric; rendering your brand new trainers into the simple, common trainer.
Suddenly however, with the weight of the new trainers lifted off your shoulders…. Or…. Feet? Whatever… A wave of empowerment strikes you in the head, as you think to yourself: “Fuck it!”
The following miles are much easier, as you step in every puddle in a battle of spite over the universe. The pace becomes much faster and you begin to wonder why you ever bothered to delay the inevitable in the first place….
And that’s the story of how yesterday, I had brand new trainers. Today I have trainers. True story.
The end.
