Measure your feet for t-rockets

To start get sufficient unmarked white paper and a pen and ruler. Draw the outline of your foot keeping the pen upright. If you tilt the pen it will change the shape of your foot which is unhelpful.

Now get the pen between the big and second toe and draw a nice mark at the deepest point. Do not push in too hard but record the spot firmly.

The next step is to mark the Medial and Lateral Malleolus. These are the bumps that form the inside and outside of your ankle. I am pointing at the lateral malleolus in the pic below. Carefully trace an arc that shows where your malleoli are when you are standing with legs (or lower legs) upright. You must mark the malleolus on either side of your ankle. The position of the malleoli is very important.

Once you have marked them get a ruler and mark a series of 1 centimeter intervals. Scan this diagram and send it to me. When we print it we need to check that the calibration is right. This is why you need to put in the centimeter intervals. (If you only have inches mark as such). Finally write down your normal running shoe size  UK SIZE or US SIZE.

Your final pic will look like this above.

Send your diagram to me at orders@t-rockets.co.za. Send the right foot diagram only. If you feet are significantly different sizes, then send a diagram for both your right and left foot.

Should you have any other questions mail me and I'll be happy to assist.

Foot of Africa Marathon in Sandals

Well it's been almost a year since I decided to try and make my own sandals and run in them. Last week I ran the Foot of Africa marathon in the Cape province of South Africa. The run itself is a mix of farm roads, mountain trails and some tar (asphalt). It is a hard run and the rainy weather on the day made some of the terrain a little tricky.

But my T. Rockets worked very well and they look good for some more miles. The sandal is a mix of closed cell foam and rubber, with non slip rubber uppers that give a good grip. The sole itself is removable and interchangeable with other soles of different thicknesses. For this run I used an 8mm midsole with an increase to about 11mm for the heel. This, I thought, would help with the downhill sections after crossing the big mountain on the route. These sandals weigh in at about 160gm.

In this time that I have been making my own sandals and learning "natural form" running (after being a resolute heel striker for 25 years) I have gone through a lot of pain and learned a lot. My physical problems have included achilles issues, tibialis issues and even a fractured 2nd metatarsal. Nonetheless I am very pleased with the way things are working now and my running is much better than it was a while back, especially hills. I have also overcome a piriformis issue that plagued me in traditional running shoes.

Initially I spent a lot of time experimenting with the huarache style sandal and after a lot of disillusionment I decided that materials such as eva foam, elastic, velcro etc should not be ignored. My sandals sit much better than any huarache I made.

Anyway, I am sending out this blog simply to assess if there is anyone out there even remotely interested in this minimalist running trend as my stories might be of some use to another wanting to walk this path .... or run this route. My plan is to share some of the things I have done and learned, both good and bad.