If you have been using vibrams for a bit you may also need shoes with a wider toe box than you are used to. Vibrams will have allowed your foot to expand on impact and this can have the effect of making your feet a bit wider over time. Its useful for running, but not for shoes traditionally sized for feet that have grown into shoe shapes over the years!

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He who understands the WHY, will understand the HOW.

Have you considered Merrell Bare Access?
They are very lightweight shoes with zero drop but unlike the Road Glove or Trail Glove they include some moderate cushioning (about 8mm I think).
I started out using the Trail Glove and later switched to the Access for most road running. I've used them for virtually all of my running for the last 4 years or so, that includes 70.3 and IM distance triathlons. The original incarnation was incredibly flexible but the soles wore out very, very quickly. I'm currently using the 4th generation (i.e. Merrell Bare Access 4) and they have a little more structure but they're still pretty minimal. I have very wide feet and these fit me despite not being available in a "wide" size. So I imagine most people find them very roomy. I have several pairs put away just in case I can't get them anymore.

...I just checked to see if the 4 has been replaced yet and it seems it has, by the Bare Access Flex, which seems to be getting less favourable reviews. Maybe try and get the 4s!

Especially if your feet have widened since your transition to the Vibrams, you might want to try the Altra range - I currently use the Superior 2.5 - as they have a little bit of cushion but are zero drop.

Thanks for the advice! The Bare Access 4 looks like a viable option, if I can find any... I think when I did look at the Merrel Bare Access 4, but they were sold out at the time and had not yet released the Flex. You're right in that barefoot style runners seem to dislike (to put nicely) the new Flex. I guess I will try to find some 4's, unless you want to sell me your extras?!?! ^^;

No, they're mine. Get your own!
Best if luck ;)

I found a pair in my size!!! Anyone lend me some cash...

Ah crap. The Bare Acess was a great race shoe for me. Comfortable to wear sockless, zero drop, very responsive at fast speeds, a bit more firm than my Altra's. C'est la vie.

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Matt

I didn't realise I was sitting on a collectors item!

Hmmm, I think I have 4 unused pairs that I grabbed on sale last summer for about €60 each. If I can sell them for €200 each that's a nice €560 profit. Excellent!!!

But that does mean I'll need to quit running or find an alternative shoe.....

New Balance and Inov-8 both make minimalist crosstraining shoes that might be worth checking out. I'll never understand why NB got rid of their Minimus running shoes but the crosstrainers are pretty similar in my experience.

New Balance Minimus 20v7

Inov-8 Bare XF

I think they got rid of the Minimus because they hate making money... Seriously though, I think there was a legal issue similar to Vibram about not educating people correctly about the shoes. I did not see that particular Inov-8 shoe while browsing. Thanks, I'll take a look.

I ran (don't run anymore, long story) exclusively in Vibrams for 5 years and always ran significantly faster with them on as opposed to "regular" shoes. Like 30 seconds per mile faster. Sounds to me like your sizing is off on whatever model Vibram you're running in. I had similar issues when I switched from one model to another and had to change sizes.

I run in Vibrams as well and also haven't liked the full minimalist/sheet of rubber style of Vivo's, etc. I wouldn't actually recommend any Merrell's if you don't want arch support. I have a flatish arch and find Merrell's very uncomfortable because of their high arch and narrow midfoot/heal. I also would not recommend the NB minimus trainers (loved the old MR00 running shoe) or Inov-8 trainers. Training shoes almost universally have a solid rubber sole that is far stiffer and unforgiving than a more foam based running sole. They just don't feel the same.

My two recommendations would be:
Topo Athletic ST-2:16mm stack, 0 drop, 5mm removable insole (but not a barefoot friendly finish without the insole), wide toe box, moderately wide midfoot, normal heal.

Altra Vanish-R: 14mm stack, 0 drop. These are not out yet (supposedly February), but I'm excited to try them to replace my Topo's.

I think that is about it for low stack but not sheet-of-rubber soled shoes at this point. I might be missing something because I have annoyingly wide forefeet, but I've tried on a whole lot of shoes looking for my unicorn shoe.

I sure am glad you tried all of those shoes and not me ^^; The new Altras look VERY promising. I tried the Escalante with poor results last year. People love the shoe, but I just could not get over the amount of cushioning after running in Vibrams.

Topos also look like a decent option, and cheap! Thanks for the information.

Yeah... lets just say that Amazon probably wasn't too happy with me for a couple months as I ordered and returned 10+ pairs of running shoes just to find the one set that worked for me.

