Don’t worry, this is not an ad-- but a market survey.
Craft USA is distributing Karhu running shoes, hand-made in Finland and therefore quite expensive at $140-$160. They have nifty retro styling and have proven to be quite durable. They were featured in Inside Triathlon magazine earlier this year. They’re tagline is “No tiny hands involved”, which I like for being smarmy.
As you might expect Boulder has its share of very good running shops, but as of yet none has picked up this line. I have worn mine (M1 and M2) extensively, recently ran the Denver Marathon in the M1, and generally love the look and feel of these.
I am not a running specialist although like many runners I’ve picked up plenty of knowledge over the years, just enough to be dangerous.
My question is: Would you buy shoes from a tri shop that sells bikes and wetsuits, but is not a running specialty store? Consider that these would be the only running shoes I would sell (in 2007). Of course, I sell several styles of tri-specific cycling shoes already. I guess they would be more a destination item, but are they too expensive for training and racing? Is the styling too, well, Finnish? I like them but as I’ve come to learn my tastes are not mainstream – some would suggest odd.
Click on the link below to view some styles of the M-series. What makes me think it may work is that when I wear them I inevitably get loads of inquiries as to what they are and where can they be had. Once when I wore the red ones I was asked how many hamburgers did I need to eat to get the shoes. I’m a vegetarian, I replied.
I would if you had someone who knew about shoes. However, being that that is the only line of shoe you will carry as a consumer I would be skeptical that the shoe you were selling me was really the right shoe for me.
Not all shoes are good for all people, therefore variety is key.
I agree, there are many runners, and therefore many shoes.
What makes me hesitate is that I wouldn’t buy shoes from a store that only had one choice, unless they can convince that those shoes are best for me, or unless I went there specifically seeking that product. These are definitely not the shoes for everyone, for many reasons (cost, styling, support, cushioning). I am betting on folks seeking out the product, I guess.
The Karhus are most well-suited to neutral and mild overpronators who are not heavy heel-strikers, as I understand it.
I am no expert on the biomechanics of running, although it is a topic of great interest to me. My right-hand man in the shop has an MS in applied physiology, etc, and and we have kicked around this connection of tri bike fit with running mechanics endlessly (eg, should you change a fit based on someone’s running mechanics).
No, unlss they have the shoe I want at a good price. I almost exclusively buy Asics or New Balance, and I am cheap. So, I either find the cheapest dealer of the particular shoe I want, or I buy them online.
Smarmy is good though.
I buy all my running shoes from my local tri shop becuase they have a good selection and people who know what they are talking about. I agree I might be hesitant if the shop only carried one obscure brand.