I am a shoe geek. There is no other way to put it. Dancing around my intimate knowledge of shoes as just part of my job would be as untrue as your ex telling you, “It’s not you, it’s me.” It most definitely was you by the way. I have an adoration and close relationship with running shoes that dates back to my first pair, Asics Gel Lyte II with split tongue technology that was so cool. From their sleek Formula 1 racing like speedy design to their warm, soft blanketing upper that comforts you on those long journeys from your front door, I am in love, lust at times.

I can very near rattle off every pair of shoes that I have run in over the past 20 years. Yes, it has been over 20 years now since I first embarked on a run in those grey and black beauties from Asics in 1990 at Fegely Middle School cross country practice. I will spare you from all the names but a few that were extra special to me:

• 1993 Nike Air Analog (my first 50 mile week in 1993)
  
• 1995 Nike Air Max Light II (my favorite training shoes ever made)
• 1996 Nike Eldoret (I can remember first screwing in the spikes of those bad boys)
• 1999 Reebok Instapump Fury (no shoe laces, lightweight, pump technology and ugly as sin)
• 2000 Adidas Supernova – now the Classic (this was my hey-day shoe; I was fit, fast and inspired by limitless imagination)
• 2003 Nike Zoom Miler (the freshest looking running shoe possibly ever made)
• 2005 Brooks Racer ST (my first flat used as a full-time training shoe, mostly on soft trails)
• 2008 Asics Hyperspeed 2 (these shoes are most remembered for all the miles they happily took a beating for me after a terrible break-up)

My favorites though, shoes that just weren’t shoes, they were shoes that had a special place to call their own in my bedroom, not just unlovingly stored in a closet (gasp,) were the 2000 Nike Zoo Jasari. They were light. They were fast. They were colorful (half neon red, half neon green with black accents.) They were perfect. When I first put them on, the shoe perfectly, gently, wrapped its sock-like upper around my foot. The spikes, Christmas tree shaped and ceramic for weight, were permanently engineered into a firm, but flexible nylon spike plate. I could barely sense that they were not a natural part of my foot. That is until my foot touched the track and the spikes gripped and compressed the Mondo rubber propelling me into a fiery blaze lighting up the track into crispy cinders around the final turn onto the homestretch… or something like that.

Because of my geekness, I have gained an incredible knowledge of all different types of running shoes. I study them. In my personal time I check out all the latest information I can find around the Internet (asicsamera.com, nikeplus.com, letsrun.com, etc.), talk to our shoe reps about what is new and new rumors (like New Balance dabbling in the barefoot/minimalist genre this coming spring). I tinker with shoes daily on the wall at Inside Track and in my closet that is dedicated entirely to my far too numerous pairs of running shoes. When I was middle school, I would dismantle shoes to find out what exactly is inside these magical instruments of travel. Asics Gel has come a long way from those early days. I can tell you the differences in Phylon, Cushlon, Air, Zoom Air, and Lunar midsole foams (and that’s just Nike.) Before I sold shoes, I could tell you the difference.

The really technical nerdy side of this all is fueled by my exercise science and bio-mechanics background at Indiana University (Go Hoosiers!). There, I first began to really study not just the shoes, but how your body and feet work with and without shoes. Terms like gait and foot-strike excited me like a seven year old whose eyes widened and mouth watered after gaining the bounty of a successful Halloween night. Books, magazines, and the explosion of the internet with pictures and videos fueled the hungry fire (thank you YouTube). Jesus Dapena, PhD, sportsscientists.com, years of coaching added to years of selling shoes and evaluating foot-strikes added to the now towering blaze. It now is an all out marriage of shoes and science.

Because I am a self-professed shoe geek, I am writing a series of articles about the current state of running shoes and the newest science, pseudo-science, and theory of what great, magical experiences your running shoes can help you do. I will explain the differences in shoes and what you should be looking for. To combat those long, hard miles and malicious, evil injuries, I will help you build a shoe (and sometimes lack of shoes) arsenal to keep you healthy and setting personal records. Along the way, I’ll sneak in some stories and express my undying love for running shoes. I promise to try not to wax poetic about how much I love the smell of new ones, or anything else that you find just a bit too deviant.

-Tom Taylor