When I search for a topic to write about for this column, I rely on almost any source of interest. I read health and fitness newsletters, go to lectures on fitness, talk to other runners, read newspapers, watch sports on television, and even resort to finding a topic in the comic section of newspapers. The comic section is amazing when it comes to poking a little fun at everyday life. This is especially true when it comes to the fitness world and many of the people in it. That is the case for this week. The comic strip, “Luann”, had a week-long adventure of her father going to a shoe store to buy a pair of running shoes.
As he walks into the store he is just astounded at the many shelves of shoes that are there for his selection. He asks the tattooed, pierced, teenager clerk for a pair of “tennis” shoes. This is a subtle take on the older generation right from the start. When the father was young and you wanted to buy shoes for an activity, you asked for tennis shoes. It didn’t matter if the shoes were to be used for basketball, volleyball, running, football, or tennis, you asked for tennis shoes. The shoe clerk took him to the several isles of tennis shoes. The father mentioned he wanted a shoe for running. The clerk replied, “Oh, the running shoes are two aisles down.” Today, if you want to buy shoes for an activity, you better ask for a specific shoe for that activity. No more generic tennis shoe that fits all sports. The Chuck Taylor Converse black high topped shoe is now used for the younger generation as a wear-at-all-times shoe. And the price is about four times more expensive than when the father bought it decades ago.
Here the father is once again confronted with several shelves of shoes to choose from. He asks the clerk, “Why are there so many different shoes to choose from?” The clerk answers, “There are so many shoes in case you pronate or something.” Being new to the running game the father asks the clerk, “What is pronation?” The clerk answers, “That means when your foot does weird stuff.” In many activity shoe stores the clerks are probably students working in the store as a part time job while they go to school. They are there to sell shoes and often have no knowledge of running physiology, biomechanics of running, or construction of the various shoes. The days of David Moody at Core Running are few and far between. The name of the shoe, the brand, and the color of the shoe was about as far into constructive advice the father was going to get from the clerk.
