Size DOES matter (Read 616 times)

Throughout my life, I have always had problems finding running shoes that wouldn't hurt my feet. Hit and miss, but mostly miss. Back in Sept 06, my wife was tired of my complaining and told me to get professionally fitted to find some shoes that would fit right, whatever it takes. I went to Road Runner Sports (lucky that I work about 3 miles from the superstore in San Diego), and got fitted. They determined I pronated and needed a Stability shoe. Tried on 6 or 7 pair, ran on the treadmill and finally found the shoe that fit like a glove.(mistake - running shoes aren't supposed to fit like a glove, it turns out) Brooks Trance 6 size 9. $145.00 OUCH! Oh well, whatever it takes. Needless to say, due to some work and Navy conflicts, was unable to really get out and run any real distance till recently. After yesterday's 3.5 mile hill run, I took off the shoes and could barely walk. I thought, uh oh, that's a 145 bucks down the drain. Went back to RRS today and discussed the problem. They have a 60 day fit guarantee, but it had been more like 120 since I bought the shoe. They said they would honor the guarantee in hopes of getting me set up right this time. Went through the full analysis, and they came up with the same basic results as last time, with the exception that this time they measured my feet instead of asking me what size I wore. They determined I needed a size 10, but I told them I normally wear an 8.5 and 10 would be too big. The girl helping me laughed and said that has probably been the problem. They brought out a couple pair of shoes; Asics Kayanos and Saucony Hurricanes, and fitted the shoes with superfeet insoles to help with my low arches. I took them for a run around the parking lont and... WHAT A DIFFERENCE. Now the good part. I get the the cash register, they refund my $145 for the brooks. Ring up the saucony's, superfeet, and I buy the VIP membership which knocks off 10%. They ask if I am military, (must be the haircut), I show them my ID, another 10% off. Grand total for shoes, inserts, and vip = $146.00. So I received new shoes, inserts, vip membership and over the top service for $1. Plus I have 60 days to make sure these shoes work. Moral of the story, running shoes are not supposed to fit like a glove and RRS = AWESOME service.

... and RRS = AWESOME service.

I completely agree. I've only dealt with RRS over the phone and internet but they were extremely friendly, helpful, and were flexible with me on their return policy also! (BTW, I wouldn''t recommend buying a pair of shoes the first time over the phone... try them on first.. then maybe buy your 2nd pair of the same shoe from RRS?)

I can't tell you the amount of black toenails I suffered through before I went to an actual running store and walked away with a size 9 (had been in my normal size 7 1/2s). I have only gotten black toenails since then from skiing/frostbite issues. The only downside to the larger size is I'm a huge klutz so I can't walk more than 10 steps without tripping in those clown shoes