Barefoot running is dead

Not quite, but there is no trend in that direction. However, on the other hand, minimalist running is trending up. I'm not saying this is good or bad, but just unexpected for some people, who thought that barefoot running was going to become trendier.





Now why is this? I don't think there is some vast shoe company conspiracy going on, but in effect, I think the shoe companies have done what they needed to do, and they have effectively turned any potential barefoot running trend into a "barefoot shoe" trend and a "minimalist shoe" trend.

Running shoes are big business. In it's purest form, barefoot running is a threat to that business. I think the easy way to see what happened is to look at various "barefoot running" sites on the web. What do you see? Shoes. Yes, shoes. There are 2 or 3 exceptions to this rule, but in general "barefoot runners" have become shoe sales men and women.