Customer Reviews

Slalom in reverse! Review by Erwin

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After two long days of rain on Tuesday and Wednesday, my 3Km running course, which is usually compacted and trampled flat, was a little changed! It had become a mosaic of small puddles, muddy sections and dry areas. This meant that the feel was completely different from the usual dry, hard surface, now it had many different aspects to be sensing.

Wearing Paleos, you'll look for the muddy puddles and places to go, because it feels so pleasant. With ordinary shoes you would run slalom style to avoid the puddles and muddy spots, but with Paleos one runs the slalom other way to avoid the dry spots! Your feet don't get tired as fast as they do on a hard surface and I also had no burning under the heels.

The last leg of the run is lined with grassy fields. Inspired by the feeling of walking on the soft spots I ran through the middle of the meadow. Why haven't I thought of it before? So far I was always running in the seam area between gravel and grass. Sometimes you are so focused on the route that you don't even get the idea to run off the track. But of course the it's much more pleasant to run through the meadow than in the side area - you just never learn!

Once home I used the cleaning suggestions from Jörg's video and washed the Paleos by hand in the sink. This cleaning option is more practical for me than using the washing machine, because then I have the Paleos always ready for use in my backpack (if they are not on the feet or drying!)

Erwin (Posted on 5/16/13)

They will be great for doing my mud races! Review by Garrett Arkansas USA

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Hello, just wanted to let you know I just got the shoes. I absolutely love them! Being a medieval re-enactor I have to be honest I knew they were going to be either smooth against the skin or cause some rubbing after some use. Even I was surprised at how nice they feel. lol I will definitely be buying another pair eventually.

I can tell already I'll want to wear them most of the day for just casual use so it's going to take me sometime to get use to only wearing them on trails. I wouldn't mind applying to be a tester at some point. I think they will be great for doing my mud races.

Thanks you, for an amazing pair shoes.
Garrett (Posted on 5/11/13)

ALL-Terrain! Review by Manimal

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Got my Paleos a couple of weeks ago, took them on a hike today. Went up the Koolau Mountain Range here in Hawaii, about 6 miles there and back with about 1100 ft. elevation gained. Hiked/ran over hard and soft dirt, mud, roots, climbed over trees, ran through brush, climbed down slick drops with a rope, all wearing my Paleos. They didn't disappoint. It was very interesting to feel the chain links "bite" into the soft dirt and mud, I felt very secure in my footing. It was wonderful to feel all the terrain so closely without it hurting, there were a couple of spots where I stepped on a particularly sharp rock or edged tree root and it hurt a little, but nothing too different from doing it in a pair of vibrams.

Also, they are SUPER quiet. I could barely hear my footsteps at all, even when I was running. When I was walking I saw a lot more wildlife than I normally do on that trail. I am thinking about maybe wearing them with a couple of pairs of trail socks to go hunting (Half joking). After the hike my feet hurt a little, more of muscle soreness than anything. It was a good feeling. I was muddy, sweaty, and gross, so it was awesome to be able to just spray them with a hose and hang them up on my clothesline for a bit. I would recommend the Paleos to anyone who loves the outdoors, because they can handle all kinds of natural terrain with NO problem, and you may end up seeing more wildlife because they're so quiet.

Overall it was a wonderful experience! Paul
(Posted on 4/28/13)

Beyond my expectations! Review by Sven

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...made a 10 km run in the woods surrounding my house. It was beyond my expectations. I like to say to all the people "barefoot and safe". Sven (Posted on 4/26/13)

Pennsylvania U.S. Review by Tim

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So it finally warmed up enough for me to give my Pronativs a run. I took them disc golfing with me yesterday. It was around 45 F or roughly 7 C. It was bright and sunny. A good day to be out. I had no idea what to expect from the shoes except that it would be different from anything I had ever worn before. I put them on in a concrete parking lot with the liner socks. As I played through my round, a few hours in total I noticed quite a few things about these shoes.

First I was simply amazed at the amount of sensation that I got through these shoes, both for good and ill. On the good side it was fantastic to feel every blade of grass, all the dirt and sand and leaves. It was absolutely electric. I have always enjoyed being barefoot and these shoes seemed to be the closest to a true barefoot experience as I can get without losing any hope of protection for my feet from the various hazards that can be found. ON the downside of the amount of sensation that I got through these, it hurt quite a bit when I would step on a stone or stick wrong and get a sharp edge into the bottom of my foot. It felt exactly as it does when I do it barefoot actually. I know these shoes are meant to prevent damage, not pain. It just caught me off guard because all of my other shoes have thick soles and so offer at least some reduction in pain from sharp objects. It is worth noting that even though it hurt that there was NO damage to my feet, not even a little. SO the shoes protected me perfectly.

