The Unofficial 1st running shoe count 2011

Date January 23, 2011
Place: Carlsbad, CA
Event: Carlsbad Marathon and 1/2 Marathon

1. Asics
2. Brooks
3. Nike
4. Saucony

What was out there:
Asics - Everything you expect to see from them. Gel Kayano, GT 2160 etc.

Brooks - Adrenaline and Green Silence

Nike - Lunar and Structure

Saucony - A bit of everything

Some notes on the" LOUD trend" of low profile or bare foot footwear.
To be honest I was wildly surprised by the lack of this new Category. Yes, there were probably a few more traditional racing flats further back in the mix of runners but there was no strong trend. Although we saw lots of Zoot on the course most of what we saw were the new running shoes that are not in that category of low profile. Most notably of the 8-9,000 runners we spotted only one runner in 5 fingers.

My take away from this first view of 2011.
1. The running scene is alive and well.
2. Women are still driving the trend.
3. There seems to be a trend of the go fast low profile shoes at retail, it's not showing up in the people friendly event like Carlsbad.
4. There simply is not a better place on earth in January than San Diego County California

It's a good life....
Dave