Preface1 There's No Biz Like Shoe BizMy Favorite Shoe: Deena Kastor-ASICS DS Trainer2 Kickin' It Old-SchoolSix Patents That Changed Running Shoe Design3 Running Shoe CoolMy Favorite Shoe: Kara Goucher-Adidas Adistar LD spikes4 Doing What Comes Naturally5 It's All Fun and Games Until Somebody Gets HurtMy Favorite Shoe: Dave McGillivray-Hoka Clifton 56 Minimalism to Maximalism: A Tale of Two InnovatorsMy Favorite Shoe: Karl "Speedgoat" Meltzer-Hoka One One Speedgoat 37 A Shoe Is BornMy Favorite Shoe: Scott Jurek-Brooks special makeup trail running shoe8 The Sub-2-Hour Marathon Quest and the Rise of Magic ShoesEight Epic Shoe Fails9 Made to OrderMy Favorite Shoe: Jenny Simpson-New Balance MD800 spikes10 What's Next?Appendix A: Getting the Most out of Your Running ShoesAppendix B: Donate Your Old Running ShoesAcknowledgmentsIndexAbout the Author
Kicksology is your all-access pass into the fascinating, colorful world of running shoes-and what makes up a perfect pair of kicks.
Brian Metzler is a freelance journalist who covers running, running
gear, and related sports.
A running shoe geek since his prepubescent cross-country team days,
Metzler has run more than 75,000 miles in his life, tested more
than 1,500 pairs of running shoes, run focus groups for several
running shoe brands, raced every distance from 50 yards to 100
miles, raced to the top of the Willis (Sears) Tower in Chicago, run
a marathon on top of the Great Wall of China, completed two
high-altitude 100-mile ultraruns, completed four Ironman
triathlons, and regularly races with donkeys in Colorado.
Metzler was the founding editor and associate publisher of Trail
Runner and Adventure Sports magazines and was a senior editor at
Running Times as well as Editor-in-Chief of Competitor magazine and
Competitor.com. He has written about endurance sports for Outside,
Runner’s World, Triathlete, Inside Triathlon, Men’s Health, and
Men’s Journal. He is the author of Running Colorado’s Front Range
and co-author of Natural Running with Danny Abshire and Run Like a
Champion with Alan Culpepper.
Praise for Brian Metzler and Kicksology "No one alive knows more
than Brian Metzler about that great modern indulgence: the running
shoe. Kicksology captures the science, the sagas, and the
surprisingly tantalizing backstories surrounding a subject that's
as personal and passionate to true believers as any religion. If
you've ever laced rubber to your feet for a run, you'll be
captivated by this delightfully probing book."--Christopher
McDougall, author of Born to Run
"Kicksology is a fascinating read, giving us an insider's look at
the running shoe business that Metzler has been involved with since
college. It is that obsession with all things relating to shoes
that gives Kicksology its breadth and depth and the reason it has
been drawing national and international attention."--Mike Sandrock,
Boulder Daily Camera
"Kicksology is a great survey of the modern history of running
shoes. A must-read for anyone in the sneaker game."--Matt Powell,
sports industry analyst
"Kicksology is a personal tour of running shoe history, design, and
business that only Brian Metzler could write. He has the uncanny
ability to be near the center of every new trend and takes the
reader on an informative journey through the many interesting
characters, stories, and ideas that make running shoes
fascinating."--Jonathan Beverly, PodiumRunner
"Brian Metzler's knowledge of the running shoe industry is as broad
as it is nuanced. Kicksology is a great broad-based dive into the
industry's evolution since its inception without getting too strung
up on detail and technical language. I found it very accessible,
and I expect that a layperson with an interest in the shoe business
will find it similarly easy to access."--Jonathan Stull, Editor,
Outdoor Project
"I loved reading Kicksology and recommend it a must-read for anyone
who runs. Brian Metzler has been one of the country's top running
writers for a long time because he asks the right questions and
delivers smart, thought-provoking answers with exceptional
storytelling. He presents the untold stories of running shoes:
where we are, how we got here, and what the future holds for your
feet."--Jay Dicharry, MPT, leading biomechanist, running gait
expert, and author of Running Rewired
"If there's a such thing as a living encyclopedia of running shoes,
it's Brian Metzler. Not only does he own more shoes than anyone I
know, he knows more about them than anyone I know. His passion for
running shoes, their history, evolution, and application is
unmatched and speaks to my sole."--Mario Fraioli, The Morning
Shakeout
"In Kicksology, we too can run in Metzler's shoes and gain access
to his hard-earned insights. The result is a fascinating
journey."--Laura Clark, American Trail Running Association
"It takes a true running shoe geek to write an informative and
entertaining book about running shoes. That's who Brian Metzler is,
and that's what he gives us with Kicksology. Like the proverbial
kid in a candy store, Metzler samples each new shoeminimalist,
maximalist, zero-drop, VaporFly, and so onwith unabated enthusiasm.
He also interviews the researchers and designers behind each shoe
to provide crazy stories and new insights we haven't heard
before."--Amby Burfoot, 1968 Boston Marathon winner, Runner's World
editor at large
"No one has more knowledge and passion about running shoes and the
industry than Brian Metzler. With Kicksology, he delivers a
compelling and engaging read."--Lisa Jhung, author of Trailhead and
Running That Doesn't Suck
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