I bought my first pair of VFFs this weekend. Before buying them, I tried to do some research. I wanted to know how long I could expect them to last, so I went to the Vibram website, and to their FAQ section.
Apparently, the question of how many miles you can expect to get out of them hasn't come up all that often. The question of whether one can wear VFFs if they have webbed toes is frequently asked, but nothing about how long they'll last. (Spoiler alert: no go for the webbed toes. Sorry.)
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Ed4's log claims: 1129 on his Virbam FiveToes (Active)
Seems like a viable claim really. I bet he gets more than that in the end. He might come in to say that was multiple pairs, but we'll see.
#2867
Ed4's log claims: 1129 on his Virbam FiveToes (Active) Seems like a viable claim really. I bet he gets more than that in the end. He might come in to say that was multiple pairs, but we'll see.
Pretty sure he's stated that is on one pair before.
The question of whether one can wear VFFs if they have webbed toes is frequently asked, but nothing about how long they'll last. (Spoiler alert: no go for the webbed toes. Sorry.)
That's not necessarily true - one guy in the minimalist / barefoot / huarachies google group sewed his up to create vibram 4 fingers:
Run to Win25 Marathons, 17 Ultras, 16 States (Full List)
Unless you accidentally get your Vibrams caught on something and get a bad tear, longevity shouldnt be an issue.
Vibrams will outlast any running shoe by a thousand miles!
My first pair of Vibrams (sprints) that I got two years ago have a ton of hard miles as well as a bunch of hiking, swimming, camping, climbing and day to day wear and they dont have any rips, tears or degradation.
Boy, they look dirty and smell like funk... But I bet I could get at least 3-4 more years out of them.
I cringe when I think about the $100pair of running shoes I was buying every 3-4 months... ouch!
Barefoot and happy
Yes, that mileage is on one pair.
I may never find out how much mileage they can ultimately take, because I'm at the point where I'd rather be running barefoot anyway.