Have you tried Injinji socks? They wouldn't help at all if you're trying to be faster in transition (on the contrary) but I use them with regular trainers and love them to prevent blisters.

Try these:
Saucony Type A8 (closer to the specs you asked for).
Nike Zoom Streak LT3/LT4 (technically more padding but might tick every other checkbox better than everything else).
Newton Distance Elite (very different but you might find similarities because of how it formats your stride).
Adidas Takumi Sen 3 (higher drop but if you're fast and economical you might not notice).

Can't think of any other suitable current trainers for those want list specs, but if you didn't mind more cushioning, Altra and Topo would be prime candidates.

I do have "toe socks" and they do help with blisters, but i still had some trouble areas. Again, this may be a sizing issue, I am going to buy a size down to see if that helps. During transition I not only put on sock, but medical tape on my hot spots. It was very time consuming ^^;

I really like the Newton Distance Elites. They were my first running shoe when I started triathlon. I have a pair of gravity right now, but wearing them feels really weird now... It might just be that i need to readjust to wearing shoes again and not just write them off after 1 or 2 runs. I really wanted to get a pair of Newton MV3, but I guess they are not making them anymore...

Do you know stack height for the Saucony A8s?

I heard the Road Glove (not sure which generation) had an intrusive arch support which I didn't like the sound of and never tried them, the Trail glove arch was a bit more noticeable than I'd like (I'd be happy with none) but it never really bothered me. If I remember right the early Access models (1 & 2) seemed to have almost zero arch support but the 4 does have a little. I have neither high nor low arches. Perhaps if mine were low it would be an issue.

I had not heard about the Altra Vanish. This looks really intriguing. I love the Escalante (replace the original Instinct as my favorite training shoe), but I want something lighter and a bit more....agressive (?) for 12k road races and less races. I’ll be interested to see how they’ll work sockless. Maybe they can replace my bare access for sprint/Olympic distance once they wear out.

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Matt

13/17mm.

Whenever a shoe gave me that much trouble I ended up having to retire it (Hoka Clifton 3). No amount of work on the shoe or my feet could make up for a poorly design shoe and shoe insole combo.

I think Newtons always need an adaptation period even if you used them in the past, but someone else's mileage may vary.

Don't write off the LT3. It's a fantastic and very underrated shoe. Cheap too.

As other people mentionned, the Merrell Trail glove were awesome, and if you can get your hand on a pair now (new old stock sometimes) then go for it. Unfortunetly, they are nowhere to be found anymore, and the newer models (Bare Access) never convinced me due to the minimal arch support it offers. I also tried the Vapor gloves and Xero Shoes, but running on concrete with some gravel it quickly gets uncomfortable for longer runs.

A friend of mine tried the Altra, and although he is weighing more than me his experience with these shoes was terrible, the pair lasted a poor 3 months before wearing out on the toe line.

So far the two pairs I use and that I can find in shops where I live are the reedition of the New Balance Minimus 10v1 that can be had for pretty cheap on sale (they also offer a wide model), and my winter shoes are the Nike Air Zoom Terra Kiger 3. These are often overlooked, but the toe box is pretty wide, they are 24mm cushionning with 4mm heel drop and are as comfortable as slippers. They do great in snow, and are still in excellent shape after 1000+ km. But these are expensive..

Another vote for the New Balance minimus trainer.

New Balance still makes a a trail running shoe, and that's generally the go-to minimal running shoe for New Balance. Do try them out. The trail running shoe has reinforcement in the arc area, which you might not like. The trainer has a slightly stiffer sole, but doesn't have arc reinforcement. Both can be excellent running shoes.

Another possibility is the Skora Phase.

11mm cushion and zero drop. I ran in these about 3-4 years ago as I replaced my original vibrams with these and the now discontinued Altra Sampson. I liked them but didn’t love them. I later tried a pair of their Tempo’s which was in my top 3 favorite everyday running shoes. The Tempo’s are much more cushioned at 22mm but had a nice firmness to them. Unfortunately I had to switch to another everyday trainer since the company shut down for a year or two while they looked for a new financial backer. Haven’t purschased anything since the reopened for business late last year.

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Matt

Hey Matt,

I own a pair of Skora Form. I can't run in them because they I bought the leather version for everyday use and the leather stretches and now my foot now fits oddly in the shoe. I am interested in the Phase and contacted the company recently to see when they would be restocking the shoes. I believe they should be getting more inventory in the spring.

https://www.merrell.com/...ess-flex/29189M.html (Used them last year for my races including my 70.3