I had the chance to experience a wide variety of terrain with these. I walked up hill, down hill, around hills, and through streams. The shoes handled all of the terrain quite well. Though I noticed that there will need to be quite some adjustment to figure out how to really walk in these. I am an avid hiker and I am used to walking certain ways and know that on certain terrains. I know that for any situation there are certain ways to place my feet for optimal traction and stability. This knowledge works very well when using backpacking boots but not quite so well with the Paleos. The paleos demand different techniques so I will need to adjust.

For the first time out I really loved the shoes and I am look forward to my next outing. (Posted on 4/19/13)

My feet felt great! Review by Peter

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I took my PRONATIV for their first run at work this week, going for a 4.4km/26min run around the local park at lunchtime, with one of my workmates. He was really impressed, as were some other runners and folks we saw.

We ran mostly off the tracks, but over grass, rocks, through puddles and over mulch. I didn't wear any liners this time, but next week i'll try out both sets of fabric ones. It was a great run and my feet felt great. Perfect foot protection with best ground feel!

Peter (Australia) (Posted on 4/12/13)

They disappeared from notice at all! Review by Timothy US

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I just took my Pronativ's out for the first time yesterday and I wore the liner sock. While walking a few miles over rock, dirt, grass, creeks, and other stuff I didn't notice any sort of rubbing from the sock at all. Heck I didn't notice them at all. I slipped them one and set off and didn't really think anything more about them until I got back and took them off again they just felt right the whole time, so right they disappeared from notice at all.. I have yet to try the ankle sleeve out so my judgement is pending on them, but I like the socks so far. (Posted on 4/6/13)

First Impressions! Review by Trent

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The look. They look fantastic. The metal box they came in is a nice touch. It also makes for a nice display. I liked the touch of packaging the shoes inside the metal box on a cardboard cutout of some feet wearing the liner socks. I ordered my shoes with red lacing and accessories. I was surprised that of the two accessories, only the liner socks are red, the ankle wraps came in black. That aside though they still look killer.

The feel. I was pleasantly surprised at how smooth they felt. I honestly had no idea what to expect on this front so I think anything would have been a surprise. I walked around my apartment for a while in these and even though they are meant for natural surfaces they still felt just fine on carpeting. Both of the accessories have their advantages I think. I'm not sure which one I prefer at the moment, but I like them both just fine all the same. I think the mos apt description of how these feel is like a sock, exactly like a sock in my opinion.

Performance. It is still winter here and it is way too cold to consider going barefoot. If I had some neoprene socks it might be possible but for now I think it will be a couple weeks before I can do anything serious outdoors. Even though I haven't worn them I still have some pure speculation to share. I expect these shoes to work just fine for most terrains and hazards that I might come across. However there is one thing that I don't expect stellar results from with these. Here in Pennsylvania we have a wide variety of plants and trees that are covered in thorns. The thorns are very thin and razor sharp. These can easy pass through the tight weave of my hiking pants. I don;t expect these shoes to offer any resistance to these thorns. This isn't a deal breaker for me as I fully expect stellar performance from these shoes in every other area. I am super excited to use these this spring and summer.

Trent (Posted on 3/26/13)

Some Australian conditions! Review by Josh (Australia)

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Wandering the city streets, over flagstones, asphalt, metal grates and drain covers, in perfect comfort and safety. Running along the foreshore of Port Phillip Bay, over rocks, over shells, over hot sand and surf – perfect! Going for a jog on a 37oC day, through water, over shells, hot sand, wet and slippery rocks, seaweed – no problem. On a 37oC day, walking by the water over hot sand and rocks. The Paleos heated up quickly, to the same temperature of the sand, but quickly cooled down as soon as I started walking. Great Minimalist Footwear! Josh (Posted on 3/17/13)

Everything screams out quality! Review by Pierre

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I just received the pronatives. And i must say, the feel just amazing, everything about them just screams out quality that could last a lifetime! And the package was really nice. Felt like a treat just to open and watch the package. In Sweden it is very cold at the moment, so I have to wait until I can try them out in nature. I can not wait! Pierre
(Posted on 3/16/13)